Voices From The Bench

This week we start our conversation we got while attending the Whip Mix (https://www.whipmix.com/) Digital Forum (https://www.whipmix.com/special-events/2022-digital-forum/) back in October. This amazing yearly event brought so many great speakers and attendees that gave us an opportunity to talk to so many wonderful people in our industry. There is nothing like good ol’ face-to-face recording. First up is the Vice President of Zubler USA (https://zublerusa.com/), Chris Wilson. Chris talks about a lot of the items that Zubler sells, but really educates us all the different ovens in a lab and what makes a good oven good. Chiming in is Blake Barksdale from Barksdale Dental Lab (https://barksdaledentallab.com/) (who was on episode 204) (https://www.voicesfromthebench.com/204) to give the perspective of actual real life lab use of a lot of the Zubler USA equipment. Then we are joined by two amazing small lab owners that found friendship within their successes. Sandra Ramsey, owner of Great Crowns and Smiles (ht

We love it when past guests recommend new people to have on the podcast. This is exactly what happened when Vincent Silvia (EPISODE 133 (https://www.voicesfromthebench.com/133)), from Digital Healthcare Computers (https://dhc-pc.com/), went to the UCLA Center of Esthetic Dental Design with a gentleman from Norway. Jorgen Gad, from Artpro Dental Design (http://www.art-pro.no/), comes on to talk about his experiences at the school, lab life in Norway, and how and what it takes to be known as the lab to go to get minimally invasive veneers. Have you seen the high prices of precious metal these days? Kulzer Refining (https://www.kulzerus.com/en_us/en_us/heraeuspreciousmetalsrefining/scraprefining.aspx) knows that you are using less Precious metal in your lab these days, but if you send in half of what you sent in 5 years ago ,your scrap return will be higher than it was 5 years ago! You won’t believe how much money your scrap is worth right now! Kulzer Refining reimbursement to you is after their 10% refining fee

When given an opportunity to learn how another lab is run, one should always listen because you never know what you might pick up. Cirenia Tobon learned the trade from her uncles in Mexico. After moving to the US and running her own lab, she now runs the removable department at Pro-Craft Dental Laboratory (https://www.pro-craft.com/) in California. Dylan Schubert grew up in his father's lab and after realizing how much he loves it, became the classic 2nd generation lab owner. Together they talk about all the great things they are doing in their lab like hiring, training, workflows, and the move from analog to digital. Have you seen the high prices of precious metal these days? Kulzer Refining (https://www.kulzerus.com/en_us/en_us/heraeuspreciousmetalsrefining/scraprefining.aspx) knows that you are using less Precious metal in your lab these days, but if you send in half of what you sent in 5 years ago ,your scrap return will be higher than it was 5 years ago! You won’t believe how much money your scrap is w

If you take a normal procedure in the lab, film it, and put it online, how many people do you think would watch it? Well when Tiffany Carroll and Amanda Shelly do that when working at Aspen Dental (https://www.aspendental.com/), they get MILLIONS of views. Tiffany and Amanda come on to talk about how they found their way to Aspen, a day in the life at Aspen, the opportunities provided to them, the move to digital, and creating content on social media that goes viral. Have you seen the high prices of precious metal these days? Kulzer Refining (https://www.kulzerus.com/en_us/en_us/heraeuspreciousmetalsrefining/scraprefining.aspx) knows that you are using less Precious metal in your lab these days, but if you send in half of what you sent in 5 years ago ,your scrap return will be higher than it was 5 years ago! You won’t believe how much money your scrap is worth right now! Kulzer Refining reimbursement to you is after their 10% refining fee . They have zero additional fees! If you need any free shipping conta

Comes see Elvis and Barb at the Whip Mix Digital Forum October 28th and 29th in Louisville, Kentucky (https://www.whipmix.com/special-events/2022-digital-forum/) Great show, fantastic speaks, unbelievable content, and a Halloween costume party! We know the big players in digital dentures. AvaDent (https://www.avadent.com/), Carbon (https://www.carbon3d.com/materials/lucitone-digital-print) and Asiga (https://www.aegisdentalnetwork.com/news/2021/09/23/dentsply-sirona-extends-the-lucitone-digital-print-denture-system-with-new-material-indications-and-planned-print-platform-validations-for-asiga-and-sprintray) printed Lucitone 199, Ivoclar Ivotion (https://www.ivoclar.com/en_us/products/digital-processes/ivotion) on the PM7 mill (https://www.ivoclar.com/en_us/products/digital-equipment/programill-pm7), Arfona (https://arfonaprinting.com/), and the list goes on. But behind the scenes and an amazing technician doing some amazing things with all removables in the digital space. John Madden started in a dental scho

