There are two popular ways to tell if a thermofoil component is manufactured well. The first is the appearance and the second is the adhesion on the edges. 

Appearance examples:
- Telegraphing of the mdf through the film
- visible wrinkles, shadowing, defects
- overstretched corners or whitened corners

Adhesion:
- clear bite of the film to the edge of the component. You can tell by a pull test
- adhesion down in raised panel profiles, no bridging

For the sake of this post, I'd like to discuss why and when to do a pull test. Firstly when the heat is activated well the film will stick well to the sides of the components.  Examples are below:

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Good times to do a fiber pull test are:
- When lowering temps significantly
- When changing film thicknesses more than .1mm
- When adding working with a new vendor
- When adding a protective film

In conclusion, pull tests are great way for manufacturers to spot check their components to better ensure good adhesion on the sides of the components and can be an integral part of QC.

Most designers who went to school were taught that PVC was somehow bad and harmed the environment. Most of this is stemmed by either inferior plastics or by old information that is not up to par with how plastics are made today.

According to the Tarnell Company Recycler survey, One Billion pounds of vinyl is recycled annually within North America, with over 150 million pounds of post-consumer materials, a 40% increase since 2014. In the U.S. most of the 10 billion pounds of vinyl resin produced annually goes into durable goods—approximately 5 billion pounds goes into water infrastructure (large pvc pipes) that is buried underground and has a service life in excess of 100 years—so it doesn’t go into the recycling stream. In addition, less than 3% of all plastics sent to US landfills is PVC

Elimination of Lead and Cadmium:
In the early 1980’s the U.S. and Canadian vinyl industry began a stewardship program aimed at implementing alternative stabilization technology to eliminated the need for stabilizers that contain metals, such as lead or cadmium. This effort was complete for cadmium around the year 2000 and for lead around the year 2006.

Better Emissions:
28% decrease in dioxin emissions since 2009, which amounts to 3.3% of all government regulated sources . Chlor-vinyl industry dioxin ambient emissions amount to 3.3% of all 2015 regulated sources such as metals, cement, paper, power, wood, oil and chemicals. It should also be noted that most materials including carpet, drapes and even natural wood can release dioxin emissions when on fire. 

Chrlorine Production:
US and Canadian raw material manufacturers for vinyl resin produce their own chlorine at or near their facilities resulting in minimizing risks associated with chemical transportation, leaks from loading and unloading operations and reducing the industry’s carbon foot print. The US vinyl chloride producers no longer rely on chlorine derived from mercury-cell technology to manufacture PVC resin.

For more information on education of PVCs and vinyls we recommend you to visit 
​https://www.vinylinfo.org/vinyl-sustainability-council/

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This article is to explain more about the different thicknesses we produce and for what application they are good for.

THICKNESS REFERENCE:
0.15mm = 6 mil , semi rigid
0.2mm = 8 mil, this thickness and above are rigid
0.25mm= 10 mil
0.3mm= 12 mil
0.4mm= 16 mil
0.45mm=18 mil
0.5mm= 20 mil
0.7mm=28mil

MEMBRANE PRESSING / VACUUM PRESSING: For Solids and Woodgrains,  Dackor's 12 mil is most common as it can be membrane pressed by all however some company's even have the expertise to profile wrap as well. When you press, it uses heat and suction to form over the mdf components. This means that the material is pressed into the substrate. By going thicker you are able to hide more imperfections. In addition, by going thicker, deeper embosses can be incorporated for more realistic surfaces. Quality producers know that Dackor has a plethora of thicker materials as well and we do this to enable our customers to have higher quality parts and also to create more realistic woodgrain textures.

PROFILE WRAPPING: When profile wrapping, companies do not experience suction of the material into the mdf so thinner products can be used. The most common sizes are 6 mil and 8 mil. When we produce 6mil we do so with a semi rigid vinyl. This reduces cost but also enables the product to wrap well. Some companies love semi rigid due to its ease of wrapping however semi rigids often are not as strong or durable to scratches and wear. For that reason we offer rigid 8 mil product to enable the material to be thin enough to wrap yet more durable to scratch and more rigid to process. 

