Most adhesive products are not bought from a catalogue. They are developed. A manufacturer with an existing assembly process rarely wants to redesign around an off-the-shelf tape — it wants a tape that fits the process, the substrate and the housing it already has. That is the work of custom adhesive development, and it is the reason OEM/ODM capability matters more in this industry than range of stock products.
Dongguan Xunqiang Adhesive Technology Co., Ltd. has provided customized adhesive solutions since 2018, integrating R&D, design, production and sales of industrial adhesive products. This article explains what a custom development actually involves, what determines whether it succeeds, and what to prepare before you approach a supplier.
What "Custom" Actually Covers
Customization in the adhesive industry is often understood as bespoke dimensions. In practice, it spans five independent layers, and a project can be custom at any one of them or all five.
1. Formulation and chemistry
The deepest form of customization changes the adhesive itself. This is where polymer chemistry and rheology technology come in: adjusting the adhesive system to suit a specific substrate, temperature profile or bond-strength requirement rather than selecting from existing formulations.
This is also the layer that takes longest to develop and validate, because a reformulation must be re-qualified for durability, not just initial adhesion.
2. Carrier and construction
PE, EVA, acrylic and PET carriers are all available as customizable options. Changing the carrier changes conformability, gap-filling capability and thermal expansion behaviour, which is why carrier selection is often the highest-leverage change in a development project — it can resolve a bonding problem without touching the adhesive chemistry.
3. Dimensions — thickness, width and length
Xunqiang supports custom orders across a wide range of thicknesses, widths and lengths. Thickness is available across 0.15 mm to 3.0 mm. This layer is the most commonly requested and the fastest to fulfil.
4. Die-cut shapes
Precision die-cutting converts a tape roll into a finished component: a gasket, a spacer, a shaped bonding patch that an operator can place in one motion. This matters for two reasons.
Economically, a die-cut part removes manual cutting and trimming from the assembly line and eliminates the dimensional variation that comes with it. Technically, it allows the bond area to match the part geometry exactly — no gaps at corners, no overhang that collects contamination, no overlapping layers that create a high spot in the stack.
Die-cutting is one of our core technical competencies alongside polymer chemistry, polymer synthesis, rheology technology and specialized coating, and it is usually the layer with the clearest return on investment for a high-volume assembly.
5. Packaging
Neutral or custom logo packaging is available on request. For distributors and for products sold under the customer's own brand, this is often the difference between a product that can be resold and one that cannot.
The Development Process, Step by Step
A custom adhesive project follows a predictable path. Knowing the path in advance is what keeps the timeline short.
- Application definition. Substrates, service temperature, load type, environment and process constraints are established. This is the step most often skipped, and it is the cause of most wasted development cycles.
- Material selection. Carrier and adhesive chemistry are matched against the application definition. Where a standard combination works, the project is resolved here without any formulation change.
- Sample preparation. Material is produced in the specified construction. Where the customer can supply drawings or physical samples of the target joint, both are used — samples are particularly valuable because they let us measure the actual surface rather than work from a description.
- Customer evaluation. The customer tests on the real assembly, under real process conditions.
- Adjustment. Thickness, carrier, adhesive or die-cut geometry is adjusted based on test results, and the cycle repeats if necessary.
- Production. Once the construction and die-cut geometry are fixed, production runs on the same precision coating and die-cutting equipment used for custom development.
Certification capability — ISO, CE, RoHS certificates available on request, with products produced to REACH / RoHS / ISO compliance — is confirmed at the point the construction is fixed, not at shipment.
Timeline and Communication
A straightforward dimension or die-cut customization on an existing material is a matter of engineering confirmation rather than development, and can proceed quickly. A formulation change is a genuine development project and should be planned as one, with an evaluation cycle for the customer's own testing included.
The variable that most reliably lengthens a project is not manufacturing — it is incomplete information at the start. A request for "a strong double sided tape for plastic" cannot be quoted precisely, because plastic covers materials with widely different surface energies and the appropriate adhesive differs between them. A request that names the plastic, the temperature and the load can usually be answered in one exchange.
What to Prepare Before You Ask
Our FAQ section states the requirement plainly: customization is offered based on your drawings or samples, and OEM/ODM services are available. Preparing the following shortens the cycle materially.
- Drawings or samples — of the joint, not only the part. The bond area geometry determines both the die-cut shape and the required carrier.
- Both substrates, named specifically, including any coating, mould release agent or surface treatment already applied.
- Service conditions — the temperature range across the product's life, indoor or outdoor, UV exposure, moisture or chemical contact.
- Load description — direction, magnitude, static or dynamic, continuous or intermittent.
- Process constraints — available application pressure, dwell time in the line, operator skill level, and whether the part will be applied by hand or by automation.
- Volume and packaging — expected annual quantity, and whether neutral or custom-branded packaging is required.
- Compliance requirements — destination markets and any specific certification obligations.
Industries We Customize For
Custom development is driven by the application, and the industries we serve each bring a different dominant requirement: EV and automotive for battery and trim bonding, electronics for mobile and digital devices, aerospace for high-temperature sealing, construction for structural glazing, optoelectronics for LCD and backlight modules, and renewable energy for solar and wind components.
Across all of them, the products involved are drawn from the same families — foam tapes, double sided tapes, thermal conductive tapes, transfer tapes, and structural adhesives, potting compounds and waterproof sealants — with −40 °C to +150 °C operating range and customizable carrier at PE, EVA, acrylic or PET.
We also serve the channels that distribute them. Beyond industrial manufacturers, our products reach packaging and printing plants, construction and renovation companies, trading and wholesale operations, e-commerce and logistics businesses, and stationery, office supply and retail distribution. Each channel has its own requirement on packaging, unit size and documentation, and packaging customization is where that is usually resolved.
Working with Us
Xunqiang operates at the intersection of four disciplines — polymer chemistry, polymer synthesis, rheology technology and specialized coating — combined with precision die-cutting. Because development, production and die-cutting are not separated across suppliers, a change made during development does not create a hand-off problem at production.
The commitments we make are straightforward: customization based on your drawings or samples, OEM/ODM service, neutral or custom logo packaging on request, ISO, CE and RoHS certificates available on request, and a 24-hour response to technical support and inquiries. Quotes are issued by email within one business day of receiving your drawings, specifications, materials and quantities.
Integrity first, customer foremost. Send the application and we will return a construction recommendation rather than a catalogue page.