By the rule of thumb then for crown pricing, the dentist that you work for would be
OVERCHARGING
The rule fo thumb for crown pricing is 5 to 6 times the lab fee. The 2 labs I use for crown and bridge charge me between $140 to $150 per unit. I've tried less expensive labs, but I just didn't like the finished product either esthetically or on the consistency of the fit (when I get a crown back from the lab,
if anything all I expect to have to do before cementing is lightly adjust the contacts and maybe round out a transverse or marginal ridge, 3 to 5 minutes of chairtime tops). I've also tried more expensive labs, and frankly the finished product while very nice, wasn't any huge difference between what my regular labs give me.
On the lab thing, my personal preference is a lab where when I'm talking to them, the lab tech can actually picture my face and knows about my preferences since they've met me and see alot of my work. This way, the lab tech knows that if they have any questions or suggestions as to how we as a team can get a better result for the patient, they won't hesitate to call and tell me. With some of the huge labs out there, unless you're either subsidized by them because your on the lecture circuit, or give them 150+ units per month average(i.e. you're paying them over $10,000 a month in lab fees), you're basically nothing more than an account number, and various lab tech will work on your cases with various results. I'd much rather pay an extra $30 to $40 a unit over what the huge volume labs charge to know that 98% of the time when I have a patient in the chair for a 30 minute appointment to cement a crown that the cement will be set and the patient out the door 30 minutes after their seated, and I'm not still adjusting contacts or occlussion.