Nameplate Blog

Aluminum Holiday Card

The inspiration for the finishes used in this design came from our interaction with customers in a variety of industries around the world.  We receive many requests to create a premium look on metal whether working on the design of a nameplate or interior trim.  Aluminum is a versatile substrate with numerous decorative options for printing and forming.  Piano black is one of the often requested finishes when creating a luxurious look on aluminum.  Whether combined with bright aluminum or mechanical finishes, it commands a premium look. 

This holiday card design relies purely on decorating options layering brush, spin and piano black finishes together to create depth and movement.  The design illustrates an elegant look achieved without the need for embossing.  Each year we look forward to sharing our holiday card with customers and suppliers.  Over the years, a diverse group of designs have been created which illustrate many of the options available to you in the design of product identification and finish development.  Explore the entire collection to understand the options available to you.

There has been a strong trend in adding depth to product branding with a formed edge or skirt.  Nameplates are often designed with a skirt to add to the visual weight of the product branding.  In some cases this is used as an alternative to a heavy cast badge.  In others it is used to offer a finished edge to the nameplate hiding a raw aluminum edge.

Options

• Depth
    ◦Minimum skirt length of .040"
    ◦Maximum length of .200" (additional tooling is required for greater depth)

Considerations

• Radius- minimum of .040"
    Details that impact minimum radius
        ◦Finish 
        ◦Material thickness
        ◦Test requirements
• Tooling- requires additional tool

Attachment of Your Nameplate

There are several options for attaching a  nameplate with a skirt.  Our engineers can help you understand the benefits and limitations of each.  The four  most frequently used options are:

1. Design a mating surface with the same contour
2. Fill the back surface with a backplate
3. Apply a foam adhesive
4. Design tabs into the badge

Mating Surface

In this option the plastic component that the nameplate is attached to is molded to have the same shape as the back side of the nameplate.  A heat activate adhesive is commonly used in this application.

Backplate

A metal or plastic backplate is used to fill the space created on the back of a nameplate with a skirt.  Adhesive is applied to both sides of the backplate for adhesion to the nameplate and bonding to the product.  This example shown here uses molded-in features in the backplate

Foam Adhesive

Foam adhesive is available in various thicknesses to be used as both a filler and a method of attachment.  This is a good choice when the nameplate is being applied to a rough surface.  It can be more cost effective than using a backplate since it requires minimal or no investment in tooling.

Tabs

Obviously this option requires accommodations in the mating part.  It eliminates the need for adhesive.  Tabs can be designed as a snap-fit or to be crimped.

Contact us to learn more about options in designing a formed edge in your nameplate design.  Request samples to see how others have successfully used them in their product branding.

Stock dies are a perfect match for short run product branding where you demand quality but want to minimize costs.  Using stock dies eliminates capital investment allowing you to put your resources into printing the label or nameplate.  Spinning, brushing, transparent tints of color, metallic colors and texture are all options available to be integrated into a nameplate which uses a stock die.  How would you make your product brand stand out while taking advantage of the cost savings of a stock die?

Request a Nameplate Materials and Processes Guide to begin exploring the options available to you in creating your product branding.