Years ago we talked to a dental technician that wanted a better life for his family. Jeremiah Naas was in Florida with a desire to become a denturist (https://www.voicesfromthebench.com/30). After years of study and a move to Maine (https://www.voicesfromthebench.com/89) (where it is legal), Jeremiah now runs two practices, but always has a desire to learn more. Enter Finlay Sutton (https://www.finlaysutton.co.uk/). Finlay is a specialist in prosthodontics known for being able to do the removable cases that no one else can in the UK. Finlay talks about some difficult cases and how he went about finding solutions to restore and Jeremiah talk about the upcoming course that brings Finlay to the US to teach clinicians, denturist, and technicians how to do a better prosthetic by taking the correct records and understanding the patient. Sign up for the course by emailing idadenturelove@gmail.com for more information Get the best removable email delivered right to your inbox! (https://www.finlaysutton.co.uk/contact)

Comes see Elvis and Barb at the Whip Mix Digital Forum October 28th and 29th in Louisville, Kentucky (https://www.whipmix.com/special-events/2022-digital-forum/) Great show, fantastic speaks, unbelievable content, and a Halloween costume party! Usually when a dentist starts making their own restorations, they are Cerec crowns. But with all the advances in milling, printing, and now Artificial Intelligence it's becoming easier for clinics to have a in-office lab. Dr. Austin Vetter from Vetter Dental (https://vetterdentalfargo.com/) in Fargo North Dakota sees a lot of potential in employing and training an assistant to do the duties of a dental technician. Being a fan of technology and utilizing it for a streamlined workflow, Dr. Vetter comes on the podcast to talk about the equipment he uses, the software that makes it possible, the importance of the craft after the machine, and more importantly, as a clinician, where he sees dental laboratories place in a industry that is becoming more and more automated. Whi

Comes see Elvis and Barb at the Whip Mix Digital Forum October 28th and 29th in Louisville, Kentucky (https://www.whipmix.com/special-events/2022-digital-forum/) Great show, fantastic speaks, unbelievable content, and a Halloween costume party! What does a card trick and making a denture fit have in common? Mark Samuel Chan! This week we welcome a Denturist out of Canada that got into the profession because a teacher told him not to be a dentist. Lucky him! Mark talks about the school he went to, coming into the field at a young age, going to a IDS meeting that changed his path, working with Swiss NF Metals (https://swissnfmetals.com/), public speaking, and magic tricks. Get ready to feel like you don’t do enough because Mark seems to do it all. Two dynamic teams have joined forces to rock the intraoral scanning world! Whip Mix (https://www.whipmix.com/) has added the 3Shape TRIOS® (https://info.whipmix.com/en/3shape-trios-contact-us) line of scanners to its line of digital solutions for the dental office. T

Come see ELVIS live at LMT Lab Day East - October 1st in Tarrytown, NY (https://lmtmag.com/lmtlabdayeast) Sign up for his presentation "A Couple of Studs at the Bar" (https://lmtmag.com/seminars/a-couple-of-studs-at-the-bar) Zirconia. Every lab that does fixed restorations uses it. And why not, it's a great material that comes in different strengths and translucencies. But how much do you really know about zirconia? Get ready to learn a lot more! This week we talk to Dr. Rella Christensen who has been studying zirconia in the mouth since the early days and has some fascinating results to share with us. She is also joined by Jay Emirzian from Galaxy Dental Lab (https://galaxydentallaboratory.com/) who has found a way to eliminate post sinter staining by doing some pre sinter polishing. A great conversations for all the dental nerds our there! B&D Dental Technologies: Origin® Live™ Zirconia (https://www.bnddental.com/origin-live.html) Jay's Greenstate Pre-Polishing Tool Kits from Zubler USA (https://zublerusa.

There is a place in Alberta Canada that specializes in dentures, implants, and the digital workflow. Denturist Luke LaRocque-Walker was working too many hours and needed help. Paul Imperius is a dental technician that went from 80 hours a week to only 40 with a desire to do more. Once they teamed at True North Denture & Implant Centre (https://www.truenorthdent.com/) they started to find the perfect digital workflow. The question they asked themselves is: "How can we be more efficient and make a better restoration for the patient". This is their story. We cover scanning, printing, milling, and everything in between that has made this partnership work so well. Two dynamic teams have joined forces to rock the intraoral scanning world! Whip Mix (https://www.whipmix.com/) has added the 3Shape TRIOS® (https://info.whipmix.com/en/3shape-trios-contact-us) line of scanners to its line of digital solutions for the dental office. Together, this dynamic duo can get your dentists scanning, providing you the reliable scan

