Increased adhesion of film to split

Conventional systems using regular water-based polyurethanes obtain a resistance of 30 N/cm, while the ECODERM system can obtain adhesion of over 50 N/cm with the same adhesive.


Increased duration of release paper

The duration of paper and the cost involved depend not only on the quality but also on the type of embossing: smooth paper does not last as long as deeply embossed paper.

In a conventional doctor blade coating plant, the same paper may be used 8-10 times, while in an ECODERM plant it may be used 25-30 times.


Reduced consumption of chemical products

The raw materials employed consist of polyurethane resins and embossed release paper for application to rump hides of an average size of 15-17 square feet.

The cost per square foot of the leather produced will be lower if the hides are square and can therefore cover the surface of the embossed paper better.

Refinishing of a well-prepared split requires a total of about 30 g/square foot of chemical products (preskin, skin and adhesive) and if we take into account that split normally covers 70% of the surface area of the release paper, the amount of chemicals required to refinish one square foot of split amounts to:

• 43 g/square foot with the conventional system, due to the fact that chemicals are applied to the entire surface of the release paper;
• 28 g/square foot with the ECODERM system, as the adhesive and some of the coating products are applied only to the split surface.

Decreased labour

Conventional refinishing requires two operators to detach hides as well as two operators to spread out hides prior to lamination on the calender and one or more to control the coating heads.

The ECODERM system requires two hide detachment operators and only operator to feed hides into the STARPLUS roller coater.


Increased hourly productivity

In the ECODERM system the production speed is determined by the rapidity with which the operator feeds hides into the STARPLUS spreader.

This means that theoretically, speeds in excess of 10 m/min could be achieved with an adequate drying system, although in actual practice speed is normally no higher than 6 to 8 m/min.

At a speed of 5.5-6 m/min it is possible to produce 3600-4000 square feet of 15-17 square feet rump hides per hour.