Helen Tanaka: From a Driver to the Bench and Knowing the Why
Mon Feb 02 2026
Join Ivoclar (AND US!) this February at LMT Lab Day in Chicago. Ivoclar will be offering 16 different educational lectures over the three-day event, giving dental professionals plenty of opportunities to learn, connect, and grow. Visit labday.com/Ivoclar to view the full schedule and register, and be sure to stop by and see the Ivoclar team in the Windy City.
Walking the Lab Day Chicago floor? Make it worth it.
Stop by the FOLLOW-ME! hyperDENT booth (E-27, East Hall) and take part in their Milling Roadmap—a quick, scavenger-hunt-style activity that leads you to key milling partners like Axsys, Imagine, DOF, and Roland.
Collect stamps at booths you’re likely visiting anyway and get entered to win some great giveaways—including this year’s grand prize: a foldable Honda electric scooter.
You’re already walking the floor. Now it might carry you.
Come see and talk to Elvis and Barb at all these amazing shows coming up in 2026*
Cal-Lab Association Meeting in Chicago Feb 19-20 https://cal-lab.org/
LMT Lab Day Chicago Feb 19-21 https://lmtmag.com/lmtlabday
Dental Lab Association of Texas Meeting in Dallas Apr 9-11 https://members.dlat.org/
exocad Insights in Mallorca, Spain Apr 30 - May 1 https://exocad.com/insights-2026
This week Elvis and Barb sit down with Helen Tanaka — a removable, implant, and digital workflow specialist whose career started in one of the most relatable ways possible: as a dental lab driver. What began as a job delivering cases quickly turned into a full-blown passion once she stepped inside the lab and saw what technicians were creating. From trimming dies and waxing copings to managing labs, supporting implant surgeries, teaching doctors chairside, and leading removable and implant teams, Helen shares a journey built on curiosity, persistence, and a deep drive to understand the why behind everything in dental technology.
Helen talks about working her way through crown and bridge fundamentals before discovering her true passion in removables, dentures, implants, and occlusion. After getting real-world lab experience, she attended dental technology school, studied all six specialties, and continued expanding her knowledge through advanced occlusion training and continuing education. She explains why understanding morphology, materials, and occlusal principles is critical — especially today — and why technicians must know more than just the steps of fabrication. For Helen, dentures and implant prosthetics offer the ultimate puzzle, combining anatomy, function, and problem-solving in ways that keep her constantly engaged.
The conversation dives deep into digital dentistry, guided surgery, and removable workflows, with Helen sharing her early experiences launching digital denture and sleep appliance programs long before the workflows were polished. She discusses digital record capture, stackable surgical guides, implant planning, photogrammetry, and where digital still needs improvement — especially for removable prosthetics. While she embraces technology, she stresses that software is only as good as the technician behind it, and that skipping fundamentals creates bigger problems later. Digital is powerful, but it doesn’t replace understanding.
Education is a major theme throughout the episode. Helen regularly teaches doctors and technicians, speaks at courses, supports live implant conversions, and works with dental students. She emphasizes that many clinicians today lack confidence in dentures and removable workflows, often because fundamentals are under-taught, and she sees technicians as essential partners in closing that gap. She and the hosts discuss how removable cases are frequently rushed, underpaid, and misunderstood — even though they replace a critical body function — and why slowing down, capturing correct records, and returning to basics solves many of the “mystery” failures labs see every day.
Helen also shares stories from her time with large organizations and clinical teams, including MicroDental, ClearChoice, Arklign, and implant education centers, where she has worked in technical service, management, training, and quality oversight roles. She talks about networking, mentoring, never burning bridges, and investing in people coming up in the industry. Her approach to both dentistry and life centers around curiosity and accountability — always asking why, always backing decisions with data, and always trying to do the right thing even when no one is looking.
Throughout the episode, the energy stays fun and honest, with stories about speeding delivery runs, early digital growing pains, chairside save-the-case moments, and the reality of fixing cases that skipped key steps. Helen brings passion, technical depth, and a strong belief that knowledge should be shared, not guarded. It’s a conversation about growth, fundamentals, digital evolution, and why great technicians still matter more than ever.
If you want to grow your business, you need clear insight into what’s happening inside your operation and across your customer journey. That’s where Icortica comes in.
At Canadian Dental Labs, Icortica has become a cornerstone of how we operate—giving us at-a-glance visibility into performance, helping us focus our efforts, spot opportunities early, and solve problems before they grow. It takes the guesswork out of decision-making and shows us what to do next.
Plus, the Icortica team is incredibly responsive and feels like a true partner in our success.
If you’re serious about growing your business and understanding your customers better, Icortica can get you there. Learn more at icortica.com/voices — Icortica, helping dental labs grow.
Join us at exocad Insights 2026, happening April 30–May 1, 2026, on the stunning island of Mallorca, Spain. This two-day event features powerhouse keynotes, hands-on workshops, live software demos, and top-tier industry showcases—all in one unforgettable setting.
Barb and Elvis will be on site bringing you exclusive interviews, plus don’t miss the FIRST 5k run on the coast! And of course, cap it all off with the legendary exoGlam Night under the stars.
