Glossary
All terms and definitions at a glance.
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Backing
A non-woven placed behind or over the fabric so it does not distort under the needle. On terry an additional water-soluble topping goes on top, otherwise the mo…
Bleed
A margin printed beyond the final size so no white slivers remain after punching. On plastic cards it is 1.5 millimetres all round, plus a 3 millimetre safety m…
Build volume
The maximum volume a 3D printer or laser can process in one run. Larger parts are split and joined — bonded when printed, slotted together when laser cut.
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Cast film
An adhesive film made by casting: very thin, dimensionally stable and low in stress. It lays into curves and recesses and lasts eight to ten years outdoors — th…
CO2 Laser
A gas laser that works with a carbon-dioxide mixture and is especially suited to non-metallic materials such as wood, acrylic, leather and paper. In the tolinax…
Cutting plotter
A device that cuts film or board along a vector contour with a steered blade — no screen, no gradient, edge-sharp solid colour. The basis for signs, vehicle let…
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Embroidery
Finishing textiles with embroidered motifs or lettering, for example for workwear, merchandise or club apparel. Embroidery is durable and looks high-quality. to…
Embroidery file
A logo is not yet an embroidery file. Digitising translates every area into stitch type, stitch direction and sequence — handwork, charged once. Common formats …
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FDM
Fused deposition modelling: a plastic filament is melted and deposited layer by layer. The cheapest and most robust 3D printing process — load-bearing, but dire…
Flex film
A polyurethane film that is cut, weeded and pressed onto textiles with a heat press. Thin and stretchable, it follows the fabric and suits shirt numbers and fin…
Flock film
A textile film with short upright fibres — the surface feels velvety and sits visibly proud. The classic club-shirt feel, more premium than flex but less able t…
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Laser Engraving
Machining a material with a focused laser beam that engraves, marks or cuts surfaces. Different laser types are used depending on the material. The tolinax Thin…
Local Pickup
The option to collect ordered goods directly at a location instead of having them shipped. This saves shipping costs and time. tolinax offers local pickup for m…
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Marking spray
A coating (trade names CerMark, Thermark) applied to bare metal and bonded into it by the laser. Without it a CO2 or diode laser leaves no permanent mark on sta…
Microelectronics
A branch of electronics dealing with very small electronic components and circuits, such as microcontrollers, sensors and integrated circuits. It is the foundat…
MIFARE
A chip family for contactless reading at 13.56 MHz. MIFARE Classic 1K is the most widespread and is enough for time recording and simple access; DESFire EV2 is …
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PETG
A copolyester and the 3D printing standard for functional parts: impact resistant, stable to about 70 degrees and indifferent to moisture and many chemicals. Wh…
Photo engraving
A laser knows no greys, only dot or no dot. For a photo engraving the image is therefore broken into a halftone screen. It works best on slate, anodised alumini…
Plastic Card Printing
Producing individually printed cards made of plastic, such as customer, membership or access cards. The thermal transfer process is often used, allowing persona…
Prototyping
Building a first working sample of a product to test concept, design and technology early. Prototypes shorten the path from idea to production readiness and red…
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Small Production Run
Manufacturing a limited quantity of a product, typically between one-off production and mass production. Small runs suit niche products, test markets or customi…
STEP
A vendor-neutral CAD format that carries the design geometry — unlike an STL, which is only a triangle mesh. Anyone who wants us to adapt a part should supply S…
Stitch count
The sum of all needle penetrations in an embroidery design. It determines machine time and therefore almost the entire price. A chest logo typically runs betwee…
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Thermal Transfer Printing
A printing process in which ink is transferred from a ribbon onto a substrate using heat. It produces durable, smudge-proof and water-resistant results and is e…
Think Tank
The tolinax Think Tank is an IoT research lab in the Tegernsee valley that combines product development with hands-on manufacturing services. Here customers dev…
TPU
Thermoplastic polyurethane — a flexible, abrasion-resistant material, usually printed at Shore 95A. Used for gaskets, dampers, grips, equipment feet and protect…