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Laminators Buyers Guide– Pouch Vs Roll, Hot Vs Cold, Sizes, How to use, and Additional features
Behold! The king of the stationery items, the laminator (if you haven’t seen Taskmaster Series 7, episode 10, please do).
Laminators are much like cars– all models will all get you from A to B, but they vary widely in price and performance, differing in build quality, ability, ease of use, speed, and longevity, to name a few. In this guide, we will give you all the tools you need so that you can make an informed decision that aligns with your specific requirements.
So, let’s begin…
What does a laminator do?
Laminating adds a protective layer of plastic to both sides of a document where durability and flexibility are needed. It enhances the professional appearance of your work, one that is hard to achieve with regular printer paper. Lamination improves the document’s durability and appearance and provides protection against moisture, tearing, heavy handling, dirt, getting wet, paper yellowing, and loss of colour saturation (fading). It is used in various businesses, often for things like certificates, signage, photos, posters, menus, and ID cards. When you laminate in-house, rather than outsourcing, you can reduce costs and improve turnaround time.
How does it work?
The process of lamination involves putting the item between two rollers and then, with either heat or pressure (or both), the laminating film is bonded to itself or to the item.
Pouch vs Roll
When selecting a new laminator, you’ll come across two main types: the pouch laminator and the roll laminator.
Pouch: Roll:
| The most commonly used type of laminator | More commonly found in schools, print shops, and professional environments |
| Compact |
professional environments |
| Easy-to-use | Less intuitive |
| More affordable upfront cost | Higher upfront cost |
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This machine uses pre-sized, and pre-sealed at one edge laminating pouches whose pouches completely encapsulate a document. |
This machine uses large rolls of laminating film instead of individual pouches. |
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After placing your document in a laminating pouch,one feeds it through the machine, where the rollers apply heat and pressure to bond the layers of plastic together. |
The document is passed between two rolls of film, one above and below, which is then passed through rollers to apply heat and pressure. |
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The edges of the plastic coating extend beyond the document edge so that the item is completely encapsulated and has a completely waterproof barrier. |
The plastic coating provides durability and flexibility, but as the coating does not extend all the way around the document, waterproofing is not guaranteed. |
| Slower | Faster |
| Less cost-effective for continuous/ high-volume usage | More cost effective for heavy usage as they have lower running costs over time |
| Best for low-volume usage (~20 items per week) | Designed for continuous, high-volume laminating |
Hot vs Cold
You can find models that do only one of these methods, and some that offer the option to choose. Being cold or heat-assisted refers to the kind of adhesive used in the laminating process. Cold laminate, as the name suggests, does not require heat in addition to the pressure provided by rollers, whereas heat-assisted lamination requires both heat and pressure to activate the adhesive to properly seal documents.
Hot: Cold:
| Uses heated rollers to dissolve the adhesive coating on the film. The film is pressed against the document as this method uses films that are up to 6mm larger than the document. | Uses adhesive coated film which adheres to the document due to pressure of the rollers alone– no heat required |
| Not suitable for heat-sensitive materials | Ideal for heat-sensitive materials such as photographs or certain types of inkjet prints as some inks aren’t resistant to high temperatures |
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Slower start up time as the machine needs to warm upbefore you can use it |
Faster start up time as the machine does not need to heat up before using |
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Heated elements posing risks of burns or other heat-related accidents |
No hot elements so it is safer to operate |
| Longer laminating time | Short laminating time |
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More durable and waterproof finish as this method creates a stronger bond and sealed edges |
Adhesion is weaker |
| Often used for specialty materials or temporary protection |
Sizes:
It is important to determine what the maximum size document you may want to laminate is. The machines are rated by maximum document width. It is worth noting that though an A1 laminator is designed to accommodate A1 documents, it can handle all sizes below, like A5, A4, and A3, as well as odd shapes within those dimensions, like ID cards. By adjusting the settings or using different types of pouches or rolls, depending on the model you pick, you can laminate anything. This versatility makes an A1 laminator a good investment if you work with a variety of sizes, even if it is only occasionally you will need to use its full width.
Business environments where large format usage is common include architecture and construction, advertising and signage manufacture, educational environments, and, of course, printing. Though, in most office applications, however, laminators for A4 prints are perfectly adequate.
It is also worth considering the film thickness capacity (measured in microns/µm) as not all machines support the use of thick pouches, for extra rigidity and durability providing greater document protection, or heavy materials, like card and cardboard.
How to Use:
If you’ve never used a laminator, here’s a quick and mostly universal guide:
1. Insert your document into a pouch (for pouch laminators) or feed the document between the upper and lower film rolls (for roll laminators).
2. Turn on machine and wait for it to warm up if using a heat-assisted machine.
3. Align your document correctly before feeding it into the machine rollers.
4. Allow the rollers to grab the document and pull it through using heat and/or pressure, and DO NOT PULL at the laminated item before it has fully exited the machine. This will save time in the long run as the machine will require less maintenance and avoids opportunities for burns.
5. Turn off your machine.
Additional Features:
Some additional things to look out for when getting a new laminator include:
· Adjustable temperature controls that can support different film thicknesses and types,
· What kinds of film are compatible, one cannot assume all machines support glossy, matte, adhesive, and specialty types,
· Speed rating, measured in mm per minute, which is critical for high volume usage,
· Availability of spare parts, which indicates a strong build, designed to be durable and have low servicing needs,
And ease-of-use features like:
· An anti-jam/ reverse function which will safely and automatically remove any stuck film or pouches the machine detects,
· An auto shut-off mode which will save energy and improve safety,
· LED lights to indicate when the machine is warming up, ready status, and errors,
· And alignment guides to prevent misfeeds.
