Creative Ideas for Tape

You might have noticed from previous newsletters that we have a love of what tape can do. Tape is used by everyone. And there are some very unusual and creative uses. Over the past 35 years, we have encountered some very unusual requests. We love it when someone contacts us with their new and creative ideas for tape.

Here are a few examples of ideas we have been asked to manufacture. Some of these worked and some were…well…not a commercial success.

Lint Rollers

We were asked to make lint rollers, although not by the person who patented the idea. We liked the opportunity because it was so simple: take an inexpensive masking tape, wind it with the adhesive out then cross-cut the roll to create sheets. Very elegant.

Circuit Board Manufacturing

We were asked to make tiny die cut circles, ¼” in diameter with a .080” hole cut in the center for holding epoxy in place as it cures. Each of these tiny circles were hand placed on a circuit board and a drop of epoxy put into each hole. I can’t imagine how tedious that was, but we made tens of thousands of them for our customer.

Tools of the Trade

We have had a few creative ideas for the construction industry. One was a roofer with the idea to print tape with the proper spacing for shingles. The tape would be run up both sides of the roof and a line could then be snapped between the two printed strips of tape. A similar idea came from a mason for making sure each course of brick was level and plumb. Unfortunately, tape stretches too much over 8-10 feet, so these ideas never took off. We tried several different types of tapes, but all of them had the same problem of stretching to one degree or another.

Soap Saver

This is another idea that didn’t pan out. But we have to say it’s one of our favorites. A person brought us the idea of using a double-coated tape that would be placed between an old bar of soap and a new bar of soap to avoid wasting the last little bit of soap. (We didn’t work too hard on that one.)

We have sold tape to be a target, protect carpets, help manufacture artificial hips, make eyeglasses, cool engine intake air, repair tents, mark automotive parts, water-proof wire splices, and hold women’s clothing in place.

So, you can see how tape is used in many creative ways. Sometimes the idea works, sometimes it doesn’t. But there is no harm in exploring the idea because for so many applications Tapeworks.

PRO TIP:

If you’re struggling with an application where you think a custom tape could help, talk to us about how we can engineer a creative tape solution for you.