Your Guide to Fabric Lamination

Your Guide to Fabric Lamination
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Your Guide to Fabric Lamination

Fabric lamination services have become increasingly popular over the past decades in large part because the applications and uses for textiles have become much more expansive and diverse. By utilizing fabric lamination, you can retain the quality of textiles for years to come by guarding against unwanted liquids and dirt, along with numerous other benefits. Most people aren’t familiar with the process, which involves fusing two or more substrates together through the use of heat, adhesives, or pressure onto a fabric. Once you laminate fabrics, cleaning is easily accomplished with just a damp cloth and mild detergent. Fabric lamination is a fairly inexpensive process and the result of utilizing fabric lamination is a combination of the best features of each fabric to create a reinforced, more durable product that is now puncture resistant and has added stiffness. The fabric lamination process is a complicated process and because of that, we have created this guide to help you learn more about the benefits, uses, and process.

Top Benefits of Fabric Lamination Services

  • Preserving and protecting your product. Fabric lamination will guard against the elements outside, dirt, grease, liquids, bacteria, and viruses. Fabric lamination will also preserve materials by preventing against staining, fading, and tearing.
  • Allows your product to last longer outdoors then it would untreated by retaining the original quality of the material, while making it water resistant. Fabric lamination services make your materials more durable and less likely to need to be replaced year to year.
  • Using this service means your product will become easier to maintain. The cleaning process for laminated fabrics is a simple swipe with water and mild detergent.
  • Fire protection to fabrics. Depending on the engineering process decided upon, you can use fabric lamination to give your fabrics fire retardant properties.
  • Enhancing the application of the product. For example, consider blinds. If you are looking to create blackout blinds, then fabric lamination services can help you achieve this goal.
  • Maximum and permanent option to protect fabric. You will no longer have to put large amounts of time and money into fixing damaged and fragile fabrics if opting for fabric lamination services, as this is one of the best ways to protect it.

Where to Use Fabric Lamination Services

Fabric lamination can be used on any product that needs the benefits listed above. Some of the top industries and products using fabric lamination services include:
  • Healthcare Industry Decor: For those purchasing products in senior living facilities, nursing homes, or hospitals fabric lamination offers a great way to extend the life of your upholstered furniture. By working with an adhesive laminating company, you can offer added comfort and security for those suffering from incontinence. Using fabric lamination for protective apparel, one-time use clothing, and surgical devices are also all popular within the healthcare industry.
  • Outdoor Furniture: Fabric lamination is a great option for outdoor furniture because of water resistance and durability against the elements. From restaurants with outdoor seating areas, cruise ship’s pool deck furniture, or wanting to extend the life of outdoor furniture cushions at hotels—fabric lamination will allow maximum protection and offer easier maintenance through the years.
  • Guide to Fabric Lamination
  • Food and Beverage/Restaurant Industry: Some of the main products utilizing fabric lamination services in this industry include: placemats, tablecloths, chair and booth cushions, and upholstered bar stools. Fabric packaging, liners, and bags are also practical uses within the food and beverage industry. This allows you to rest easy when spills occur and makes cleaning your products a breeze. You will also have to worry less about replacing items as they will be protected and preserved with fabric lamination.
  • Wall Coverings: Specialty wallcoverings are becoming increasingly popular because they are extremely durable. By finding an apparel fabric you can use fabric lamination services to turn it into a one of a kind wallpaper option. By laminating your wallpaper, it will protect against staining, punctures, dirt, grease marks, liquids and tearing. It also helps to retain the original color and brightness of your material and makes clean up and sanitizing quick and easy. Fabric lamination for wall coverings is perfect for residential settings, but also extremely popular in hospitality, healthcare, and commercial locations due to its durability.
  • Baby Products: Fabric laminating services have been popular for a long time within the baby products industry because of the stain resistance and easy clean-up capabilities. From diaper changing pads, highchairs, baby bibs, and even forms of cloth diapers—this service is a great benefit to new parents to offer quick and easy clean-up.
  • Apparel: Outdoor apparel such as rain jackets or ponchos or anything that needs to be water resistant could be considered for fabric lamination. It is also a great value-add for workwear and protective clothing because when engineered properly it can provide protection against cold weather conditions, water resistance, and act as a flame retardant. Also consider fabric lamination services for any high-performance apparel items that need to be breathable, yet waterproof.
  • Equipment Covers: Extremely popular for creating products to cover outdoor items. Fabric lamination services are used to create car covers, boat covers, grill covers, etc. Tents and tarps are also popular items that utilize fabric lamination to improve durability and to waterproof.

