Protection Films

An accent colour that has been a recent trend in the automotive industry is “piano black”, known for its similarity to the colour used on black piano keys. The colour is high gloss and very jet, and it is used for interior automotive trims, including trim spears on the instrument panel, central console surrounds, and door trim.

Issues with Piano Black

While the popularity of piano black continues to increase due to its attractive appearance, it does have some disadvantages.

Due to its high gloss finish, surfaces coated in piano black often show fingerprint marks and are highly susceptible to scratches. Painting surfaces with piano black is generally a two-step process, requiring a base coat and a clear coat. Sometimes a third step is also necessary.

Compared to colours that only require one process, piano black is more expensive and parts coated in the colour often have higher scrap rates. They are also easily marked during the removal of protection films, which is why Tecman have been working closely with a PU paint manufacturer and a major OEM to produce an automotive interior protection film that can be applied to gloss painted plastics.

Protection Films from Tecman

Automotive components that have gloss black surfaces, such as centre consoles and interior trim, are covered with protection films by the moulding manufacturers immediately after paint to protect these surfaces during the rest of the manufacturing process. This brings its own challenges as often a PU paint system is still outgassing and can cause bubbling if covered in a film too early after cure.

In addition surfaces are easily damaged during the manufacturing process, so protection films need to be easy and accurate to apply in order to protect the components painted in piano black. In order to prevent damage occurring to components painted piano black, Tecman has devoted a lot of time and effort into processes that will allow complex, die-cut films to be applied accurately, quickly, and easily reducing process time.

With over 2 decades of experience in developing advanced self-adhesive solutions to improve applications, Tecman does not use a one-size-fits-all approach. Their application engineers consider and analyse every aspect of projects on a case by case basis, with their focus being on increasing efficiency and reducing costs to improve the overall performance.

The 0250540 automotive protection film from Tecman can be applied directly after piano black is painted onto a component, and because the protection film is extremely tough it can be kept in place throughout the assembly and manufacturing process through to the car dealerships where it is removed cleanly without any adhesive residue.

While the 0250540 automotive protection film provides excellent adhesion to piano black surfaces, it’s outstanding clean peel performance ensures that the surface is not damaged when it is removed.

Designed with a variety of specialist features, the die-cut protection film components can be placed accurately and quickly, which considerably increasing the efficiency during the automotive manufacturing process.

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