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The Process of Lamination
How does pouch lamination work?
In most cases, a hot laminator is used to seal the
pouch and bind the layers together so that your document
is laminated. The actual pouch consists of pockets of
laminating film into which the item to be laminated is placed.
Two layers:
Hot laminating pouches consists of two layers: a polyester-base
film layer and an adhesive resin layer that are bonded together.
As you run the pouch through the hot laminator, the heat melts
the adhesive resin layer, which then spreads over the document,
hardening as it cools and creating a bond between the paper and
the polyester-based layer of the pouch.
Hot lamination material:
The polyester and adhesive content in hot laminating pouches is
defined as a ratio, such as 3/2 or 1/4. The first number represents
the polyester content, while the second represents the adhesive
content. Ratios with larger polyester contents produce stiffer
lamination. Ratios with more adhesive contents will have a stronger
bond which is necessary when laminating thicker materials
such as substrate backing or hard plastic.
Measurements:
"Mils" represents a thousandth of an inch and is
a measurement of the thickness, or weight, of a laminating
pouch. Each side of a laminating pouch pocket has its own mil
weight. A 5 mil pouch has a total weight of 10 mils and the
higher the mil weight, the more rigid the final laminated
document will be.
In both hot and cold lamination, the thicker the film or pouch, the stiffer and more durable the laminated item will be. Cold pouch laminators are also available, although they are not as common as hot pouch laminators.
We have fast, unrivaled, same-day shipping if you call before 6:30 pm Eastern time (or 3:30 pm Pacific time). Call us at 1-888-326-9244 and you can start laminating tomorrow morning.
*Recommendations will vary depending on the application. We carry a wide variety of brands and models of laminating machines so that we can accommodate your laminating needs.