SEMI RIGID VERSUS RIGID: The best way to describe the difference is that semi rigid feels more like a thin shower curtain that is more flimsy in your hand. This is caused by adding more plasticizers to enable the product to stretch. This also lowers the cost of the product. Rigid, however, uses a very low amount of plasticizers and enables the product to be more rigid. The product still goes on a roll however its really more like a thinner version of membrane press laminate.

FLAT LAMINATION: Companies can flat laminate 12 mil and thicker vinyls however this is typically done with a PUR line or 2 part epoxy. For most flat lamination lines you would utilize a 6 mil or 8 mil. This is personal preference. It should be noted the strengths and weaknesses are that the 6 mil applies more quick and cost less however being thinner it may show more imperfections in the substrate whereas the 8 mil is more rigid. Please note that the heat utilized in processing will be different as well based upon the formulation of rigid versus semi rigid as well as the thickness. If the product is more thick it may take more heat to absorb into the material.  

MITER FOLDING: When folding the vinyl becomes a hinge. This means that you are routering a v groove in the back of the part and only kissing the vinyl. When you fold the part you get a crisp edge. One advantage of a rigid vinyl is that when you fold it thermosets better and is less likely to pucker on the edge. So there are some strengths to miter folding a rigid over a semi rigid. 

CONCLUSION: Please note that there are so many variables in lamination. There is time, heat, duration, pressure, glue used, board, humidity , user and more. This means that like all professional laminations you really need to test produce product to be sure of the thickness and formulation to be sure more ease of processing.

Many cabinet door and component producers have asked where they may recycle PVC. As long as your product does not have glue you can visit: scrappvc.com 

Officers
Richard Silberfeld, President
Ray Brown, VP Sales

Corp. Office Address
97 Sawtooth Cove
Port Jefferson, NY 11777

Warehouse Address
1510 5th Industrial Court
Bay Shore, NY 11706

Telephone
Office: 631-969-1050
Fax: 631-969-1051
Alt. Office: 516-356-5120
Alt. Fax: 631-331-1885

Web Address
www.universalcomposites.com
www.scrappvc.com

E-mail Address
contact@universalcomposites.com

Ideal for thermofoil / membrane press vinyls.

Membrane presses such as made by Wemhoner and Burkle or even as an add on for Almex, Italpresse or Orma utlize rubber or silicone membranes to both transfer heat and to apply positive pressure on the components being pressed.

Types of membranes
There are various types of membranes such as rubber and silicone. Rubber membranes are less cost but are harder and do not get into the routered out profiles as well. Silicone membranes are softer and able to press into the profiles better however can be brown to tearing and blowing out. With silicone membranes you can different shore types which means different hardnesses as well as different thicknesses. Some manufacturers utilize different color membranes to signify different hardnesses however that is only to tell them apart.

It should be noticed that membranes can come textured on one side and smooth on the other or rough both sides, smooth both sides. Manufacturers sometimes apply the textured side towards the components because they find that  it releases the sticking and enables the vinyl to move and not get trapped under the membranes pressure. Doing this can sometimes transfer the texture to the components surface giving the component an unintended fabric like appearance. 

Why membranes are blowing
Membranes do have a certain life to them based upon constant stretching. Usually this is measured in cycles however you might shorten the life by how you use the membrane. Below are various ways you might shorten the life of a membrane. 

1. Sharp corners: Some companies press cabinet sides or components with too sharp corners. This can drastically reduce the life of your membrane. An alternative solution is to flat laminate panels via  2 part epoxy using a glue spreader or a PUR lamination line. The second solution is to design your components with a more eased edge to lengthen the use of your membane. 

