3M and Ivoclar Vivadent announced today that they have settled a patent lawsuit in Germany involving a processed zirconia coloring technology. As a result of the settlement, Ivoclar Vivadent will license this patented technology from 3M.

The technology enables the coloring of unshaded zirconia by color-matching dental restorations to the natural color of patients’ teeth. Since 3M developed and launched this technology, much of the industry colors unshaded dental zirconia using this process. 3M remains open to licensing this technology to other interested parties.

About Ivoclar Vivadent
Ivoclar Vivadent is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of innovative material systems for high-quality dental applications. The company’s success is based on a comprehensive portfolio of products and systems, strong research and development capabilities and a clear commitment to training and further education. The company has wholly owned subsidiaries in 22 countries, and it employs 2500 people worldwide.

About 3M, 3M Health Care and 3M ESPE
3M captures the spark of new ideas and transforms them into thousands of ingenious products. Our culture of creative collaboration inspires a never-ending stream of powerful technologies that make life better. 3M is the innovation company that never stops inventing. 3M ESPE Dental is part of 3M Health Care which offers solutions in the medical, oral care, drug delivery, food safety and health information markets. 3M ESPE markets more than 2,000 dental products and services. 3M ESPE products are designed to help make dentistry easier, faster and better for dental professionals and their patients. For more information on 3M ESPE, visit www.3MESPE.com. To learn more about 3M, visit www.3M.com or follow @3MNews on Twitter.

3M and ESPE are trademarks of 3M or 3M Deutschland GmbH.

3MDonna Fleming Runyon, 651-736-7646orIvoclar Vivadent AGNicole van Oers, +423 235 36 48nicole.vanoers@ivoclarvivadent.com