Voices from The Bench

Episode 433: From FDLA 2026: Morris Fucarino, Enja Dorjchuluun, Joseph Núñez Reyes

July 13th, 2026  |  1 hr 20 mins

3d printing, analog dentistry, analog techniques, articulators, barb, belt-driven handpieces, biomedical engineering, board service, boutique laboratory, cad/cam, cam, carbon printers, career development, career growth, casting, cdt, ceramics, certification, certified dental technician, collaboration, community, continuing education, continuing growth, craftsmanship, cross-training, customer service, dedication, dental community, dental content creator, dental craftsmanship, dental industry, dental innovation, dental lab, dental laboratory, dental manufacturing, dental materials, dental podcast, dental technician, dental technology, dentistry, dentures, digital content, digital dentistry, digital transformation, digital workflow, e.max, education, efficiency, elvis, enja dorjchuluun, excellence, expansion, experience, fdla, fdla board, fdla symposium, florida, florida dental laboratory association, focus magazine, full gold crowns, future of dentistry, future technicians, general manager, gold restorations, gps digital dental lab, gps digital rpd, handpieces, hands-on education, heygears, high noble alloy, hiring, icpr junior college, implant restorations, implants, impressions, industry veterans, innovation, inspiration, instagram, ivoclar pm7, joseph núñez reyes, knowledge, lab day, labfest, laboratory careers, laboratory culture, laboratory growth, laboratory leadership, laboratory life, laboratory management, laboratory operations, leadership, legacy, lifelong learning, lithium disilicate, mentorship, milling, milling center, model work, morris fucarino, national board for certification, nbc, nesting, networking, next generation, night guards, one-man lab, operations, organized dentistry, orlando, passion, passion for dentistry, patients, perseverance, pfm, pmma, porcelain fused to metal, post-processing, problem solving, professional development, puerto rico, qc, quality, quality control, relationships, roland, roland mills, sakr dental arts, scanning, smiles, social media, soft tissue models, state association, stone models, success., supervisors, team building, teamwork, technician, technician education, technician pride, technician recognition, technician spotlight, technician stories, technician training, technicians, technology, turnaround time, voices from the bench, volunteering, waxing, webinars, workflow, workflow optimization, zirconia, zirconia milling

From the FDLA Symposium, Elvis and Barb sit down with three passionate technicians who represent the past, present, and future of the profession. Morris Fucarino reflects on an incredible 50 years as a CDT and the value of lifelong learning, Enja Dorjchuluun shares how she's helping shape the future of Florida's dental laboratory community through Sakr Dental Arts and the FDLA Board, and Joseph Núñez Reyes discusses his journey from Puerto Rico to GPS Digital Dental Lab and his dream of inspiring the next generation of technicians.

Episode 431: exocad Insights 2026 Part 5: Beth Collington, Josh Jakson, & Robert Norton

June 29th, 2026  |  56 mins 10 secs

3d design, 3d modeling, advanced dental technology, advanced workflows, ai crown, ai dentistry, ai in dental labs, ai-assisted dentistry, ai-powered design, artificial intelligence, automotive parts design, bench talk, beth collington, cad design, cad designer, cad workflow, cad/cam, clinicians, continuing education, creative cad applications, crown and bridge, crown design, crown finalization, crown production, custom grills, custom jewelry, custom restorations, dental automation, dental business, dental cad, dental cad community, dental cad experts, dental cad software, dental cad training, dental collaboration, dental community, dental conference, dental craftsmanship, dental design, dental design innovation, dental design software, dental design techniques, dental discussion, dental education, dental educators, dental engineering, dental expertise, dental future, dental industry, dental industry leaders, dental industry podcast, dental innovation, dental innovation summit, dental jewelry, dental lab, dental lab future, dental lab professionals, dental lab technology, dental laboratory, dental laboratory management, dental laboratory podcast, dental laboratory workflows, dental leadership, dental manufacturing, dental manufacturing technology, dental podcast, dental professionals, dental prosthetics, dental restorations, dental scanning, dental software, dental software experts, dental software innovation, dental software platform, dental software training, dental software updates, dental solutions, dental technician, dental technician life, dental technician training, dental technology, dental technology conference, dental technology education, dental technology experts, dental technology trends, dental trends, dental workflow efficiency, dental workflow management, dental workflow solutions, dental workflows, digital dental education, digital dental laboratory, digital dental revolution, digital dental solutions, digital dentistry, digital dentistry podcast, digital design solutions, digital impressions, digital lab, digital manufacturing, digital prosthetics, digital restoration design, digital solutions, digital tools, digital transformation, digital workflows, emerging technology, exocad, exocad america, exocad community, exocad ecosystem, exocad innovations, exocad insights, exocad training, exocad users, exocad users meeting, exohub, freeform design, future of dentistry, future-ready dentistry, industry insights, industry leaders, industry networking, innovation in dentistry, intraoral scanning, josh jackson, lab technology, lab-to-clinic communication, laboratory best practices, laboratory conversations, laboratory digital transformation., laboratory education, laboratory education and training, laboratory efficiency, laboratory excellence, laboratory growth, laboratory innovation, laboratory management, laboratory operations, laboratory perspective, laboratory productivity, laboratory support, laboratory technicians, laboratory technology, laboratory technology trends, mallorca, mallorca conference, modern dental laboratory, modern dentistry, next generation dentistry, podcast, production laboratory, production workflows, professional development, restorative dentistry, restorative technology, restorative workflows, robert norton, software development, software flexibility, technician education, technician insights, technician perspective, technician training, technician-led innovation, technology adoption, technology and dentistry, technology in dentistry, vftb, voices from the bench, workflow automation, workflow improvements, workflow integration, workflow optimization, workflow technology

While at Exocad Insights in Mallorca, Elvis and Barb catch up with Beth Collington, President of Exocad America, to discuss the continued growth of digital dentistry, the importance of education, and how Exocad is helping make digital workflows more accessible across the industry.

