Mobile dental practice: Dental care on four wheels
Visits to the dentist are usually unpleasant – especially for elderly or ill people for whom even the journey can be a real challenge. That's why vehicle manufacturers are developing solutions to make medical care mobile. In this article, we present a special case: a dental practice on four wheels.
AL-KO VT chassis in action – the BUMV-Mobile from Blomberg
A stress-free trip to the dentist
Providing dental care for residents of nursing homes or geriatric facilities is a real challenge. The dentists at the Clamors dental practice from Blomberg near Lippe rise to this challenge with a mobile practice based on an AL-KO VT low-frame chassis, the so-called BUMV (Treatment and Medical Care) Mobile. This makes it easier for elderly people with limited mobility, as well as for patients with dementia, to access care without barriers and receive treatment close to home.
In early 2022, the two brothers came up with the idea of helping elderly people directly on site. They wanted to spare dementia patients or physically impaired residents the usually arduous journey to the practice while still providing professional dental care. Key Account Managers at the AL-KO Vehicle Technology Group quickly looked into the framework conditions: it turned out to be as exciting as it was demanding, giving the company an opportunity to demonstrate its flexibility within this project.
AL-KO VT low frame for bespoke projects
Flexibility required – and welcomed
For the specific requirements of the dentists, the low-frame chassis from AL-KO VT was ideal. In this case it is 300 millimetres lower than a standard chassis, features variable wheelbases for a panel van weighing up to 4.5 tonnes, and can be individually adapted to the superstructure. With Marco Jacke, Managing Director of Multitrailer GmbH from Steinheim in North Rhine-Westphalia, a mobile treatment room was created based on a Fiat Ducato. This design’s flexibility in terms of axles, track width and gross weight fully meets customer requirements. It also includes air suspension, a special strut for the front axles, and new complete wheels that can easily handle the load and offer a clear improvement in driving comfort.
AL-KO VT: A partner for unique ideas
Dentists on wheels – self-sufficient and mobile
The option to adapt axles and wheelbase individually makes the chassis and independent suspension ideal for implementing the mobile dental practice. “The vehicle’s weight could not exceed 4.5 tonnes, and the dental equipment itself adds considerable weight, which also cannot be automatically distributed evenly. This is why it was essential that the entire base vehicle could be tailored to these requirements,” explains Marco Jacke, Managing Director of Multitrailer GmbH.
A special feature relates mainly to the equipment in the mobile dental practice: In addition to all the equipment required for patient care and a treatment chair weighing more than 150 kilograms, the vehicle is connected to the central computer at the main practice. There is also an independent electric and fresh water supply and, above all, a tilting mechanism to allow patients to be treated while still in their wheelchair. The low-frame chassis, in turn, provides elderly patients with a lower entry angle via an automatic sliding door, making access to the Clamors brothers’ panel van much easier.
The key advantage for the two dentists: the mobile station can, if necessary, remain outside the care home for several days to carry out follow-up treatments. “The needs of patients vary greatly. To meet these needs, you have to take new and innovative approaches. Bringing an entire practice onto the road requires detailed planning and components that exceed the standards of a fixed practice. With our mobile dental practice, we can now place implants or crowns, extract teeth or provide fillings inside the vehicle – sometimes just ten to fifteen minutes after arriving at the site,” explains dentist Sören Clamors.
AL-KO VT – chassis beyond the standard
The right solutions for exceptional demands
Multitrailer manager Marco Jacke provides the details: “The technology, functionality, equipment and electrics for almost 70 medical devices, including a heavy X-ray machine, require space and lead to a high vehicle gross weight with an extra 50 centimetres in length. A standard vehicle chassis was therefore out of the question.” Since patients of the mobile practice are generally not very mobile, steps or a high ramp at the entrance should not pose an obstacle. “The main idea of a mobile practice is to make the last metres of the journey as barrier-free as possible,” Jacke continues.
AL-KO VT chassis provide the right solution for virtually every requirement in specialist vehicle construction – and go far beyond standard concepts for trailers and panel vans, as dentists Sören Clamors and Björn Clamors can confirm. This collaboration was so successful that the two dentists have transferred their mobile dental practice concept to a European patent with the German Patent Office, and another vehicle is already being planned – of course, once again based on an AL-KO VT low-frame chassis.
