News Decal

Those who work in the field of the large format digital printing know that lamination is the best way to protect prints and surfaces. However, to what extent are the potentials of this thin film to ensure greater durability and resistance to work known?

Lamination continues to assert itself as the best solution, and products multiply with a varied offer for applications on different types of substances, such as vinyl and paper. The benefits it offers continue to conquer the market with proven skills and novelties to solve problems that decal often anticipates in the work it does in terms of research and quality control.

This work includes ongoing tests and, to answer questions about the importance of lamination in protecting prints, one test was carried out between 2018 and 2020, with six samples produced on the Mimaki JV300-160, CJV30-100 solvent printers and on the UVLED Mimaki UJV55-320 printer, with and without UV LED lamination.

After two years of direct exposure to sunlight and erosion on a plate placed outside and facing south, the results confirmed that the deterioration and peeling of laminated application was exponentially reduced when compared to non-laminated applications. Another important finding was that the chemical corrosion caused by pollution had a greater impact than UV rays.

The durability of the work is a factor that can make all the difference and is directly related to the resistance of the materials to the weather conditions found outside. Lamination is also essential in interior applications, for example, in shopping centers and other public spaces with a high influx of people.

Aesthetics is not neglected in this process and, in addition to protecting, lamination can contribute to the enhancement of colors, increasing brightness and other effects that enhance prints. Evolution has given rise to new ranges with other differentiating characteristics, which have been asserting themselves as intelligent responses to the needs and requirements of each context.

At decal, we produce several solutions to protect water, solvent, latex and UV-based prints with adhesive products that overcome market challenges. A set of proposals, including the ecology of the PVC Free range, produced without plasticizers, the resistance of the Floor Graphics range, suitable for floor applications, or the safety of the Microbial Free range, which reduces bacteria by 99.99 %.