Then Josh Jackson and Robert Norton join the conversation to share insights from the lab and training side of Exocad. From AI Crown and Crown Finalization to creative applications beyond dentistry, they discuss the latest innovations, real-world workflows, and where digital technology is taking the profession next.

427: exocad Insights 2026 Part 1: Marjorie de Andrade, Dr. Dwight Pate, & Dr. Eimear O'Connell

June 1st, 2026  |  1 hr 8 mins

3d printing, aesthetics, ai crown design, ai dentistry, align, analog dentistry, articulation, articulator, brazil, cad cam, case planning, cbct, centric relation, ceramics, ceramist, chairside dentistry, clinician education, clinician perspective, clinician technician relationship, cloud workflow, collaboration, collaborative dentistry, cosmetic dentistry, crown and bridge, crown design, dawson, dental ai, dental artistry, dental collaboration, dental communication, dental education, dental events, dental evolution, dental excellence, dental future, dental implants, dental industry, dental influencer, dental innovation, dental innovation conference, dental lab, dental labs, dental materials, dental mentorship, dental networking, dental podcast, dental scanning, dental software, dental technician, dental technology, dental technology trends, diagnostic wax up, digital articulation, digital dentistry, digital dentistry evolution, digital dentures, digital models, digital occlusion, digital planning, digital planning workflow, digital prosthetics, digital smile workflow, digital transformation, digital treatment planning, digital workflow, education, education platform, esthetics, exocad, exocad hub, exocad insights, exocad on demand, exocad trainer, exoplan, freelance designer, full arch restoration, full mouth rehab, functional dentistry, germany, glazing, guided implant surgery, guided surgery, ids, implant dentistry, implant planning, implant restorations, implant workflow, implants, institute of digital dentistry, intraoral scanner, ireland, itero, lab communication, lab life, laboratory communication, laboratory workflow, lecture, mallorca, maryland bridge, mastering exocad, mentoring, mentoring technicians, milling, new zealand, occlusal design, occlusal vertical dimension, occlusion, online learning, pankey, patient care, patient communication, patient outcomes, printed models, prosthetics, prosthodontics, provisionals, remote design, removable prosthetics, restorative dentistry, restorative excellence, restorative workflow, scanner technology, scotland, semi adjustable articulator, smile creator, smile design, smile makeover, social media, spain, speaker, staining, tampa, teamwork, teamwork in dentistry, technician education, technician life, technology in dentistry, veneers, voices from the bench, wax up, workflow, workflow efficiency, workflow integration, workflow optimization

At exocad Insights 2026, three very different conversations all focused on how digital dentistry is transforming workflows and communication. Marjorie de Andrade talked about building a global freelance career through education and social media, while Dr. Dwight Pate shared an incredibly detailed workflow that blends traditional occlusion concepts with modern exocad design. The episode wraps with Dr. Eimear O'Connell discussing how digital tools are helping clinicians, labs, and patients work together better than ever—ultimately creating more predictable outcomes and happier smiles.

404: Rik Jacobs & Jess Gray: Gradient Dentures and Grit: Two Conversations from Lab Fest 2025

December 22nd, 2025  |  1 hr 12 mins

3d printing, all-on-x, analog workflow, dental, dentures, digital dentures, digital workflow, exocad, facial scanning, hard-soft appliances, in-house lab, instarisa, lab growth, lab ownership, laboratory, multi-color, multi-material, night guards, pmma, production dentistry, technician, technician education, voices from the bench, voxel printing, zirconia

Live from NOLA Lab Fest, we talk with Rik Jacobs of Novenda Technologies about a game-changing, production-scale 3D printer that can print full dentures and hard/soft appliances in true multi-material, multi-color—without supports and with massive throughput. Then we catch up with Jess Gray, who shares her journey from front desk to running a fast-growing, digitally driven in-house lab, blending analog and digital workflows, facial scanning, All-on-X, and leadership lessons from the bench up.

403: Live from Lab Fest 2025: Duff Wilson and the Importance of Good Vendor Relationships with Aidite

December 15th, 2025  |  1 hr 18 mins

aidite, cad/cam, crown and bridge, dental, dental laboratory, dental technology, dentures, design services, digital dentistry, full arch, implant restorations, lab associations, lab efficiency, lab ownership, laboratory, lean workflow, mentorship, milling center, relationship, relationships, removables, support, technician, technician education, voices from the bench, zirconia

Duff Wilson shares his unconventional journey through dental technology—from getting thrown into high-volume removables at a major lab to building a lean, relationship-driven lab that’s thrived for over two decades. Along the way, he breaks down why mentorship, smart workflows, and trusting the right people and products matter more than hype, trends, or chasing volume in today’s dental lab world.