In 1926, Richard Drew of the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Firm (also referred to as 3M) developed Scotch Tape, probably probably the most well-known adhesive tape throughout the world. It was initially created for use in automobile-painting, to create defining lines between completely different colours. Earlier, gummed tapes removed paintwork as it was peeled off, so Drew set about inventing a pressure-delicate tape that would not scar paintwork. Additional developments saw him coating cellophane with adhesive and, in 1930, the home tape we are all so acquainted with, was released.

Since then, the fundamental ideas of adhesive tape have been applied to other uses. Now there are a various and assorted range of tapes for various functions, together with gaffer tape, pipeline identification tape, plumber's tape, electrician's tape and packaging tapes. Tapes can now provide protection in opposition to electrical present, temperature and the escape of fuel or liquid, as within the case of foam tape, which uses open or closed-cell sponges for protection in addition to the bonding collectively of different surfaces.

Nonetheless, natural occurrences have provided many inspirations for the advances in industrial tape technology; in 1948, a Swiss engineer named George de Mestral returned from a walk to find some plant burrs clinging to his jacket. By 1956 he had perfected the notion of using tiny hooks to fasten things collectively, by creating two strips of nylon cloth - one covered in hooks and the opposite consisting of 1000's of tiny loops. His invention is now used worldwide in a wide range of industries and applications. It's robust, lightweight, durable, washable and simply separated and is named Velcro. Initially, Velcro was used within the cloth industry; sewn onto different supplies to provide straightforward opening and closing. Recently, this has been up to date and it may possibly now be bought as an adhesive tape, providing quite a lot of other uses.

As soon as the potential of adhesive tape had been recognized, analysis went in to its sturdiness and strength. Early tape offered little of both, however research and the event of synthetic materials offered more advances. Initially, cloth fibres had been used to create Duct tape which was used by the army to repair plane, rifles and jeeps. Not like medical tapes that were being used at the time, Duct tape is waterproof and, after the Second World War, it was used in the housing trade to attach heating and air con ducts together. Business also noticed the potential for adhesive tape and researched its tensile strength. The outcome was a plastic-primarily based tesa tape that's commonly often called packing tape. As well as being waterproof, it also offered an unprecedented energy that has now made it one of the versatile tapes within the world.