Avery Dennison Vehicle Wrapping Workshop

I recently attended an Avery Dennison Vehicle Wrapping Workshop to help improve my skills as well as gain some tips on application.

If you don’t feel like reading my recap/review, you can skip to the bottom where I have summarised all the information and tips that were included in the workshop.

The workshop ran for only 1 day and was more of an introduction to vinyl wrapping and the Avery Dennison products than a full on in depth training session.

A prerequisite of the workshop was to register and complete the Avery Dennison Graphics Academy course online, as this gives you a introduction to the vinyl types, how they’re made, preparation & cleaning, application techniques and much more. Completing it before attending really helps to hit the ground running and to understand some of the terminology that is used by the instructor.

On arrival we were presented with a complimentary applicators pack that contained a tool belt, knife, squeegees, wrap gloves, snitty and an air release tool.

The session started with an introduction where each attendee mentioned where they were from and why they had chosen to attend the workshop. There was a mix of sign writers, car detailers and general hobbyists who just had an interest of learning to wrap.

The instructor began by talking about “The Basics”.

• Making sure surfaces are clean and suitable to be wrapped – no waxes/ceramic coatings
• Temperature should ideally be between 15 and 25 degrees Celsius for optimal installation
• Time for maximum adhesion being 24-48 hours after application and that it begins to increase as soon as the vinyl is applied
• Introduction to the tools in our tool belt and safe handling practices of the knife.

He then went on to talk about application techniques.

• Hinging
• Proper tension
• Glassing vinyl before squeegeeing
• Appropriate squeegee technique/angle/pressure/overlap strokes
• Conforming around curves and recesses
• Post heating 90-95 degrees Celsius

The next part of the workshop introduced us to the vinyl and we were given a piece of Avery 900 Supercast to practice applying to a car. The 900 has no air egress in the adhesive which makes it very hard to apply without getting bubbles and creases. The idea was for us to use correct tension and squeegee techniques to get the film on as perfect as possible. Once we had done that we were given a piece of Supreme Wrapping Film that has the air egress so we could see how much easier it was to apply yet still required the use of the correct squeegee techniques.

We then moved on to print film laminates and were shown the differences between PVC and Polyurethane laminates with polyurethane having a longer life and durability than the PVC. After a demonstration by the instructor on applying print film into a recess on a van we got the chance to practice with both a PVC and PU laminated film to feel the differences in application. The surface of the PU film felt more sticky but seemed to be similar to the PVC when conforming into the recess in terms of difficulty.

After lunch we watched a quick knifeless tape demonstration and had a brief explanation on directional films.

Some more tips followed on chrome vinyl and how when applying, it needs to be heated evenly with an infrared heater so it stretches evenly and avoids distorting the colour. It’s also a good idea to heat the panel you are applying the vinyl to so when the vinyl touches the panel it doesn’t cool down too quickly.

We continued with demonstrations on wrapping a hood, roof, wing mirror and bumper and how to remove the liner from the vinyl with the least exposure to dust and static. Next was applying the pre stretch technique to corners and how to trim along the edges safety with the knife.

As the workshop was coming to an end we were given about 15 minutes to play around and wrap a panel of our choice. I chose to wrap one of the rear doors of the van but lost a bit of time masking up the tail light, glass and handle.

Finally were given given a quick demonstration on the SPF-XI paint protection film and the instructor talked about the slip solution, squeegee technique, use of a steamer and trimming techniques.

Overall the workshop was enjoyable but I found it more suited to beginners who have had little to no exposure to vinyl wrapping. While there was a lot of information passed on, it seemed rushed due to having to fit it all into 6 hours.

Ideally if this course ran for two days it would allow more hands on practice for each technique that was shown.
The best part was the complimentary tool belt that contained all the basic tools required to get started so if you wanted to buy a roll of vinyl on the way home you could start practising straight away.

I have summarised all the info that was presented in the workshop for reference below:

Workshop Summary/Tips

The Basics

• Make sure surfaces are free of waxes/ceramic coatings.

• Clean with IPA and wipe clean with a second dry cloth to remove residue.

• Make sure you are applying the vinyl between 15 and 25 degrees Celsius. Too cold can cause the vinyl to snap when stretching. Too hot makes the adhesive more sticky.

• Allow 30 minutes after application before post heating to make sure adhesive has had time to bond.

• Glass panels before applying with a squeegee to minimise the chance of creases and speed up application.

• Hold squeegee at 45 degrees and keep it angled close to the surface.

• Post heat to 90 degrees Celsius and check with a handheld thermometer. Go to 95 degrees to be sure.

• Van recesses – glass the film over the panel and heat the vinyl more towards the middle. Apply the vinyl into the recesses first as this will stretch from the middle into the recess and ensure maximum adhesion. Squeegee the flat part last and make sure you leave an exit for the air.

• Directional films – keep track of the direction of the film by marking one end of the roll so you know which end is the top.

• Chrome – use an infrared heater to heat evenly so it stretches evenly. Heat the panel beforehand so the chrome does not cool down too quick when it is applied to the panel.

• If applying vinyl to a van on a cold day, place a heater inside the van to heat it from the inside out. This will heat the panels and help with the application.

• Remove the liner while the vinyl is against the panel to avoid exposing the adhesive side to dust and static.

• Corners – pre-stretch the corners and then use the heat gun to shrink around.

• Roof – for shark fin antennas use making tape to create a template. Use the template to cut out the hole on the vinyl and then apply the vinyl onto the roof, working away from the antenna.

• When working with matte film you may have trouble with the vinyl/knifeless tape sticking to it if you are overlapping joins. Use a solvent on the matte film to smooth it out and increase adhesion.

• On rear bumpers, add an overlay to the area that gets scratched when taking things in an out of the trunk/boot. That way you can tell the customer to come back and get that piece replaced without having to re wrap the entire bumper.

Paint protection Film

• Gradually increase pressure of the squeegee strokes to remove all water under the surface
• Stretch and hold down the film on edges to allow the adhesive to bond
• When trimming, listen for a squeaking sound of the blade to indicate the correct amount of pressure is being applied.

Did You know

The air egress technology was originally released by Avery Dennison on their digital print films. It was then added to their 900 Supercast series to create the Supreme Wrapping Film line of products.