Best Plastic Embossed Film From Hitech Packaging

Definition of embossing:  In the broadest sense, it means to change a surface from flat to shaped, so that there are regions that are raised up from a background.  This meaning would seem to encompass areas that are normally not called embossing:  carving figures into the face of a mountain (like Mt Rushmore), or engraving a steel block.  On this website, I use the word "embossing" only as it applies to thin and malleable materials.  Since the opposing surfaces of a thin material are very close to each other, each raised area on one surface is matched by a recessed area on the the opposite side, and vice versa.  One exception to this is sometimes called "pattern pressing" or "blind embossing".  This occurs when areas of one surface are recessed while the opposite side remains flat, causing the material to become thinner in those areas.  This is typical when embossing leather, for example.

Materials that are embossed:  Just about anything that is thin, flat, and malleable can be embossed.  This includes paper, plastic film, metal foil, nonwovens, textile fabric, leather, and even glass.  These materials may be provided in continuous form (like paper unwinding from a roll), or in discrete form (cut into individual sheets before embossing).

Purpose of embossing:  Sometimes embossing is done for purely decorative reasons.  However, in most cases, the purpose of embossing is to change the physical characteristics of the material.  Embossing a metal foil with a fine texture pattern makes it much easier to handle the foil within the machine that wraps it around a piece of chewing gum.  Embossing a plastic film changes its elastic properties dramatically.  Embossing tissue paper improves absorbency and flexibility, but almost always at the expense of strength.  Embossing increases the overall thickness of the material.