The nature of the printer, meanwhile, will affect drying times after printing.
“With solvent-based and ‘eco-solvent’ inks, it is essential to allow plenty of drying time, typically 24 to 48 hours, with sustained airflow to all areas,” says Stadelman. “Failure to do so can contribute to stretchy vinyl and soft, gummy adhesives when solvents trapped in the vinyl migrate. Ultraviolet-cured (UV-cured) and latex inks, on the other hand, are ready for the next step right off the printer.”
The next step is overlamination, to protect the graphics.
“Wrap films with a laminate can last up to five years, which seems to be the industry standard,” says Molly Waters, technical specialist for Avery Dennison Graphics Solutions, another vinyl substrate manufacturer, “but some thinner laminates drop to four-year durability and most customers don’t balk, as their vehicle leases tend to be for just three years anyway.”
Graphic longevity is variable, however, since some areas of a vehicle are more susceptible to degradation than others.
“In most cases, the horizontal surfaces—such as the hood and roof—will have the toughest challenge,” says Stadelman.
“The sun beats down on those areas,” Waters adds, “so even a 10-year film can go down to two-year durability.”
In response, some manufacturers have designed premium laminates specifically intended for use on horizontal sections of vehicle wraps.
Unlike most printed graphics, which are installed ‘flat’, vehicle wrap designs must account for complex contours, curves and rivets. Photos courtesy Mactac
Colour changes
While there have been gradual improvements to printable substrates and laminates for vehicle wraps over the years, most of them are now well-established in the market. Today, more innovation is taking place with so-called ‘colour change’ films, which serve as an alternative to paint for a clientele of auto enthusiasts. New colours and textures continue to be released.
“Colour change films have been available in Europe for 10 years, but the original ones weren’t repositionable, as there were no air-egress capabilities back then,” says Paul Roba, technical manager for Avery Dennison, “so it used to take three to four days to install a wrap, compared to one day now.”
Even now, however, a steady hand and nerves of steel are called for, as any installation errors will be all the more noticeable to the client than with a graphic wrap.
“Some installers take the car apart to wrap each component,” says Roba.
“Customer expectations are higher for colour-change wraps than for printed graphics,” Waters agrees. “A print can hide mistakes. For a solid colour change, you need a stronger skill set. Some high-end installers even wrap the door jambs. The customer base is willing to spend a lot.”
Beyond printed graphics, innovation in ‘colour change’ films has brought vehicle wrapping to a new clientele of auto enthusiasts. Photo courtesy Avery Dennison.
One reason for this willingness is, ironically, the temporary nature of the medium.
“It’s economy-driven,” says Waters. “If you repainted a car in a cool matte metallic blue, it would devalue the vehicle—but with a wrap, you could go back to the original colour before reselling the car.”
Optimizing installations
While the material, printer and lamination markets for graphic wraps have matured, installation remains a key differentiator for sign shops, as it still depends heavily on individual training, skill and technique.
Lowen Color Services was recently commissioned to install graphics on more than 200 vehicles per week at 35 locations when the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) ran a marketing campaign in major cities with Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE), to jointly promote priority mail services and SPE’s big-budget superhero movie, The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Each application was completed on-site through a national network of Lowen-certified and 3M-preferred installers.
“We were excited when USPS approached us with this significant task,” says Roger Borth, Lowen’s general manager (GM). “We are always eager to undertake very large projects with expedited lead times.”
For the high-profile marketing campaign, which began in mid-March and will run until the end of May, Lowen printed the fleet graphics on a 3M Commercial Graphics material designed for easy removal afterwards, returning each mail truck to its original appearance.