Tickets are limited. Visit exocad.com/insights-2026 and use code VFTBPalma15 for 15% off.Special Guest: Helen Tanaka.
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Join Ivoclar (AND US!) this February at LMT Lab Day in Chicago. Ivoclar will be offering 16 different educational lectures over the three-day event, giving dental professionals plenty of opportunities to learn, connect, and grow. Visit labday.com/Ivoclar to view the full schedule and register, and be sure to stop by and see the Ivoclar team in the Windy City. Walking the Lab Day Chicago floor? Make it worth it. Stop by the FOLLOW-ME! hyperDENT booth (E-27, East Hall) and take part in their Milling Roadmap—a quick, scavenger-hunt-style activity that leads you to key milling partners like Axsys, Imagine, DOF, and Roland. Collect stamps at booths you’re likely visiting anyway and get entered to win some great giveaways—including this year’s grand prize: a foldable Honda electric scooter. You’re already walking the floor. Now it might carry you. Come see and talk to Elvis and Barb at all these amazing shows coming up in 2026* Cal-Lab Association Meeting in Chicago Feb 19-20 https://cal-lab.org/ LMT Lab Day Chicago Feb 19-21 https://lmtmag.com/lmtlabday Dental Lab Association of Texas Meeting in Dallas Apr 9-11 https://members.dlat.org/ exocad Insights in Mallorca, Spain Apr 30 - May 1 https://exocad.com/insights-2026 This week Elvis and Barb sit down with Helen Tanaka — a removable, implant, and digital workflow specialist whose career started in one of the most relatable ways possible: as a dental lab driver. What began as a job delivering cases quickly turned into a full-blown passion once she stepped inside the lab and saw what technicians were creating. From trimming dies and waxing copings to managing labs, supporting implant surgeries, teaching doctors chairside, and leading removable and implant teams, Helen shares a journey built on curiosity, persistence, and a deep drive to understand the why behind everything in dental technology. Helen talks about working her way through crown and bridge fundamentals before discovering her true passion in removables, dentures, implants, and occlusion. After getting real-world lab experience, she attended dental technology school, studied all six specialties, and continued expanding her knowledge through advanced occlusion training and continuing education. She explains why understanding morphology, materials, and occlusal principles is critical — especially today — and why technicians must know more than just the steps of fabrication. For Helen, dentures and implant prosthetics offer the ultimate puzzle, combining anatomy, function, and problem-solving in ways that keep her constantly engaged. The conversation dives deep into digital dentistry, guided surgery, and removable workflows, with Helen sharing her early experiences launching digital denture and sleep appliance programs long before the workflows were polished. She discusses digital record capture, stackable surgical guides, implant planning, photogrammetry, and where digital still needs improvement — especially for removable prosthetics. While she embraces technology, she stresses that software is only as good as the technician behind it, and that skipping fundamentals creates bigger problems later. Digital is powerful, but it doesn’t replace understanding. Education is a major theme throughout the episode. Helen regularly teaches doctors and technicians, speaks at courses, supports live implant conversions, and works with dental students. She emphasizes that many clinicians today lack confidence in dentures and removable workflows, often because fundamentals are under-taught, and she sees technicians as essential partners in closing that gap. She and the hosts discuss how removable cases are frequently rushed, underpaid, and misunderstood — even though they replace a critical body function — and why slowing down, capturing correct records, and returning to basics solves many of the “mystery” failures labs see every day. Helen also shares stories from her time with large organizations and clinical teams, including MicroDental, ClearChoice, Arklign, and implant education centers, where she has worked in technical service, management, training, and quality oversight roles. She talks about networking, mentoring, never burning bridges, and investing in people coming up in the industry. Her approach to both dentistry and life centers around curiosity and accountability — always asking why, always backing decisions with data, and always trying to do the right thing even when no one is looking. Throughout the episode, the energy stays fun and honest, with stories about speeding delivery runs, early digital growing pains, chairside save-the-case moments, and the reality of fixing cases that skipped key steps. Helen brings passion, technical depth, and a strong belief that knowledge should be shared, not guarded. It’s a conversation about growth, fundamentals, digital evolution, and why great technicians still matter more than ever. If you want to grow your business, you need clear insight into what’s happening inside your operation and across your customer journey. That’s where Icortica comes in. At Canadian Dental Labs, Icortica has become a cornerstone of how we operate—giving us at-a-glance visibility into performance, helping us focus our efforts, spot opportunities early, and solve problems before they grow. It takes the guesswork out of decision-making and shows us what to do next. Plus, the Icortica team is incredibly responsive and feels like a true partner in our success. If you’re serious about growing your business and understanding your customers better, Icortica can get you there. Learn more at icortica.com/voices — Icortica, helping dental labs grow. Join us at exocad Insights 2026, happening April 30–May 1, 2026, on the stunning island of Mallorca, Spain. This two-day event features powerhouse keynotes, hands-on workshops, live software demos, and top-tier industry showcases—all in one unforgettable setting. Barb and Elvis will be on site bringing you exclusive interviews, plus don’t miss the FIRST 5k run on the coast! And of course, cap it all off with the legendary exoGlam Night under the stars. Tickets are limited. Visit exocad.com/insights-2026 and use code VFTBPalma15 for 15% off.Special Guest: Helen Tanaka.