Adhesive Help
May 19th, 2009 by admin
Calling all Adhesive Experts!
As our first print nears, we are still searching for an appropriate adhesive for our guide covers. Certainly, when we began this project we did not anticipate that finding a suitable adhesive would present such a challenge. However, we have recently discovered that strong, environmentally-friendly adhesives are just not readily available. As some of you may know, our guides are going to be printed on a synthetic, up-cyclable material. We are on the hunt for an equally durable and environmentally-friendly means to adhere our covers.
So far our search has led us in a variety of interesting directions. We are now experts in hot and cold glues, double-sided tapes, and u-line tacking dots. When those failed, we whipped out our scissors and crafted origami designs, put our local seamstress to work testing string-strengthed guides, and contacted Oregon State University scientists deep into their research on how mussels adhere to rocks. Recently, we have reexamined melting the pages together, finding new material to work with, and abandoning the cover all together. As of yet, no option we have encouraged has satisfied our environmental concerns and product design needs 100%. Therefore, while we will continue our own efforts to track down the right adhesive, we figured it was time to reach out, with the hope that someone may point us in a new, promising direction.
Our requirements are pretty straight-forward - we are seeking a strong, environmentally friendly, andwater-proof adhesive that can bond polypropelene. Just a thought, if no one is able to track down a clean, durable, and flexible plastic adhesive, maybe it is time to start another company.
We will let you know if we find more information regarding adhesives. Until then, if you are have any sort of lead, give us a call or shoot over an e-mail. We would love to hear from you!
Cheers,
Andrew & Erin