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Dr. Anne while it has changed hands several times over the
“In addition to knowing all the building codes that pertain to dental-treatment rooms, he also knows how to navigate the whole permitting process.”
ment,” she said, “but if you don’t have the counter space for it, you’re out of luck.”
Martinelli was also pleased with her office renovation, noting that she appreciated Sweitzer’s strong knowledge of dental-building infrastructure.
“In addition to knowing all the building codes that pertain to dental-treatment rooms, he also knows how to navigate the whole permitting pro- cess,” she said. “And he knew what needed to be done to check all the boxes at the end of the job.”
Tooth of the Matter
The knowledge the Sweitzers acquired to build dental offices has allowed his company to expand into other highly technical projects. From photovoltaic solar work to building clean rooms for high-tech companies, their business keeps expanding. Even with the new areas of focus, though, Craig still enjoys dental-office construction.
“Dentistry keeps changing, and there are always technical parts to it,” he said. “Besides, dental construction was my first love, and the complexity is still fun.” u
Barnes says the 1960s-era space she took over in 2018 “just didn’t work” for today’s cutting-edge dentistry.
research,” Pat said. “It was a time when everyone was learning how to contain COVID through dif- ferent HVAC systems.”
Dr. Anne Barnes, who runs Berkshire Dental Arts, is one of the dentists who chose to retrofit her office with an air purifier that turns over the air in the entire room in three minutes. She said it does an excellent job, and while it’s a large piece of equipment in the corner of the room, it beats the alternative.
“By purchasing this unit, it saved us from rip- ping out the ceiling and replacing the entire ven- tilation system,” she said. “That would have been absolutely disruptive.”
In 2018, Barnes established Berkshire Den-
tal Arts after assuming Dr. Neil Pyser’s practice located on South Street in Pittsfield. The building was constructed in the 1960s by four dentists, and
years, the interior space was not much different from when it was first designed.
“What was here just didn’t work for me and wasn’t planned out for today’s dentistry,” Barnes said. As a captain in the U.S. Army Dental Corps, she had access to all the latest equipment, so while she knew what she wanted, the challenge was how to fit it in a predefined space.
At Martinelli’s recommendation, Barnes asked Sweitzer for help on how to make better use of the defined footprint of the building.
“Craig helped me troubleshoot and think about ways to convert the space we have into something more efficient,” she said. Her practice consists of four operatories, two used by Barnes, with hygienists working in the other two rooms.
She and her husband, Charles, who is also the practice manager, had a mental picture of how the operatories should look, but admitted they didn’t have the expertise on how to bring in new equipment without sacrificing elbow room.
“I wanted to make each room functional and comfortable to work in,” Barnes said. “Craig knows how much space you need around the chair and where to place all the plumbing and electrical hookups we use.”
She enjoys her redesigned office because she now has the equipment to do 90% of her lab work in house instead of sending it to an outside firm. For example, if a patient wanted to change the color of a crown, they would normally have to make an appointment two weeks after their visit while the crown goes to a lab. Because Barnes now has a ceramic oven in her office, the patient needs to wait just 15 minutes for the adjustment.
“A ceramic oven is a small piece of equip-
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