Hae-Sung Kwak, President Visco Headquarters
I was invited by BISCO, a global dental materials company, to attend a training at their headquarters in Chicago. BISCO is short for Byung-In Suh Corporation.
For me, Visco is not just a material company. This trip was special to me because I have been reading the adhesion books of the founder, Dr. Byung-In Seo, since I was in school.
Our relationship began about 10 years ago when I called the company on a whim to give Bisco a try, and since then, along with Evoclar and 3M, it has become a core part of my practice’s lineup.
Because minis are thin restorations, they require a different lineup for each situation, from adhesive color to pretreatment products. You can’t just stick to one company’s products.
The BISCO Experience brings BISCO Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) from around the world to our headquarters for lectures and hands-on learning. It was the first event to resume after being canceled due to the pandemic.
More than 20 people from Australia, Japan, and Iraq attended, along with professors from Kyung Hee University and Pusan National University in Korea. I was able to join thanks to the generosity of Dr. Seo’s nephew, Woo-Kyung Seo, who heads our Korean office.
One of the highlights of the three-day course was hearing from the scientists who developed the product, including a dentist and a chemist. Usually manufacturer seminars are filled with clinicians, but Biscoe brought the researchers who designed the product into the classroom to explain how adhesion works at the molecular level.
I was able to see why Biscoe is known for its strong chemistry. I also got a sneak peek at some of their upcoming products. I also had the opportunity to chat with the conservation professors who accompanied me between lectures and ask them questions.
I’ll always regret not being able to fulfill my bucket list of getting a book signed by Dr. Byung-In Seo in person. I was saddened to hear the news of Dr. Seo’s passing two weeks before my trip.
I paid my respects at his gravesite without ever meeting him. Even though I didn’t get to see him in person, it was comforting to know that his legacy lives on throughout the company.
Back in Seoul, I’m tweaking some of my protocols. There were many new things I learned at the headquarters training that I was able to incorporate into my clinical practice immediately.
The course materials also reflect the training. When I think about the impact it will have on more than 100 provider dental offices, I can’t waste a single line. It reminds me that my horizons as a clinician are expanding one step at a time.
