Foiling Services, established in 2005, provide the most efficient, professional solutions to the entirety of the UK. We specialise in the application of decorative and functional foils onto thermoplastic sheets. When you need lamination services we are the name you can trust.
So to answer the question to the title, lamination is a process where two or more flexible material webs are joined together. The substrates may consist of a number of materials including paper, card, timber, a selection of plastics, and even some metals. Films or foils are the second layer. The method uses an adhesive, which is applied to the less absorbent material, and then pressed against the second web, producing a duplex laminate.
Lamination is fantastic for improving the appearance of many different materials. It is also beneficial to help with the barrier properties of substrates. How we decide what the most suitable laminating process would be, depends on the end use of the product. There are many different technologies available, which cover the wide array of applications. Lamination can even be used for solar energy and insulation panels.
The laminating machinery and types are:
– Wet lamination – this is a process which means that the bonding agent is still in a liquid state when the webs join together. This method is commonly used for laminating paper.
– Dry lamination – where the bonding agent is dissolved into a liquid. The agent is then applied to one of the webs before being evaporated in a drying oven. The use of heat in this process means that the bond strength of the laminate is greatly improved.
– Solventless lamination – where the adhesives used do not contain solvents. This method is composed by two components, reacting with each other. Consequently they do not need drying because of the adhesive used.
– Wax lamination – this also uses heat. The bonding agent is wax and is applied in a molten state onto one of the substrates.
This was just a brief overview of the processes and some of the solutions that we offer. If you require lamination services please don’t hesitate to get in touch with ourselves.