A look at the big steps forward for laser materials and a glimpse at future progress.

When laser engravers first came out, they were ahead of their time. There was a great deal of excitement about the technology—working with lasers was supposed to be reserved for comic book superheroes and villains—and many couldn’t wait to put them to work. And that’s when the excitement gave way to the hard reality: there were no materials yet that were engineered and manufactured for laser personalization. However, due to the innovative products from certain companies, that didn’t last long.

MATERIAL EVOLUTION

Once upon a time, metals were impervious to the heat and energy of a CO2 laser, and plastics wilted in yellow discoloration. Then came innovation from companies like Cerdec (now owned by Ferro Corporation) and plastics manufacturers like Rowmark and IPI (Innovative Plastics, Inc.).

The front man for the latter, located in Algonquin, Ill., is Don D’Antonio, and he provided us with a synopsis of laserable plastics development, a series of innovations that provide us with a clue to the advancements made by other materials in this market.

D’Antonio notes that when laser engravers first came out, personalization retailers used the same plastics they had used for their rotary engravers. Many problems quickly popped up, and companies like IPI and Rowmark went to work.

“One of the first things we found out was a micro-surface was the best way to laser because it didn’t require going deep, which melted everything in those days,” says D’Antonio.

The original foils (the top coating, which is the color) were more vinyl based, because they were also used in other industries whose needs were different than those of the laser industry. So, plastics companies developed foils that were acrylic based, making them harder at the same thickness and therefore laser friendly. They also developed an acrylic clear coat to go on top. Reds, blues and greens all have different pigment weights and different viscosities, so they would react differently to the heat. The clear coat neutralized that and made life much easier for guys using a laser.

That took care of the top layer of plastic, which is .001” thick. The next problem to solve was the material underneath, ABS, which is a softer core material. It was softer so the rotary blade would cut through it cleanly.

“Then the laser came in, and it would go through the top surface, but the bottom surface would tend to have a melt to it, and if it was a lighter-colored core, such as white, it would give it a sort of yellow color. When you wanted to cut it out, it would discolor and melt even more because of its softness. It was a mess,” remembers D’Antonio.

He says they played around with this problem for about the first year. They eventually made the core out of a high-impact acrylic rather than ABS. The harder material would not melt or discolor. In a nutshell, that’s how the main problems of laser engraving plastic were solved.

The next step was to create a broader product line.

“At the beginning, we introduced the basic products, the 80 percent sales of 20 percent of the product. As things became more popular, the next step was to bring out a much broader selection of colors and looks, such as the marble and metal finishes we’re all now familiar with, as well as second-surface materials, and all of those in a variety of different gauges. We started with 50 products. We now have over 500 stock products that are all laserable,” says D’Antonio.

LASER ENGRAVING MATERIALS

D’Antonio isn’t the only one who has seen his line of laser engravable products expand exponentially. While IPI was working on its line of laserable materials, Rowmark made similar adjustments to its own product line.

Jen Schoenberger notes that the manufacturer of plastic laminates, based in Findlay, Ohio, also has a vast line of products, specializing in materials for the signage, awards and personal identification industries. They offer a wide range of colors, patterns and finishes for a variety of applications that are user friendly. She also points out that all of their laser engravable products can also be fabricated using a rotary engraver.

Eric Priceman of Victory, a division of Planter, Inc., in Chicago, notes that their entire line is laserable. “We’re one of the pioneers with regards to laser coatings on metal, both sheet stock and plaque plates. All of our plaque plates, our wooden plaques, our acrylic products and our glass products are laserable,” says Priceman. “When we come out with products, they all have lasering in mind. We also have a registered trademark, called LaserBright™

Zeda Blau notes that Horizons Incorporated, based in Cleveland, Ohio, is another innovator in laserable metals, as it manufactures AlumaMark. “AlumaMark is anodized aluminum, but it’s also coated by us, and that coating is manufactured to interact with the laser beam, the energy of the laser, which turns the mark black.”

It seems that a result of evolving laser materials is that in an industry built on rotary engraving (on both the supply and retail side), laser products now have ubiquitous presence throughout so many manufacturers’ lines. Some companies, such as Phoenix-based LaserBits, are completely laser focused.

