MATERIAL GUIDE

MATERIAL GUIDE: LEATHER

Types

Leather

There are 4 main types of leather:

Artificial Leather

There are various types of artificial leather.

PU leather is the cheapest, and most commonly used type of artificial leather used by manufacturers. However, higher quality and ecological artificial leather products are developed.

This includes, for example, pinatex which is made from pineapple leaves.

Country of Origin

Most Chinese manufacturers procure leather and PU leather from domestic factories.

Some suppliers claim to offer leather from Italy, Argentina or other countries.

However, such claims are very hard to verify.

If you intend to use non-China made leather, you are advised to contact the leather supplier in the country of origin directly.

Otherwise the risk is high that the supplier in China will only overcharge you while procuring a China made leather.

Tooling

Cutting tools

Leather are cut into certain shapes using cutting tools. Hence, the shape of, for example, a leather strap depends on the cutting tool.

Most suppliers have a set of standard cutting tools.

If you want to get a leather strap or other part cut into a certain shape, you may need to pay the for making a new cutting tool.

This often cost from $100 to $200.

Specifications

Thickness

The leather thickness must be specified in millimeters (mm).

Color system

Leather can generally be colored according to a pantone color.

It’s important that you always specify the correct pantone code to your supplier.

However, notice that ‘custom colored leather’ (according to a certain pantone colors) often results in a higher MOQ - compared to if you buy leather in one of the suppliers standard colors.

Printing

Both sides of the leather can be printed with your logo and text:

• Hot stamp (most common)
• Screen printing
• Foil stamping
• Debossing
• Engraving

Textures

You can customize the surface texture of leather goods. Below follow a few examples:

• Crocodile
• Suede
• Dots
• Bamboo
• Buffalo

MATERIAL GUIDE: PLASTIC

Types

PVC

PVC is used for a wide range of hard plastic parts, such as pipes and casing. PVC can, with added plastitziers, be used to create coated or laminated fabrics.

PVC coated or laminated fabrics can be printed, and used in billboards, tarpaulins or other applications.

TPU

TPU is a plastic often used to manufacture phone cases, fitness tracker bracelets, shoe insoles and as a coating on fabrics.

ABS

ABS plastic is often used to make injection molded parts, such as plastic cases (i.e., power bank cases), lighting, rods and other products.

PE

PE plastic is often used to make injection molded products and parts, such as pallets, trays, pipes and kitchen utensils.

PE can also be used to coat or laminate fabrics. There are two types of PE that you must be aware of:

• HDPE (High Density)
• LDPE (Low Density)

EVA

EVA is a foam plastic that is often used to make fitness products, such as yoga mats and foam rollers.

Tooling

Injection Molding

Melted metal (i.e., stainless steel) is inserted into a cavity. The metal cools down and forms a solid component, for example a watch case.

An injection mold cannot be modified, and is generally only used for a certain type of metal.

3D Printing

A 3D printer prints thin layers of plastics into objects. Today, relatively few manufacturers in China use 3D printers.

However, as 3D printers are becoming relatively cheap, some suppliers adopt 3D printing when making prototypes.

However, a 3D print is only a model, and cannot be used for mass production or replace an injection mold.

MATERIAL GUIDE: TEXTILES

Types

Cotton

Cotton is plant fiber commonly used in all types of apparel and textiles. Cotton can be combined with synthetic fibers, such as polyester. Cotton fabric is breathable.

Polyester

Polyester is a type of plastic, which fibers are also used to make fabrics. Polyester fabrics are generally cheap and durable, and used for various types of apparel. Unlike cotton, polyester is not breathable. However, there are cotton and polyester blend fabrics.

Wool

Wool is a textile fiber obtained from animals, mostly sheeps. Wool is generally more expensive than cotton. There are various types of wool, including cashmere and merino wool. Many suppliers sell ‘generic’ wool as cashmere and merino wool.

Bamboo Rayon

Bamboo fabrics are not purely made of bamboo fibers. Instead, bamboo fibers are melted and mixed with chemicals to produce bamboo rayon fabrics. Virtually all so called bamboo fabrics are bamboo rayon fabrics. Many workers are exposed to extremely dangerous chemicals and toxic fumes during the refining process. Carbon disulfide is one such substance, that causes heart attacks, blindness and even psychosis.

