The Manufacturing Process
Raw materials

Resins
Observing strict environmental regulations, Formica Limited blends a number of chemicals including phenol, melamine and formaldehyde into liquid resins. These resins give to Formica® laminate its essential qualities of strength, wear resistance and durability. Beyond that, specific mixes of resins determine the technical properties of a particular laminate, such as postformability or flame-retardant qualities.

Papers
Kraft paper, used as a carrier for the resins, provides both strength and thickness to the finished laminate. High-grade printed sheets are used to convey the surface colours and design images.




Printing

As well as buying in ready-printed papers, Formica has its own printing facilities. Over 250 cylinders are available, each generating a different design. The printed papers are then used on site or supplied to other Formica factories around the world.









Treating

Rolls of core and decorative surface papers are processed in impregnating machines which can be over 50 metres long. A continuous sheet of paper is drawn from the roll and saturated with resin. This ribbon is then slowly dried as it passes through more than 20 metres of temperature-controlled ovens. As it emerges, the paper is cut to specific sizes and stacked ready for use in the next stage of manufacture.







Collating

The core collation and surface collation departments now prepare and assemble the resin impregnated décor surface papers and the core papers ready for pressing. The various core and surface materials come together at the press in line with the production schedule. The supply of materials from these two departments is critical to maintaining the flow of production.








Pressing

The collated surface and core materials are brought separately to the presses. Here the materials needed for each sheet of laminate are combined into packs. Steel or phenolic laminate plates are inserted between each pack: they act as separators, and impart the required texture to the surface of the laminate being pressed. A specified number of packs is inserted into each press opening (known as a ‘daylight’) until all the daylights are filled. The press is then closed, and the packs are subjected to a controlled cycle of heat and high pressure: this process polymerises the resins and consolidates the laminates.






Finishing

Once pressed, the laminate requires finishing. Individual sheets of laminate pass through automated processing lines which trim the four edges of the sheet and sand the non-decorative side. This sanding provides a key for bonding the laminate to a substrate. Once the laminate has been inspected for surface defects, identification is printed on its sanded side. The finished sheet is transferred to the warehouse, ready for transporting to the customer.