Each clear aligner treatment relies on a progression of small adjustments, and every adjustment requires its own mold. A single patient may need 50 to 100 unique models, each printed with the same precision. For clinics treating dozens of patients and laboratories serving hundreds, this creates a constant requirement for high-volume mold production.

While SLA printing provides the accuracy and surface finish that thermoforming demands, the real constraint is everything that happens after the build. Washing, curing, and handling are still largely manual. At small scale this is manageable, but at production volumes it quickly becomes the bottleneck.

Automating these steps shifts the economics of aligner manufacturing. With robotic transfers and coordinated scheduling, SLA printers are no longer limited by operator availability. They can run continuously, with parts flowing through post-processing without interruption.

The benefit is threefold:

• Throughput at scale – Printers and peripherals operate at their designed capacity, matching the high volume of molds required per patient.

• Consistency of quality – Automated wash and cure cycles standardize exposure, improving reliability across thousands of molds.

• True lights-out operation – The workflow no longer depends on manual oversight, allowing labs to keep production running overnight and across weekends.

For dental manufacturers, this represents a decisive shift. Instead of staffing every stage, they can focus on quality control and patient care while automation handles the volume.