What is a Roll Laminator?

Laminating is often used to protect documents. This protection is about more than just keeping out spills and age, with lamination, a document can look better, crease less, and last longer. Nearly every material can be laminated for protection including paper documents, card stock and poster board. The larger the document, the larger surface area the laminator will need to cover.

A roll laminator can be used with varying degrees of heat. Depending on the model, some roll laminators can even use a cold process to protect documents. Roll laminators are wide format, which means they are manufactured to protect larger surface areas. If heat is being used during the laminating process, the width of the heat span on the roller will denote how large the document can be.

The types of roll laminator vary widely. Some are created for use with high volume amounts of lamination. Others can handle larger widths and thicknesses. Laminating materials will also vary with some machines using a pouch lamination process while others employ the use of sheet laminating plastic. Roll laminators can also include trimmers and infrared heat to ensure more even protection and seal. The top brand names in roll laminators are GBC, Pinnacle, and Banner American.

Roll laminators are commonly used with heat. While the heat will quickly melt and bind the adhesive on the sheets, this same heat can damage materials that are sensitive to heat. The cold roll laminator tends to take longer to create a finished product, but heat sensitive materials will not fade or distort during the cold process.

Choosing the right roll laminator is all about the number of documents needing lamination and the size of these documents. The largest roll laminators will cover about 27 inches in width. The smallest will laminate only a photo or business card. For a business that will be laminating many documents on a daily basis, the larger industrial version may be needed to ensure a good return on investment. Smaller roll laminators may cost less, but could also last less time under the press of constant high output.

The smallest roll laminators will start in the price range of $150 to $200. As the width and thickness processed by the machine increases, so does the price. There are roll laminators available today with LCD screens and rapid heat output that can cost $2000 or more. These machines may cost more on the front side, but will last longer for businesses who find they are protecting hundreds of documents every day.

Laminating machines, including the roll laminator, can be purchased both online and in retail stores. When shopping for a roll laminator online, it is important to note the price of the machine, shipping costs and warranty. Many online office supply retailers will offer varying sizes of roll laminators to meet the needs of the home or business.