ID Cards

Custom Holographic Laminates: Are There Options?

There are many things to think about when designing an ID card. Many businesses include the standard information like an employee's name, photo, the company logo, and maybe an employee number or mail stop. In addition, they may have cards that feature a technology component (e.g., barcode, magnetic stripe, proximity, etc.) that will serve various purposes like opening doors, paying for meals, or used for time and attendance.

Finally, there's the decision to add a layer of visual security to the card using holographic laminates (also referred to as "overlaminates"). Just like their standard laminate counterparts, holographic laminates will:

  • add a layer of visual security to ID cards
  • provide protection from wear and tear, extending the life of ID cards
  • protect the colors printed on your cards from fading

To take things a bit further, there is custom holographic laminate film. Now there's a great idea, but what are your options?  We’ve all seen the ID cards with a cool custom holographic design on them. Customers often think, “Wow! It would be great to have our logo on a custom holographic overlay to put on our cards!” Those thoughts turn into phone calls to our ID Professionals here at ID Wholesaler.

Customers ask how they can get their logo on a transparent holographic laminate film (also referred to as a "holographic laminate overlay"). Well, if they have a laminating ID card printer, they can technically make this a reality. At a price, that is.

Self-adhesive Laminates

With custom holographic laminates, there is a minimum order of 50 rolls of laminate (enough for 12,500 cards), and the initial order will cost over $18,000 with a lead time of 8-10 weeks.

At this point, our customer's enthusiasm quickly crumbles into disappointment. They do not have the need to laminate 12,500 ID cards and their budget certainly doesn't have close to the $18,000 it would take to finance this type of ID cards. Plus, they don't even have a printer that can laminate cards.

At this point, I strongly urge them not to dash all hopes! The good news is that we do have an alternative option: self-adhesive holographic laminates that you apply yourself.

The best part is that you can apply these ingenious holographic overlays to the surface of your ID cards yourself. And there are definitely some very valuable benefits to creating your custom holographic laminates using self-adhesive, hand-applied laminates:

  • the minimum order is only 500 laminate patches
  • the lead time is 3-4 weeks (not 8-10 weeks!)
  • the cost is a fraction of the alternative

For more information on custom holographic laminates and alternative options, call an ID Professional today at (800) 321-4405. We're here to help!

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