Sometimes, it’s the nitty-gritty details that people pay the most attention to. Your guests probably care about the quality of their name badges more than you think, therefore, it is about time to seriously think about what kind of material you would use for your conference name badge. In this post, we will put 4 types of materials to the test:
- Art Card
- Art Card + Lamination
- PP Synthetic
- PP Synthetic + Lamination
We will grade them based on material strength, water-resistance, rigidity and price. We will then provide an overall ranking for the four types based on the above factors.
Art card
Strength: ⭐ ⭐
The regular art card is strong enough when worn around the neck untouched, but is not able to withstand tugging or pulling. It tends to tear easily if your guests pull on their name badges.
Water Resistance: ⭐ ⭐
The material is only very slightly water resistant. In most cases, it absorbs liquid and may cause the printing to smudge.
Rigidity: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Feels tough and stiff but the sides crease easily. At the end of the event, the badges may look slightly deformed.
Price: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
art card + lamination
Strength: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
The extra layer of lamination significantly increases the strength of the material. We put the badge to the test and it was tear-resistant! It can withstand tugging and pulling, however, using a large amount of strength may still cause it to tear. But who would do such a horrible thing to their own name badge, right?
Water Resistance: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Any liquid spillage would just roll off the surface because of the double-sided lamination. You won’t have to worry about clumsy guests anymore!
Rigidity: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
This one feels the most firm and rigid. Most of our customers prefer this badge for their professional events as it does not bend or fold easily.
Price: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
pp synthetic
Strength: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Looks like paper, strong like plastic. PP synthetic material is able to withstand forceful pulls and is definitely stronger than it looks.
Water Resistance: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Like the laminated art card, this material is also highly water-resistant.
Rigidity: ⭐
Unfortunately, although this material is tear-resistant, it is also quite soft and flimsy like paper. Although it does not crease easily, it feels like it would.
Price: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
pp synthetic + lamination
Strength: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Before we even got a chance to use our full force, the lanyard fell apart before the laminated PP synthetic badge did. Yes, that is how hard it is to tear this one!
Water Resistance: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Rigidity: ⭐
This is extremely flexible and bendy. It also curves backwards slightly as the lamination is only on the front side.
Price: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
| Strength | Water Resistance | Rigidity | Price | Overall Score | |
| Art Card | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 12 |
| Art Card + Lamination | 3 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 16 |
| PP Synthetic | 4 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 14 |
| PP Synthetic + Lamination | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 14 |
All these materials are suitable for the Onsite Badge Printing service at your event, where you can print your delegates’ details in just under 2 seconds. Still can’t decide on a material? Sign up for EventNook’s free consultation and demo here.
If you found this post useful, you may also want to know how to choose the best lanyard clips for your conferences.
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