What is the Fabric Lamination Process?

When it comes to laminating a fabric, a previously developed or extruded film will be bonded onto the fabric substrate, through a thermal or adhesive bonding that minimizes the risk of damage during the laminating process. Engineers that understand and are considered experts in the purveying of fabric laminating services will be able to fuse several types of natural and synthetic fabrics. Several techniques can be used for coating and laminating textiles. Some of the processes available for laminating fabric include water-based adhesives, hot melt adhesives, dry web adhesives, plastisol adhesives, and flame bonding for the fusing of two or more substrates for the fabric being laminated. The three main technologies of this group are hot melt, flame, and acrylic laminations. Some of the main hot melt adhesives include polyester, polyamide, copolyester, copolyamide, polyurethane, and PVC. Specifically at Jessup, we can handle fabrics, films, paper up to 68″ wide and have the ability to laminate three fabrics together in one operation. In our flaming operation we can laminate a wide range of open and closed cells foams; polyether, polyester, polyethylene in a range of densities, (from 1.2 pcf to 8 pcf), thicknesses, (.064” to over 1”), and colors. We can flame laminate textiles up to 68” in width. On our acrylic line, we can both laminate and coat textiles up to 65” wide. Moreover, depending on the type of fabric you are wanting to laminate, fabric laminators use numerous types of lamination processes, including knit backing, matte vinyl, polish vinyl, fabric to fabric, acrylic backing, paper backing, fire barrier backing, moisture barrier, foam backing, and canvas backing, among many others. The fabric lamination process is a very meticulous process and should only be performed by a reputable fabric laminating company to ensure your fabrics are not ruined in the process. Successful implementation of laminating fabrics really depends on the way the service is applied to the textile, along with the use of appropriate technology, relying heavily on modern machinery. While the productivity of the laminating systems in place is important, the flexibility of the adhesive laminating companies operations is critical to success. Production speed and the versatility of the versatility of the adhesive company’s laminating methods are crucial factors to consider when deciding on your service partner. Process monitoring, process control, high-end technical specifications, and automation should also be reviewed before selecting your fabric laminator to ensure your satisfaction. Generally, specialized lamination services are required to prepare certain textile products with the ability to be utilized for daily needs in what most people would consider practical life applications. These daily needs include a desire to blackout curtains and blinds, or to add an improved aesthetic feature to a textile that you notice and/or use every day. Enhancing the durability or application of a product is the typical reason to laminate. Fabric lamination offers the best possible option for the protection of almost any and every type of fabric. With numerous laminating processes available, it is helpful to work with an adhesive laminating company like Jessup Manufacturing to determine which process is best depending on what your business is trying to accomplish, along with the type of fabric being laminated. Modern methods ensure you don’t have to worry about stripping, fading, or damaging your fabrics in any way. By choosing to laminate your fabrics, you will add special and specific properties to the material so that the fabric can last longer, not fray as easily, become more protected, and even look more aesthetically pleasing.
2018-10-26 14:01:00
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At Jessup Manufacturing Company, we take pride in our commitment to American craftsmanship. Every product we create is proudly made in the U.S.A., using the finest materials and skilled labor. By manufacturing domestically, we support our local economy and ensure the highest quality standards. When you choose Jessup Manufacturing Company, you can trust that you are supporting American jobs and receiving a product that is made to last. Join us in celebrating the spirit of American manufacturing and choose Jessup for all of your safety and griptape needs.