OVERLAMINATES:
Under the Microscope
The overlaminates market is growing due to increased uses of this versatile product and easy to
install nature.
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By Jeffrey Steele
The technological evolution of overlaminates shows no
sign of slowing, with new manufacturing advancements
continually ushering in new thicknesses,
textures, and product capabilities. Th ose trends in
turn are helping suggest new ways to use the products, and new
means of print service providers (PSPs) profi ting from their use.
Few understand the ongoing metamorphosis of the technology
and the market better than Tammy Bui. As product
manager for Arlon Graphics, a manufacturer of innovative
cast and pressure-sensitive vinyl products for a wide range of
visual expressions, Bui has scrutinized developments in the
space carefully.
Today’s key trends, she said, include expansion of vehicle
fl eet opportunities resulting from the cost eff ectiveness of
overlaminate vehicle wraps, and an increasing tendency to
use overlaminates in wall coverings to replace wallpaper.
“At Arlon, we’re seeing growth in the fl eet business, as people
switch out their graphics on an annual or even monthly
basis on up to 100 vehicles per company,” she said. “It’s more
cost-eff ective than before. Th e reason is that the vinyl fi lm
technology has gotten to the point where it’s more cost effi -
cient to replace vinyl wrap than to paint the cars or buy new
ones. Th ey’re easy to customize and you can really provide the
customers with what they need and want.”
Many of Arlon’s customers are also entering the profi table and
fast-growing wall coverings market, where wallpaper is being
replaced with diff erent overlaminates, such as textured vinyl
that would be overlaid on white or colored vinyl, Bui said.
Why is this market growing? “Th ere is more control with the
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