Benco Dental officials unveiled a new dental equipment showroom Wednesday as part of a ribbon-cutting ceremony held at its new facility in the CenterPoint Commerce and Trade Park in Jenkins Twp.
With 25 rooms of dental equipment displays including specialty exhibits for orthodontists and oral surgeons, it is the largest dental and design showroom in North America, said Richard Cohen, company executive vice president.
The company, which has about 400 employees, plans to add 50 to 100 new jobs over the next three years as it continue to grow, said Benco Dental President Charles Cohen.
Benco Dental moved into the 272,000-square-foot facility in a Keystone Opportunity Zone in January and has been installing dental equipment and technology into the showroom since early February. About 700 people attended Wednesday's event.
"We tripled our distribution and people capacity, allowing us to add more associates, stock more product, improve our efficiency and better serve our customers," Charles Cohen said. "We are now poised and positioned for growth. We are excited to invest in our company's future."
Richard Cohen recalled how his grandfather started the business at age 19, traveling by train to peddle dental instruments out of a 100-pound leather case. In 1930, he rented a one-room office in the Miner Bank Building in Wilkes-Barre and called dentists to sell dental products.
Today, Benco employs about 1,150 nationwide and has distribution centers in Fort Wayne, Ind.; Jacksonville, Fla., and Dallas, Texas. It serves more than 30,000 dental practices and laboratories in 39 states and Washington, D.C.
