Laminating Storyboard

There are supposed to be images that go along with this . . . They never got scanned in so this isn't really a storyboard, but whatever.

Image of the two machines.

"These are our laminating machines."

Shot of small, or someone pointing to or holding small.

"The small laminators do not require a laminating sleeve to use. They also do not get as hot and so sometimes will require a badge to be run through them twice. "

Focus on the large machine or have someone hold it.

"The large laminators require a laminating pouch to use. They get hotter than the small ones so they usually do not require multiple runs through the machine to laminate well. However, these machines are old and can be finicky. The machines break after a year or two of use so you may not have one available to use at all. "

Back to both machines.

"Both machines will jam if the user is impatient or isn't paying attention.

The machines have indicator lights to tell you when they are hot and ready. We leave these on during registration hours because it can be a long wait for one to heat up - especially if an attendee is waiting."

Human has an unlaminated badge.

"So you will either make a paper badge or be given paper badges. Once you have a badge which is ready to laminate, the first thing you will need to do is put it in the laminating pouch. "

Human puts badge in pouch.

"You will want to center it as best you can, keeping in mind that you need to hole punch the top. At-Con badges are usually small enough that all you need to worry about is centering the badge, but if you are helping with preregistration badges they will be a tight fit.

Once you have a badge in a laminating pouch you need to know which machine you will be using because large machines require a sleeve around the pouch. We’ll start with the small machines."

Closeup of machine. Pouch side in first but not all the way back.

"Put the pouch in with the prelaminated edge towards the machine. If you don’t put the prelaminated edge in, there is a possibility of the pouch coming apart in the lamination process and jamming or damaging the machine. However, it usually just does not laminate as well."

Show it not going anywhere. Push it in.

"You really have to put the badge in far to get them to catch. Sometimes if you sort of toss it to the back it will catch, but other times you’re just going to have to use your fingers to push it back until you feel it catch."

Show badge coming out.

"The machines are fairly slow so be patient. You will want to wait until the badge is all the way out before putting the next one in, especially at-con when a jammed machine can slow down the registration line."

Show finished badge.

EITHER - "So this badge looks okay, but sometimes they come out and they aren't completely laminated." OR - "So you can see that this badge isn't exactly perfect."

"These smaller machines just don’t stay hot enough to handle the quantity that we need. However, you can usually get a really good lamination by just turning the badge 90 degrees and sending it through one last time. Be warned, you can ruin the badge by sending it through the machine too many times so you generally won’t want to do it more than two or maybe three times."

Put badge in for round 2 at another angle. Follow it out.

"So that's the basic procedure for the small laminators. The larger laminators are mostly the same except they require a sleeve and they are hotter than the smaller ones."

Put another badge in the pouch.

"So I'll show you how the large laminator works. This is the laminating sleeve. These come with the laminating pouches so we should have plenty, however if there aren't any, you can use a piece of paper folded over."

Put badge in sleeve.

"The laminating sleeves go into the machine fold side first."

Put sleeve in large machine

"These machines catch a lot easier, especially since you have a larger object to work with."

Show coming out.

"And there's a finished badge. In rare instances it may need a second run through, but badges laminated on the larger machine are usually good to go immediately."

On Human with machines.

"At the convention it’s really easy to get overwhelmed or distracted. That is the most common cause of jamming the machines so do your best to stay calm and pay attention when you are laminating. Make absolutely sure that the machine you are using isn't already being used by someone else and make sure that you, yourself, didn't already put another badge in that simply hasn't come out yet. Jammed machines ruin the badges inside and must be taken apart before they can be used again."

Shot of small lam.

"So I'm going to do exactly what you don't want to do."

Watch it click for a moment then turn it off.

"Sometimes you'll get lucky and realize what's going on fast enough to yank the badges out. That clicking is a dead giveaway. If the badges don't come free, though, just turn the machine off and redo the badges - they're ruined and the machine is out of order.

Our next video will show this machine being taken apart and put back together.

So remember -

• use the laminating sleeves in the large machines only!
• Put the pouch in with the prelaminated side toward the machine
• Make sure to push the badge in until it catches
• be patient and pay attention because two badges at once WILL jam the machine

Finally, make sure to hole punch and clip your badge before handing it to the attendee."

Show Badge Punch

"Make sure the punch is in this position so that the hole will be centered, line it up carefully, and press down."

Possible Opening

Attendee comes rushing to a reg table. Slams down cash on the table while shouting "I need a badge." The person behind the counter hold up handfuls of unlaminated badges reaching towards the heavens while badges are falling out of their hands shouting, "I don't know what to do!"