Come see ELVIS live at LMT Lab Day East - October 1st in Tarrytown, NY (https://lmtmag.com/lmtlabdayeast) Sign up for his presentation "A Couple of Studs at the Bar" (https://lmtmag.com/seminars/a-couple-of-studs-at-the-bar) This week we decided to go outside of the dental laboratory industry to talk about another industry that also makes a replacement body part that both has function and esthetics. Zach Hetzler is a Board Certified Ocularist with Hetzler Ocular Prosthetics (https://hetzlerocular.com/) in Fishers, Indiana. Zach comes on to talk about of teeth nerds about the Ocular industry. He talks about getting into the field, the certification process, and walks us through the process from taking an impression to fabricating the prosthesis to final seat. The similarities with our industry (and denturist) are amazing. Did you know Asiga (https://www.asiga.com/) has over 500 validated materials on their open material system. And it's growing every day? By harnessing Asiga's proprietary layer monitoring te

Check out https://www.thepartyenamel.com/ for some amazing courses and to maybe teach one of your own! In 1999, Dr. Jiro Abe revolutionized denture technology with his lower suction denture technique. Now only a handful of technicians and clinicians are trained to teach the technique. One that can teach both the clinical and technical side of suction dentures is Paul McNally, a denturist out of Ireland and owner of McNally Denture Clinic (https://www.mcnallydentureclinic.ie/). Paul comes on to talk about becoming a Denturist, opening his practice, learning and teaching suction dentures, and how exactly the technique is achieved to make the most retentive mandibular denture. Whip Mix (https://www.whipmix.com/) is thrilled to announce their most recent addition to their milling product line. Introducing the DWX-53DC (https://www.whipmix.com/products/roland-dgshape-dwx-53dc-dental-mill/) from DGSHAPE. This powerful mill satisfies your 'NEED FOR SPEED'. Three reasons to consider this mill: 1. It has 3 times the

This week we bring you 3 more amazing conversations we got while attending the Ladies of the Mill (https://www.ladiesofthemill.com/) Summit back in July. Live from the Preat (https://www.preat.com/) booth Elvis talked to past podcast guest Kelly Weliky. Minutes after doing her first on-stage presentation, Kelly talks about speaking in front of other and what she has been up to since last on the podcast. Then we chat with Jen Ludwing. Jen is a regional manager for the Apex Dental Laboratory Group (https://www.apexlabgroup.com/) and a all around bright light in our industry. Jen talks about her role and why Ladies of the Mill is so important to her. Then we wrap up the whole weekend with a conversation with the folks at Vulcan Custom Dental (https://www.vulcandental.com/) and BioHorizon (https://www.biohorizons.com/). Ashley Boggs is an engineer for BioHorizon and talks about some engineering "stuff", Mark Ferguson talks about Vulcan's relationship with BioHorizon and some of the exciting things they are doing,

Back in July, there was a meeting called the Ladies of the Mill (https://www.ladiesofthemill.com/)Summit. This yearly meeting is all about celebrating and supporting females in the dental laboratory industry. Full of motivating and inspiring speakers, Elvis got to record with a bunch of attendees at the Preat (https://www.preat.com/) booth. First up is half of the owners of Likelike Dental Studios (https://lifelikedental.com/), Carrie Ling. Carrie talks about getting their lab started in a shed, growing it with her husband, and where they are at now. Then we talk to two technicians from Renstrom Dental Studio (http://www.renstrom.com/), Sandra Nohava and Courtney Bennett. These two talk about the different labs they worked at, the unique way they connected and then connected again at their current lab, and why they came to the Ladies of the Mill Summit. Then Elvis walks away from the recording gear to let 5 technicians have their own conversation. Dani Farago, MacKenzie Mayer, Katie Boteler, Nina Frketin, &

Two brothers with extensive dental experience put together Blender for Dental (https://www.blenderfordental.com/home), an affordable alternative to the other design software in our industry. Brothers Wolfgang & Michael Teiniker learned the craft in South Africa. Wolfgang continued his career in Germany, and then they connected again in New Zealand. You can say they know a thing of two about dental technology. Michael started to play around with a program called Blender. It wasn't long before he realized that it could be used in the dental lab industry. Now they are both exclusively working on and maintaining Blender for Dental to offer a design software made by technicians for technicians. Information and how to register for the Race For the Future 8.0 August 28th (https://dentallabfoundation.org/news-events/race-for-the-future/) Information and registration for the Chicago Triathlon (https://www.chicagotriathlon.com/) Register for the FREE Education Day on August 27th (https://dentallabfoundation.org/educat