Bamboo fabrics do have some benefits:

• Limited water usage
• Biodegradable
• No soil erosion (rather the opposite)
• No pesticides

Notice that most countries don’t allow that bamboo rayon is described or marketed as organic.

Organic Cotton

By definition, organic cotton is grown using methods that leaves a smaller environmental footprint on the environment. For example, organic cotton is only defined as such if the following criteria are met:

• No use of toxins
• No use of persistent pesticides (POP)
• No use of chemical fertilizers
• No use of GMO seeds

In the textile industry, organic cotton is the exception, not the rule. Further, the reduction of POP and chemical fertilizers reduces yields, and therefore results in higher prices.

Nylon

Nylon is a durable polymer, that can also be used for textiles. Nylon can be blended with fibres or polymers such as cotton, polyester, and spandex.

Spandex / Lycra / Estelan

Spandex (also known as Lycra and Estelan) is a synthetic fiber, with high elasticity. Spandex is often blended with cotton, or other fibers, and used in sportswear.

Tooling

Custom tooling is generally not required when manufacturing textiles. However, some printing techniques require that ‘stencils’ are created. These normally cost $50 to $150 per print, and can be used for a large number of units.

Standards

GOTS

GOTS is the acronym for Global Organic Textile Standard, which is defined as follows:

1. Only fabrics that contain at least about 70% organic fibers can become GOTS certified
2. All chemicals such as dyestuffs and auxiliaries used must meet certain environmental and toxicological criteria
3. A functional wastewater treatment plant is mandatory for any wet-processing unit involved and all processors must comply with social criteria

A supplier can be GOTS certified, if they pass a factory inspection performed by an accredited third party.

There are only a handful of ‘GOTS accredited’ inspection companies with offices in China:

• CERES GmbH
• Control Union Certifications b.v.
• Ecocert Greenlife

OEKO Tex Standard 100

OEKO Tex Standard 100 is an international and independent testing an d certification system for textiles.

OEKO Tex Standard 100 'certified / tested' textiles meet various requirements, such as the following:

• Compliant with REACH (EU)
• Not containing Azo colourants, formaldehyde, pentachlorophenol, cadmium, nickel
• Compliant with US CPSC regulations

MATERIAL GUIDE: ELECTRONICS

Electronic Component Basics

CPU

The CPU (Central processing unit) carries out the instructions from the program.

CPUs are often built for specific applications, such as fitness trackers or smart watches.

You must always specify the brand and model of CPU that you want your product to contain.

GPU

The GPU (Graphical processing unit) is a processor specialised in imagine creation.

PCB

The CPU and other components are assembled on the PCB (Printed circuit board).

• # Layers
• thickness
• thickness
• Thickness tolerance
• Panel size
• Board material
• Lamination

PCBA

The PCBA (PCB Assembly) is what you have once all the components are mounted on the PCB.

Sensors

A module or subsystem that is used to changes in the environment.

Sensors can send information (based on the input) to the processor.

There are various types of sensors:

• Light
• Motion
• Sound
• Vibration
• Chemical

Sensors are used in fitness trackers, smartwatches, tablet computers and other portable electronics,.

Power Supply

A subsystem that supplies electrical power to the device. We advise you to use 'brand name' power supplies, such as TDK or Maxell.

Tooling

Injection Molding

Melted metal or plastic (i.e., stainless steel) is inserted into a cavity.

The metal cools down and forms a solid component, for example a power bank case.

An injection mold cannot be modified, and is generally only used for a certain type of metal.

Punching / Cutting Tools

Punching can cut and/or bend metal sheets into certain shapes.

Batteries

Lithium-Ion Batteries (Li-Ion)

Li-Ion batteries are extremely common in all types of electronic devices, such as phones, tablets, power banks and electric bikes.

Li-ion battery transportation (including li-ion battery powered devices) are strictly regulated by IATA.

Lithium-Polymer Batteries (Li-Pol)

Li-pol is essentially the same as Li-ion.

The main difference is that Li-pol batteries can be made thinner than Li-ion batteries.

Li-pol is around 20% more expensive than Li-ion.

Alkaline Batteries

Regular AA or AAA batteries. AA and AAA powered devices are subject to less strict regulations compared to those with li-ion batteries.