Founder Mike Fruciano says, “We’re totally dedicated toward laser engraving, laser cutting, laser marking and teaching laser engraving with our online Laser University.”

He adds that the university has become a tremendous part of LaserBits’ business, with many international customers. “We just had someone sign up from India.” Yet another evolution of laser engraving has been its worldwide use—and distribution.

Tom Johnson of Johnson Plastics in Minneapolis, Minn., notes that his company distributes laserable products, among others, for each of the companies participating in this article.

“We have a wide variety of plastics and metals that are laserable, and it consumes a good part of our catalog,” says Johnson.

For retailers looking to limit the amount of inventory they have on hand, Johnson Plastics is not only a source for laserable materials, they are also essentially an offsite warehouse for retailers to use, from which same-day shipping is available. They carry nearly everything available from Rowmark and IPI, as well as selections from Victory, AlumaMark and LaserBits.

PRODUCT PROGESS

Fruciano notes that when he first became involved with laser engraving, the industry was roughly 10 years old. He remembers the focus at that point was on creating reliable engraving and cutting technology in the computer interface.

“That technology was still evolving, so there wasn’t a whole lot of focus on materials at that time, because they were still trying to figure out how to make the lasers work reliably with computers, software issues. At that time, laser engravers were limited to using products that were manufactured for other applications, plastics and coated metals that were primarily for rotary engraving. No one, yet, had started to develop materials and products specifically for lasers,” says Fruciano.

After advances in coatings and materials were made, the next progression—for all laser material companies—has been to expand their product lines. Much of that expansion has been in the number and the combination of colors available. Schoenberger notes that Rowmark’s product offering has also evolved with the demands of their customers.

“Rowmark’s laserable materials are made with resins and micro-thin caps that are laser friendly, while yielding optimal results. Yet, we continue to enhance our line with innovative products as the needs of our customers and our market change,” says Schoenberger.

Priceman notes that Victory’s early laser materials were much simpler than their evolved descendants of today. “Now, we’ve developed stronger colors, different types of colors and we’ve invented more creative ways to show dimension by using a combination of printing and laser engraving. We’ve come out with different types of products both symmetrical and asymmetrical.”

He adds that when Victory first came out with laser materials, they had a line of stand-up products, plaques and plates, but that was it. “Now that we’ve developed the coatings and surfaces, our artists are very busy designing new, creative products,” says Priceman.

Commenting further on the market’s early innovations, Fruciano notes that the other hotbed of laser engraving was in the rubber stamp industry. There were lots of rubber materials that were made for older technology, and they were very difficult to work with. “In the rubber stamp industry, there were quite a few materials that were developed specifically for laser engraving stamps, corporate seals and things of that nature.” Stamp makers using a laser could finally do away with their nose pins.

Other products have evolved with more subtle adjustments. Blau says that Horizons has simply tweaked and improved AlumaMark since bringing it to market in 2001. “The coating is much more durable in terms of its shelf life and its markability. Our settings have become much more forgiving, and we have developed new finishes. We started out with matte silver, and we now have a whole range of finishes in the gold and silver ranges,” says Blau.

She adds that they have a very standard program for blanks, circles, name badge sizes, etc. They also offer custom dimensions. For Horizons, another progression will be an aesthetically pleasing color for their new outdoor line of AlumaMark, AlumaMark EXT.

LASERS ADVANCE, THEN MATERIALS

To take full advantage of the variety of techniques made possible by the software developments laser manufacturers made, laser materials had to find a way to absorb the higher-resolution images the lasers were now capable of.

“Some of the early materials had poor engraving quality. So, the materials had to catch up to the laser. What happened was the power and speed of the lasers began to supersede the materials’ ability to hold the resolution. But, it was fairly quick for most of the materials to catch up,” says Fruciano.

Typically, that was a matter of increasing the materials’ density. Laser materials, by nature, are typically harder than other engraving materials because the process is vaporization, where the laser heats it up and it turns to smoke. Softer materials melt, turning rubbery and gooey.

Another area in which lasers advanced was their ability to do 3D or relief engraving. Materials have also been developed for this application, says Fruciano. “For instance, we have a line of woods that, essentially, are a super high-quality MDF, kind of a fiberboard. It has the ability to hold that type of engraving resolution.”

