Components · Luminous
The card you can find at 3 a.m.
A photoluminescent coating over card-grade PVC charges in room light and glows for hours — no batteries, no electronics, no interference with the chip.
Luminous PVC pairs a glow coating with the same 80–86 °C card PVC underneath, in film and sheet from 70 to 810 μm. On key cards it makes a glow logo or edge stripe guests remember; as flame-retardant signage stock it keeps corridor wayfinding visible when the lights fail.
Highlights
Glows without power
Stores ambient light, re-emits for hours — recharges endlessly, nothing to fail.
Card PVC underneath
Vicat 80–86 °C, ≥ 40 MPa — laminates and encodes like standard stock.
Built for wet and harsh
Flame-retardant, salt-water and detergent resistant — pools included.
Photoluminescent PVC — technical data
- What it is
- Card-grade PVC coated with a photoluminescent layer — charges in ambient light, glows in the dark with no power source
- Sheet range
- 70–810 μm film and sheet — from thin laminating film to rigid sign-grade stock
- Glow behaviour
- Absorbs room light, then re-emits for hours in darkness; recharges indefinitely with no electronics
- Card properties
- Vicat 80–86 °C, tensile ≥ 40 MPa, matte Rz 4–10 μm, wetting ≥ 38 dyn/cm — standard card PVC underneath the glow
- Durability
- Flame-retardant, salt-water and detergent resistant — pool areas and housekeeping chemicals are in spec
- Build
- Glow layer + white PVC base; film version adds adhesive and release liner for application to signage
- Uses
- Glow accents on key cards and fobs, low-light wayfinding strips, emergency exit signage in corridors and stairwells
Inside photoluminescent PVC
The glow is a coating, not a chemical trick inside the resin: a photoluminescent layer over a white PVC base that reflects the stored light outward. On a key card it makes the card findable in a dark room; on corridor signage it keeps exit routes visible in a power cut — with the fire-safety bonus that the base film is flame-retardant.
Standard card PVC in daylight — a soft green glow when the lights go out
- Photoluminescent layer Charges in light, glows for hours in darkness
- White PVC base · 70–810 μm Reflects stored light outward; prints normally
- Adhesive + release liner (film version) For application to signage and fixtures
When luminous PVC is the right call
- A findable card: a glow accent means the key card on the nightstand is visible at 3 a.m. without waking a partner.
- Guest-safety wayfinding: corridor and stairwell strips that stay visible in outages, with no wiring and no batteries.
- A memorable signature: a glow logo is the kind of detail guests photograph — and it costs a coating, not a chip.
Luminous PVC questions
How long does the glow last?
Hours, tapering from bright to soft — brightest in the first hour after lights-out, then a gentle glow deep into the night. Charging is automatic: any ambient room light restores it, and the photoluminescent pigment does not wear out with cycles.
Does a glow card need batteries or electronics?
No. The effect is purely physical — the pigment stores photon energy and re-emits it. Nothing to charge, replace or fail, and it adds no thickness or RF interference to the card build.
Can we use it as design accent rather than a full glow card?
That is the usual spec: a glow logo, edge stripe or room-number panel on an otherwise standard card. The luminous layer applies where the artwork calls for it, so the daylight design stays fully on-brand.
Is the signage version suitable for fire-safety wayfinding?
The film is flame-retardant and photoluminescent wayfinding is an established practice for low-level exit marking. Code requirements vary by jurisdiction, so treat our signage stock as a supplement to — not a replacement for — your certified emergency systems, and check local regulations.
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Need key cards that just work at check-in?
Send your lock brand and quantity — you will get a factory-direct quote and a free sample pack to test in your own locks before you commit.