Pressing is an Art not a Science

Throughout the past 10 years I've helped hundreds of companies with pressing, and I’ve come to realize that if you can allow yourself to toss out the old thinking of viewing pressing as a “science”, and regard it more so as an “art”, you can reveal the true underlying explanations to many of the issues you have or will run into with varying films. There are so many variables that can affect the outcome, and unfortunately it takes only one inaccuracy to cause a chain of events that can lead to multiple problems down the road.

Some variables to watch for:
-Temperature of room, film or board
-Humidity in room
-Preheat, Cycle Time and Temp
-Duration of Membrane Application
-Space between components, jigs or table
-Height of pedestal or pin system
-Thickness, Gloss level or color of foil
-Plasticizer content of foil
-Amount of Glue applied
-Bars of Pressure
There are other variables, so please feel free to post your comments.

Aside from looking at just the quantity of potential disruptions, it’s also important to realize that it only takes one to throw a chain of events into play that will impact the rest of your settings. Let me give an example:

Lets say that you get a request for a new color, and press it with the same preheat settings you have been using all year with your other films. When you press it, however, wrinkles show up. After speaking with the supplier, you are recommended to lower your preheat; however, this seems to create a new problem, as the film doesn’t form into the details of the door like you want it to. In summary, this new design doesn’t work well with your existing preheat settings, nor does it perform correctly when you make the adjustments to your settings. So what’s wrong with this vinyl?

The solution may be due to something as simple as the spacing you allow between your components. For the past year, your setup may have been working perfectly for you – your components were close together, but after trial and error you discovered that the longer preheat worked on the vinyls you were using at the time. However, those settings cause the vinyl to wrinkle on the new foil design, and now no longer work. In tinkering with your setup, you try something new and move the component parts slightly further apart, which allows for more film to reach into the profiles. This solves the problem, not only for the new film, but amazingly also for the old films. Additionally, the preheat is able to be lowered by 30 seconds, saving valuable time in your production. The problem was not solved with a typical adjustment in the settings, but rather by an outlying factor that required a little “thinking outside of the box”.

I used the above story to demonstrate how problems in pressing cannot be solely blamed on one variable. A cause and effect relationship exist amongst all the settings, both obvious and hidden, that can really change the nature of pressing. Some may say that there are no perfect settings, no “one size fits all” approach to pressing components - and to that I would agree. The glue, board, film, machine, pressing environment, etc. – they are all contributing variables to the formula that is your production. If you do not have a problem, then your variables are obviously working in your favor; however, if you ever do have a problem, then it’s important to be mindful of all the variables that play a role in your production line, and how they may ultimately be affecting your bottom line.

So by letting yourself see thermofoil component pressing as an art, rather than a science, you can open yourself up to all of the hidden variables that are really impacting your final product.

The beginning...

Its the beginning of a new year and I have decided to create a blog about the industry I love so much, the 3D Laminate Industry. I'd like to tell you my history as it’s relative to what I'm about... I grew up in a small town called Marion, VA, population 8,000 or so. I graduated in 1989 and I struggled in my first year in college. I joined the Air Force at the beginning of 1990.

On my way to basic, an Air Force Captain came up to me and asked where I was being stationed. Now mind you, its rare for an officer to really go out of their way to speak to a young enlisted guy. He recommended that I put in for Japan. He went on and on about how great Japan was and so I did; I put Japan at the top of the list. I was stationed in Japan for four years and worked with Petroleums and on my pool game. I had a lot of great experiences in Japan, I studied the Japanese language, taught English, took night classes and managed to explore Japan and learn more about the culture.

I decided to get out of the Air Force after four years and to go back to college. I decided on the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Yes I can hear you chuckling here.... It wasn't all surfing and scuba diving, although I did my share. In high school I was a C/D student but somehow I graduated with a 3.5 grade average with a degree in International Marketing with a minor in Japanese Language. In my marketing classes I did a few case studies on the Decorative Surfacing Industry. At the time I didn't really connect how the International Marketing, Japanese and Decorative Surfacing would somehow all join together in my future...

Next I started a company called Holdings in Malaysia with some college friends. What an experience! Doing business in a foreign country and dealing with Italy, China, India, Brazil and other countries. The market timing was perfect in the start and we imported granite and marble for flooring and countertops in Hotel and other multi-family projects. I loved the business but decided that I didn't want to live in Malaysia anymore.

I then set my sights for moving back to the US. When I moved back to the US, I relocated to Raleigh, NC (Cary). I saw an ad looking for someone with sales, marketing and Japanese language. When I went to the interview, imagine my surprise when I discovered that they were in the Decorative Surfacing Industry ! Needless to say, I landed the job and I started as a Sales Person for to North America. While working at Ambtra, I was able to combine everything I enjoyed doing. I loved dealing with other countries, loved Japan, loved marketing and thought the Decorative Surfacing Industry was so cool. The idea of adding value to an ordinary surface excites my marketing sensibilities. During my time there I was one of the first guys to target the Store Fixture Industry, was the first to develop a cut roll program and the first to use the term 3D Laminates. (that I know of) At th NeoCon Office show people didn't know what our product was. I cut chips to be sized like Wilsonart’s and put 3D Laminates on the display. Many people remarked "Wow they make 3D Laminates now". Working at Ambtra was such a positive experience. I strongly recommend doing business with them as they are some of the nicest and most sincere group of people you would ever want to meet.

In late 2003' I took the challenge of starting up DACKOR for North America. We physically got inventory in late 2004 so I've been marketing the product for four years as of the start of this blog. Its been a real challenge developing new colors for the market and establishing the initial client base. I won't bore you with the details but we've managed to grow consistently even in a declining market. We've created some hits that have flourished and I do have some more things coming up that I think will do well.

I must admit that I have had support from some key people to get to this point. But imagine the affect that other’s had in my life. If that Captain had never approached me in the airport my life would probably have been so different. Its interesting how small chance circumstances can alter your life.

At the beginning of this year I decided to create a blog discussing the 3D Laminate industry. I feel like I have a unique and international perspective on our business. Over the past years I have been apart of selling over $100 million in Decorative Surfaces, lived in various countries and upstarted several foreign Decorative Surface factories entrace into the US market. I have also done independent consulting to some nationally known Decorative Surfacing brands. In addition, I've helped numerous companies with their press settings and with improving their high gloss components by elleviating or reducing orange peel and wrinkles. Over the past ten years I have also worked with various national Office Component manufacturers to create new lines or with Store Fixture chains, restaurant chains and multi family housing developers.

Throughout our days we are flooded with news and information (mostly useless). I don't proclaim that these blog posts will change your life but I think it would be easy for you to gain something of value. And please be sure to give me support by emailing me if you see something useful. Your feedback is important.