Steve Campbell, owner of Nexus Dental Laboratory (https://www.nexus.dental/) in the UK, joins us for an amazing conversation. Steve talks about the industry's history, how the government stepped in to help, how he learned his skills as an apprenticeship, opening his fully digital lab, using ExoCAD, and being an advocate for the digital workflow to make dental technology "sexy" to the next generation. ExoCAD (https://exocad.com/) is excited to present their next Insights event October 3-4, 2022, on the sun-drenched island of Mallorca, Spain. Connect with friends and colleagues in the industry while collecting CE points* during a full program of software education, partner shows and international guest speakers. Enjoy the exclusive welcome party, featuring fantastic music and food. Join us in making Insights 2022 an event to remember! Register at exocad.com/insights2022 Information and how to register for the Race For the Future 8.0 August 28th (https://dentallabfoundation.org/news-events/race-for-the-future/)

We are excited to have on good friend and supporter and advocate of our industry, Tony Prestipino from Artifex Dental Laboratory (https://artifexlab.com/). Tony comes on to talk about how he learned about the profession, having a brother who is a prosthodontist and another bother in the lab business, getting into implants, and taking an All-on-X procedure and patenting the procedure. It’s hard to find anyone so willing to help anyone willing to ask. Information and how to register for the Race For the Future 8.0 August 28th (https://dentallabfoundation.org/news-events/race-for-the-future/) Information and registration for the Chicago Triathlon (https://www.chicagotriathlon.com/) Register for the FREE Education Day on August 27th (https://dentallabfoundation.org/education-day/) (COME TO THE DINNER!) Donate to Barb or Team Voices From the Bench!!!! (https://fdlt.memberclicks.net/donor-form#!/) Whip Mix (https://www.whipmix.com/)’s new VeriWhirl (https://www.whipmix.com/products/veriwhirl-dental-3d-printed-parts

What?!?! Another Implant company? You bet. But this one is different. Patrick Dewey, the General Manager from S.I.N. Dental USA (https://sindentalusa.com/) and Blake Roney, the Digital Solutions Specialist come on the podcast to talk about the companies dedication and process to a completely modeless digital full arch workflow. Patrick and Blake talk about the process and while using Photogrammetry with the Imetric4D (https://sindentalusa.com/products/equipment/imetric-icam4d-photogrammetry-camera/), an Intraoral scanner, ExoCAD (https://exocad.com/), and some slick tips and tricks, anyone can make accurate modeless full arch restorations. Did I mention a new implant? You'll want to hear about all that too. Follow along with the S.I.N. Dental USA Digital Modeless Workflow HERE (https://bit.ly/3Pj788a) Did you know Asiga (https://www.asiga.com/) has over 500 validated materials on their open material system. And it's growing everyday? By harnessing Asiga's proprietary layer monitoring technology with its sm

This week brings the amazing story of Edgar Munoz. Edgar played baseball and had dreams of going professional. A couple of bad knees later and Edgar had to rethink his life. Luckily for our industry and thousands of patients, Edgar stumbled into dental technology. Opening his own lab in his garage and a lot of hard work, Edgar is now the owner of Elite Dental Studios (https://www.elitedentalstudiousa.com/). Partnering with Noritake (https://www.kuraraynoritake.com/world/)to teach ceramics, Edgar comes on to talk about his tale and the lessons he has learned along the way. Did you know Asiga (https://www.asiga.com/) has over 500 validated materials on their open material system. And it's growing everyday? By harnessing Asiga's proprietary layer monitoring technology with its smart positioning system and integrated internal radiometer, as a laboratory, you will be able to produce any indication you desire. Whether models, splints, temporaries, or even permanent crowns. Your investment will be future proofed b

Before we get stated with this jam packed and full filled episode, we have to get some links to you: Information and how to register for the Race For the Future 8.0 August 28th (https://dentallabfoundation.org/news-events/race-for-the-future/) Information and registration for the Chicago Triathlon (https://www.chicagotriathlon.com/) Register for the FREE Education Day on August 27th (https://dentallabfoundation.org/education-day/) (COME TO THE DINNER!) Donate to Barb or Team Voices From the Bench!!!! (https://fdlt.memberclicks.net/donor-form#!/) Alright. Now that we have all the important links out of the way, we can get to the episode that is all about the links. The Foundation for Dental Laboratory Technology (https://dentallabfoundation.org/) is an organization that raises money for the continuing education in our industry. The person that keeps it on track is Lindsey Rowan. Lindsey comes on the podcast to talk about the history of the race, where the money goes, and details about this year’s race. She al