The course was run by Wolfgang Schmälzle, an expert from Stahl’s Leather Finishing Centre in Waalwijk, Netherlands. He says, ‘The students really liked it because there was enough freedom for them to create their own leathers.’
Schmälzle, was assisted by Paul Evans and Chris Barnard, members of BSLT staff, whose practical knowledge of finishing and the use of BSLT’s machinery was invaluable in ensuring that the course ran smoothly.
Each day followed a similar two-part pattern. The mornings concentrated on the theory of finishing. The afternoons provided practical work. Wolfgang covered many aspects of finishing including automotive leathers, and full and corrected grains with special reference to waterproof finishes.
Leather finishing is often not as straightforward as might be imagined. Schmälzle talked about some of the more difficult aspects, including colour matching and related metamerism under different lighting conditions and other potential problems.
Recent developments in technology formed the subject of a number of discussions and the students were especially interested in Stahl’s views on NMP-free automotive finishes.
