Equipping a new dental clinic involves many decisions, and instruments are one area where careful planning saves both money and stress. Use this checklist as a starting point, then adjust it for your services, chair count and expected patient volume.
Examination
- Mirrors and handles
- Explorers
- Periodontal probes
- College pliers
Hygiene
- Sickle scalers (anterior and posterior)
- Universal curettes
- Gracey curettes (5/6, 7/8, 11/12, 13/14)
- Sharpening stone
Restorative
- Excavators
- Plastic filling instruments and condensers
- Carvers and burnishers
- Matrix systems (Tofflemire and/or sectional)
- Cement spatulas
- Rubber dam kit
Oral surgery
- Extraction forceps (upper and lower, molars, roots)
- Straight and angled elevators
- Luxating elevators
- Periosteal elevators
- Retractors
- Surgical curettes
- Rongeur and bone file
- Needle holders, tissue forceps, scissors
- Haemostats
Endodontics (if offered)
- Endo explorer
- Spreaders and pluggers
- Locking pliers
Reprocessing
- Cassettes for each procedure
- Pouches and wraps
- Lubricant and indicators
How many sets?
Plan at least three sets of each kit per room (in use, in processing, ready).
Save time with kits
Pre-assembled and custom kits make equipping faster. Explore the Oral collection or build kits in our kit builder.
Tips for equipping a new dental clinic
Start with the procedures you will actually offer in the first year. A general practice usually needs strong examination, hygiene and restorative sets first, while surgery and endodontic sets can grow as your list develops. In addition, plan for reprocessing time: every set spends part of the day in cleaning, packaging and sterilisation, so you need more sets than chairs.
Next, standardise patterns across every surgery. When each cassette holds the same mirrors, probes, scalers and forceps, assistants set up faster and fewer instruments go missing. Similarly, a single supplier for core patterns makes reorders simple, because SKUs and handle styles stay consistent.
Finally, budget for quality rather than quantity. Well-made stainless steel instruments hold an edge longer and survive repeated autoclave cycles, so they cost less over their working life. For example, a good sharpening routine for scalers and curettes can extend their use by months. If you are equipping a new dental clinic and want help building a phased list, contact Aurix for a quote on complete kits.
