THE FUTURE OF FOILING
Auto vinyl wrapping tech gets a makeover
WRAPPING A CAR in what essentially is a special vinyl sticker to change its color — or “foiling,” as the method is called in the industry — has just become easier. And way cooler.
Through a new development that may initially seem as a step back in technology, foiling a car now involves using a spray gun once more. This technique, which not only eliminates the need for workers to acquire entirely new skills, also allows virtually any external part of a car to be wrapped in vinyl, including tight crevices and complex edges that prove pesky areas (if not impossible altogether) on which to stick the material.
Vinyl rendered in liquid form solves this. The concoction, introduced in the Philippines on Feb. 5 branded as Foila-Dip, is applied similarly like any automotive paint; it is sprayed on a car (or parts of a car) through a series of fine mists. This means the liquid vinyl can cover surfaces a typical foil-wrap job will have trouble with. And Foila-Dip isn’t as finicky as paint because it does not need the surfaces on which it is applied to be sanded down and primed ( both laborious processes are required in traditional painting methods) so paint can coat evenly. Neither is an oven booth needed.
“Foila-Dip may be sprayed on like paint but it requires less drying time. A car or an SUV can be transformed visually in a day,” assured Jan Vincent P. Mercado, CFO of Foilacar Industries, distributor of Foila-Dip in the Philippines.
The biggest difference between Foila-Dip and paint is that, once dry, Foila-Dip turns into a vinyl sticker. So, like any vinyl wrap Foila-Dip can be peeled off without damaging the painted surface underneath it, yet again turning a car into a blank canvas onto which a new design can easily be applied. And the variety of patterns that can be printed on vinyl, not to mention the degree of sheen with which vinyl can come ( matte, fluorescent, “chrome,” etc.), is limitless.
“As car guys, we love the thought of temporarily changing the color of our car, [its] wheels and other accessories — we were doing exactly that with Foilacar’s vinyl. Although when it came to wheels and other body panels like grilles, foil wrapping is a bit tedious and time consuming. We’ve found the solution in Foila-Dip,” said Lester Codog, president of Foilacar Industries.
DIPPING IN
Mr. Codog said he learned about liquid vinyl that’s specifically intended for automotive use at SEMA, the annual festival in Las Vegas, Nevada where the car universe’s after-market industry gathers, during a visit to the show last year. Displayed there by Autodip USA was its product, which the company billed as the “world’s first sprayable vinyl wrap.”
“I was amazed. It’s as easy to use and offers the same protection and visual appeal of [Foilacar’s] vinyl wrap,” Mr. Codog said.
Autodip, it turned out, debuted in SEMA’s 2014 edition. A result of two years of research and development, the product was a response to the popularity of vinyl wrapping and rubber-based coatings that can be sprayed on cars. The Foilacar chief noted the liquid vinyl can “self-heal,” meaning it resists minor scratches because it’s malleable, and thus, able to “move” with the base coat. Its propriety formula also contains UV protection additives that help maintain its finish for at least two years.
After Mr. Codog’s encounter with the new vinyl dip, Foilacar immediately held a series of meetings with Autodip’s officers, eventually securing the rights to import the company’s product into the Philippines and rebranding it as FoilaDip.
Mr. Mercado said that, unlike Foilacar’s vinyl-wrap business, FoilaDip will be marketed a bit differently. At present, Foilacar installs its vinyl wrappers in-house, not selling the material to customers but instead offers this along with its expertise in vinyl-wrap installation — expertise with which the company separates itself from other shops that offer the same service.
“While trained professionals will apply FoilaDip in our shop, guaranteeing high quality, it will also be offered in the retail market by way of easy-to-use spray cans. This would cater to the DIY set,” Mr. Mercado said.
And for car enthusiasts, that should be a wrap. —