Frequently Asked Questions

Q:  What is the difference between Lucite and Acrylic?
A:  There are many different types and grades of Acrylic. Lucite is a brand name of acrylic that is used that has become synonymous with acrylic embedments. Plexiglas is another trade name of sheet cast or extruded acrylic.

Q:  What is an Acetate?
A:  An acetate is a thin clear piece of transparency material. The material is silk screened one color at a time much like a t-shirt. Multiple colors can be trapped. The effect once embedded is that the artwork appears floating in the acrylic. At certain angles or if looking close enough you can see the edge of the acetate material.

Q:  Can I do an Acetate if my artwork is process colors?
A:  Yes. Our new electronic print process can print your artwork on acetate in most cases. Please check with your sales representative to confirm if your artwork is a good candidate for this process.

Q:  Is Lucite perfectly clear?
A:  No, but it is one of the most optically clear materials known with a light transmittance of nearly 93%. However, small impurities and crystallizations can appear in the finished product because our materials are all mixed by hand.

Q:  Can I  embed my own items?
A:  Not everything embeds in our Lucite acrylic successfully. The reason why we offer so many options in our in-house processes, is that supplied items are risky. Our process involves an intensive chemical reaction, heat and pressure. Supplied metals can have problems when the Lucite shrinks during the curing process and can cause the Lucite to crack or pull away from the metal item. Customer supplied printing the paper can discolor and the ink can change color or even dissolve. Organic materials may be problematic with the moisture in them boils out during the curing process. Please check with your sales representative on any supplied items to see if we have had success with the item before, any items that are supplied are done only at the customer's understanding of the risk and expense involved.

Q:  Why are your processes and setups so expensive?
A:  Many of our in-house processes are more expensive than printing done for outside applications. The reason for this is many of our supplies are also higher. Paper and inks are more expensive as they have to react consistently and favorably in our process. Also, many times there are tests and trial runs on many imprinted materials to gauge our industry standard color shifts and effects of the embedment process on the colors being printed.

Q:  What info. do I need to provide for a quote?
A:  When calling, emailing or faxing information to your sales representative there are a few things they will need to quote accurately.  
1. the Lucite shape
2. the size
3. the quantity
4. artwork (if no artwork, how many colors?)
5. which embedment processes will the project include?

Q: What are tombstones?
A:  Tombstones, deal blocks, embedments, deal toys...are all words used in the financial markets for Lucite embedments with financial deal information embedded,  from the most simple rectangle to the most complex product replica.

Q:  Do you guarantee color matching?
A:  While we do ask for Pantone colors to match, we cannot guarantee exact color matches because of the affect the embedment process has on embedded items.

Q: Where do I go to get a Lucite embedment?
A:  While we do not sell directly to the public, we have a world-wide distributor network. Please e-mail us at info@centurymfg.com and we will be happy to give you a listing of distributors of our product near you!