Kulzer
Develops high-performance dental materials and digital dentistry solutions, specializing in prosthetic resins and composites for clinical and laboratory use.
- CEO / Founder
- Chris Holden
- Team Size
- 1001-5000
- Stage
- Acquired
- Total Funding
- Undisclosed
- Latest Round
- Acquired
- Key Investors
- Mitsui Chemicals
Technology & Products
Key Products
Venus® composites; Flexitime®; xantasil®; iBOND®; GLUMA®; Venus White®; Pala®; cara© Digital Solutions
Technological Advantage
Proprietary expertise in polymer chemistry for dental applications, supported by the global R&D resources of Mitsui Chemicals Group.
Patent position
Kulzer filed 5 patent families in 2022–2024, down from 11 in 2019–2021, a 55% fall versus an 18% fall in tracked AM filings in the same patent offices; Applications rose from 82% to 100%. AMPulse analysis
- Filing momentum
- 5 families filed 2022–2024, 11 in 2019–2021 (-55%); all tracked AM filings in the same offices -18%
- Focus, 2019–2021 → 2022–2024
- Applications 82% → 100%
- Filed in
- EP 54%WO 27%CN 23%US 12%
- Named competitors, AM patent families
- Dentsply Sirona Primeprint 683D Systems 300
26 AM patent families in total. Recent years are still being published, so read a filing change against the same-office figure.
Differentiation
Value Proposition
Provides dental professionals with high-quality materials and integrated digital workflows that enhance prosthetic precision and reduce chairside time.
How They Differentiate
Leverages nearly 90 years of polymer expertise to provide high-density prosthetic resins and integrated digital workflows (cara©) that compete on material reliability and clinical support.
Market & Competition
Target Customers
Dentists and dental technicians
Industry Verticals
Cosmetic dentistry; Tooth preservation; Prosthetics; Periodontology; Digital dentistry
Competitors
Dentsply Sirona; Ivoclar; 3D Systems (NextDent)
Growth & Milestones
Growth Metrics
Global workforce of 1,400-1,500 employees; 26 global locations; Brazil market includes 300,000 dentists and 20,000 technicians.
Major Milestones
Founded in 1935 with Paladon resin; Established Kulzer Brazil in 1984; Acquired by Mitsui Chemicals from Heraeus Holding GmbH in 2013; Celebrated 40th anniversary of Brazil operations in 2024
Notable Customers
Modern Dental Group; University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine
AM patents
AM-relevant patents linked to this company.
- Patents
- 32
- Granted
- 6
- Families
- 26
Leading domains: process (32), application (28), equipment (13)
Filings by year: 2024: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 6
- RADIATION-CURABLE COMPOSITION FOR USE IN RAPID PROTOTYPING OR RAPID MANUFACTURING METHODS04039223 · EP
- LIGHT-CURING COMPOSITION FOR THE PRODUCTON OF DENTAL COMPONENTS WITH MATT SURFACES04126545 · EP
- DEVICE AND METHOD FOR SIMULTANEOUS ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OF COMPONENTS COMPOSED OF DIFFERENT MATERIALS04291385 · EP
- METHOD FOR PRODUCING COMPONENT BY WAY OF STEREOLITHOGRAPHY112533749 · CN
- PRODUCTION OF INDIVIDUAL DENTAL PROSTHESES VIA CAD/CAM AND RAPID MANUFACTURING / RAPID PROTOTYPING BASED ON DATA OF THE SITUATION IN THE MOUTH OBTAINED BY DIGITAL MEANS20130326878 · US
Funding rounds
- Acquired$578M2013-07Source: Reuters - April 2013