Dental technicians: Bureaucracy endangers company succession

Dental technicians suffer from enormous bureaucracy. The documentation requirements for dentures alone are immense. This could discourage the younger generation from taking up the profession, master dental technician Dominik Kruchen knows from personal experience.

This article is part of the special feature on bureaucratic madness in the skilled trades.

When the first EU directive for medical devices was adopted in the 90s, master dental technician Dominik Kruchen got a sense of the wave of bureaucracy that was about to hit the industry. Five years ago, the latest Medical Device Regulation came into force, and it's a real doozy. Every single material used in dental prostheses must be precisely documented by dental laboratories for each individual case. This includes not only the materials used, but also the employees involved and the equipment used.

Dominik Kruchen is President of the Association of German Dental Technicians' Guilds (VDZI) Photo: © VDZI

"We photograph every batch number and record it in a special program," says the president of the Association of German Dental Technicians' Guilds (VDZI) . This is intended to facilitate batch traceability. The strict EU directive is a consequence of the scandal surrounding defective breast implants.

The entrepreneur from Düsseldorf ( Kruchen Zahntechnik GmbH ) doubts whether this is comparable . "In my 30 years of professional experience, I have never experienced a situation where the batch of a crown or bridge had to be traced."

Another source of frustration for dental laboratories is the "Clinical Evaluations for Custom-Made Prostheses." They argue that these evaluations offer no added value in patient care. At a parliamentary evening for healthcare professionals last November in Berlin, the association president asked health policymakers to advocate at the European level for the repeal of "this nonsensical requirement for small businesses . "

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Three out of ten employees take care of administrative tasks

Three employees from his ten-person team are exclusively occupied with administrative tasks , explains Dominik Kruchen. It's not necessarily the regulations themselves that bother Kruchen. Much of it serves safety and occupational health and safety. "But the documentation requirements demonstrate a distrust of business owners."

From employee training and working hours to handling hazardous substances and waste disposal – everything has to be recorded. Her daughter, Linda Kruchen, is also a master dental technician. She doesn't yet know whether she'll take over the business one day. "She loves her work, but the administrative work puts her off."   

Survey on bureaucratic burden in the skilled trades 

In 2023, the German Confederation of Skilled Crafts (ZDH) , together with the 53 Chambers of Skilled Crafts, conducted a survey on "bureaucratic burden in the skilled trades." The results are clear: bureaucratic burdens are increasing and robbing skilled tradespeople of time for their actual work.

74 percent of participating craft businesses reported that the amount of bureaucracy they have to comply with has increased in the last five years. Businesses in the health-related trades were particularly affected, with 94 percent reporting an increasing burden, followed by food-related trades (bakers, butchers, confectioners, etc.) at 86 percent. These are the key survey findings.

• For 74 percent of the participating craft businesses, the bureaucratic burden has increased over the last five years.

• Constant adjustments to new legal regulations are the greatest burden for 76 percent of craft businesses, followed by the effort required to fulfill proof and documentation obligations (54 percent).

• 58 percent of companies state that self-employment in the skilled trades is becoming increasingly unattractive due to the bureaucratic burden.

• 68 percent of craft businesses that communicate digitally with authorities perceive the digital exchange as a relief.

• However, 35 percent of companies do not communicate with authorities digitally. The main reason: the authorities' lack of digital communication channels.

DHB now also available digitally! Simply click here and register for the digital German Crafts Journal (DHB)!