For several years, Dr. Anderson focused on building his clientele while dreaming of expanding his facility. Patients appreciated his and his staff’s attention to detail and the way that technology played a role in their treatment. “Our biggest educator is technology, especially through pictures,” he says. “If I show you, you recognize the issues and take ownership of them. I don’t have to explain as much.”

As his patient numbers increased, he felt confident that soon he would be able to move into a larger facility, and began looking for nearby land on which to build a practice. “I knew it would make a big difference to move into a more professional-type complex,” Dr. Anderson says.

Though he tried hard to make the numbers work, Dr. Anderson eventually realized he couldn’t afford to both build new and properly outfit the space. Fred Chavallo, a local contractor he knew, agreed to build a facility a half-mile from his existing practice and let Dr. Anderson lease space with the option to buy.

After the contractor finalized the building plans, Dr. Anderson was able to work with his Patterson team to design the floor plan to his specifications for his half of the building. Aligning his current needs with those in the future was one of Dr. Anderson’s biggest challenges. His philosophy regarding expansion was to grow only as necessary, yet with the new space, he was anticipating – and investing in – a need from his patients that hadn’t yet developed. Brown solved the issue by advising a floor plan with eight operatories, yet only outfitting four of them to begin with.

With more than 4,000 square feet of space in which to work, Brown’s floor plan design maintained a feeling of openness in all areas of the practice. He took advantage of the building’s gabled ceilings and large windows to provide light and airiness in the hygiene and treatment areas. To accommodate the building features, Brown designed two of the treatment rooms to be quite large, almost like a surgical suite. Dr. Anderson’s CEREC and implant technologies easily fit in the room, with plenty of space leftover for him and his staff to move around.

Outside of these treatment rooms, Brown housed the CEREC^® MC XL milling machine in a window connected to the lab. Patients can watch their crowns being fabricated while they wait.

Many of the rooms are designed for future growth, including the pan room, where Dr. Anderson plans to house 3D imaging technology. The utility room is large enough to accommodate more vacuum pumps and equipment, when, for instance, another associate joins the practice.

The greatest change in the new practice over his prior one is the sterilization area. A-dec cabinetry is specifically designed to withstand the traffic and repeated cleanings, and there is a dedicated place for all of the equipment and tools. Dr. Anderson valued the importance of the sterilization area and requested that it be highly visible to patients. It’s also easy for the staff to access. “The sterilization center was hands down the biggest change clinically for us here,” he says.

Rounded corners on the outside of the office rooms lessen the clinical feeling of the practice; interior design elements, selected by Dr. Anderson’s wife, Danielle, and the contractor’s wife, create a homey feel. They opted for a neutral color scheme that wouldn’t quickly go out of style, darker accents to contrast the natural light coming into the practice, and faux-wood heavy-duty vinyl flooring that can withstand high traffic.

The practice officially opened in April 2010 and patients responded very positively. “They love it! They love the building and I have noticed an increase in patient acceptance of bigger cases. I think it’s because they feel more confident in my abilities here,” Dr. Anderson says.