Part of the problem is that the lasers themselves have only recently been capable of the type of power required to run at the speed necessary. That technology didn’t really exist until three years ago.

“Another part of the problem was creating a software program that could modify the image to give the effect, but I saw a company at the PMA show this year that had developed their own software, and though some of the relief murals they made were sort of monotone, the overall product is outstanding.”

IMPACTFUL ADVANCES

We’ve covered the major steps forward in laser engraving plastic, the array of products available for laser engraving and the progress made by those products over time. Now, let’s look at the products whose availability made the most impact on the industry.

First, Fruciano points out that taking existing materials and modifying them was relatively simple. It was just a matter of some experimentation.

“But, I think the biggest advance has always been metal marking, because metal marking with a CO2 laser had just never been available,” says Fruciano. “When the company Cerdec, which is now called Ferro Corporation, developed the CerMark products, the industry gained tremendously in size, because there was an application for using a laser to mark metals, which previously didn’t exist.”

Fruciano adds that the concept is called thermal bonding, and it was essentially a coating applied to the bare metal, which the laser fuses on with a black mark, similar to a ceramic glaze.

“The concept of using the laser to fuse on a coating was ingenious, and it led to all kinds of applications,” says Fruciano.

Priceman agrees with that assessment. “Metal marking really moved laser engraving forward to where recognition dealers are almost required to have a laser engraver now.”

Other advances Priceman points out are cast acrylic products, which provide a nice frosted appearance when they’re engraved, and different types of high-gloss wood, walnut, rosewood, etc. He adds that Victory is now looking at different types of stone finishes and resin products. “Many advances are coming from a finish standpoint, and we’re developing that constantly.”

Oddly enough, further advancement in laser engraving metal also came from plastics manufacturers. D’Antonio recalls, “We asked ourselves, ‘How do we make laser materials that make it easier for the engraver to do some of the things he’s already using metals for?’ We developed thinner gauge, laserable plastics that look like brass and aluminum. We call it LaserThins; Rowmark calls it FlexiBrass®. We also have an even thinner product we call LaserUltraThins, and Rowmark calls LaserLIGHTS. Those are very, very thin with adhesive on them,” says D’Antonio.

Those thin plastic products with metallic finishes, says D’Antonio, really helped laser engravers avoid the more labor-intensive processes of cutting metal to the shape they wanted (the laser could do that for them) and oxidizing metal.

“It was a product directed at customers who wanted ease of use, and it was a big hit. That was probably the biggest advance, I’d say, out of any of the others we evolved through the years. It was the biggest need that we filled. But again, it’s still plastic; it’s not metal, though there are a lot of advantages to plastic and vice versa. It depends on what the application calls for,” says D’Antonio.

The next advances, recalls D’Antonio, were making these products for ADA applications, and then for exterior use.

Among those advances, of course, are new products. Schoenberger notes that Rowmark recently introduced Metalgraph Plus™ a product that has advanced engravable metals. “It is fingerprint resistant, outdoor weatherable, laserable, does not scratch or tarnish, and it offers the ease of plastic with the look of real metal.”

THE NEXT ADVANCEMENT

Priceman says the next step for laser materials will continue to be an increased variety of color. “More items will have color, and items will be easier to manipulate with color fill and other techniques. I think there will also be more types of multi-media awards, where part of it will be lasered and part of it will use digital printing or some other color process. Those are the type of products we’re looking at right now.”

Some of those multi-media products may have already arrived. D’Antonio notes that IPI, as well as Direct Color, now has a product for both digital printing and laser engraving.

“We call it the Printables Plus, and they have a print-receptive coating on them, and at the same time, it’s laserable. Direct Color calls it PrintMark II. You can print a full-color logo on these, say for a name badge, and then laser the names,” says D’Antonio. He adds that they also have laserable mirror and marble finishes. The development of the right mixture of ingredients for plastics is done. The next advancements will be in the creativity in their use.

Fruciano, on the next step for laser engraving, says, “I think that the materials, right now, are actually ahead of what a lot of people’s abilities are to run a laser. I think that the software is the next big growth area, where customers that are less technical can create effects and quality that’s far better than where we’re at now—or instance, 3D engraving. I think software will hold the next great evolution for this industry.”