2. Component spacing: The next thing that can damage a membrane is leaving too much distance between the parts. You can use a jig or long dummy components and this will keep the vinyl from over stretching or sliding across the table as well as the membrane from pulling too hard on the corner. Another issue can be having the components too close to each other but this is a less common issue.

3. Membrane tension: It is important to have the right tension of the membrane installed on your press and this is based upon the hardness of your membrane and type of press you have. This will require some trial and error.

4. Press settings: When I work with companies to dial this in I usually figure out how they are using their press now and what settings that press has. The membrane should have an adequate temp and not be too hot or too cold. Based upon the settings there may be ways to let the heat and vacuum stage to do a bit of the work. This seems like a small thing but based upon hundreds of cycles the settings can work your membrane a bit less.

I hope that you have found this article helpful and be sure to share with me your tips by commenting and if you are having issues simply email me your press settings. 

Every product has pros and cons and one of the weak areas of 3D Laminates is the reputation of delamination. Properly manufactured thermofoil doors will not delaminate without exposure to heat. Doors can be tested by doing a pull test and I speak more about pull and heat tests in another article.   https://www.dackor.com/blog/archives/04-2018

Below is an explanation of various types of failures and how to solve them.

USER ERROR ISSUES
Failure by Self Cleaning Ovens
Self Cleaning ovens reach up to 900 degrees and is so hot it can melt the finish off of wood. With thermofoil doors it is recommended to use heat shields and also hinge the doors away from the oven and open any drawers during the heat cycle. In fact, oven manufacturers recommend to pull the oven out from the cabinets so they are aware that this cycle can damage any material. 

Failure by tea kettles
Tea Kettles can reach up to 212 degrees which is above the failure rate of thermofoil. It should be noted that at the time of writing this article 1 part adhesive historically has been up to 175 degrees and a 2 part PUD adhesive up to 200 degrees. The solution is to simply pull the kettle out from under the cabinets. 

MANUFACTURING ERRORS
Too little glue
Like most products being manufactured, quality is about the producer and their systems. If the person spraying the mdf parts does not get enough glue on the edges then it can cause failure. Glue is applied via spray and if too little is put on the edges it can cause failure. In addition, there is pressure from customers to have better looking parts which creates a demand to use less glue in order to reduce telegraphing from the substrate. This means that there is a fine line between good looking parts and high quality and they are not necessarily aligned in goal. 

Not reaching heat activation at the glue line
Using a quality machine is important and having a press that achieves the pressure at the glue line is critical. That is not to say that a person cannot use a lower cost vacuum press but its important that they do other things correct. 

The combination
In pressing the combination of two or more issues can cause a failure. Each step in the process  can have a contributing factor. >Glue > Person Applying glue>Board used>Machine settings>PVC and its primer. 

Properly manufactured Thermofoil doors will not delaminate without exposure to heat. To determine if a door has a good bond and the glue line was activated simply pull a part from production and do a pull test. In a pull test you cut a triangle shaped amount and pull the vinyl off the corner of the door. If the bond is good you will notice that there will be fibers on the film and also it will be very difficult to pull off the vinyl as pliers will need to be used. 

If you are pulling heavy fibers then you almost certainly will pass heat tests. If you are not pulling heavy fibers you may need to give extra spray to the sides of the door or increase heat or preheat to give total heat exposure to fully bond the glue line.

Solution to manufacturing errors
1. Use a quality component producer that stands behind their product
2. As them how they QC their parts and go visit their operation. See for yourself
3. Listen to their advice on what type of pvc, glue, board they prefer. Don't push them to cheapen the product without expecting failure
4. QC yourself by doing a pull test. Simply cut a triangle on the edge of the door and use plyers to pull the laminate off. If it pulls heavy fiber from the edge and its hard to pull off you know its a well made door

Conclusion
I hope that you have found this article helpful and if I can make improvements or clarifications please don't hesitate to contact me.