New inks and adhesives, as well as innovative design concepts, are stimulating label sales.
According to Carl Gerlach, marketing director for Gill Studios, Shawnee Mission, Kan., labels are one of the most creative products that distributors can offer to their customers. "Between the imprinting and the diecutting, a label or decal gives imaginative distributors wonderful opportunities to impress their customers," he said.
Gerlach explained that, in general, Gill Studios refers to flexographically printed paper substrates intended for short-term, indoor applications as labels, and the more durable, screen-printed poly and vinyl products typically used outdoors as decals. "However, a harsh, indoor industrial environment requires the durability that screen printing provides. Flexography, on the other hand, is beginning to offer greater longevity, although still not matching that of screen printing. And, as ink technology advances, substrates other than paper are being used in flexo processes," he added.
Gerlach went on to say that developments in label adhesives and substrates are driving new applications. In addition, end-users seem to be doing a little more research and are becoming more informed buyers who know exactly what they want. "Customers' requests are resulting in combinations of different printing processes and different materials to achieve unique label products," he commented.
For example, one end-user wanted a decal tipped onto an offset sheet for a magazine insert. The job involved two different printing methods to produce two different products that were then combined.
There was also an order that involved a plastic substrate and, rather than a screen imprint, the end-user wanted it hot stamped for a super-shiny, metallic look. "More and more often, we're seeing people really pushing their creative limits," Gerlach observed. "It's great because it gets us all thinking outside of the box to come up with ways to achieve the solution."
Headquartered in Rochester, N.Y., custom label manufacturer TLF Graphics is continuously designing and fabricating innovative label solutions to satisfy both industrial and consumer applications. Said Dan Wagner, vice president of operations, "The orders are so diverse that it is hard to classify particular production challenges other than to say that we frequently take standard labels and make them more functional pieces."
For instance, he referred to one label design done on a flexo press that ultimately helped to cut cost and enhance performance over the end-users' original concept for the piece.
The need was for a label to use on reams of colored paper that enabled them to be resealed. "The customer wanted a dead zone in between the liner and the adhesive to allow this," Wagner explained. "We ended up diecutting the piece from underneath and left a tab—which is actually the liner—on the label, which enables the end-user to peel back the label, take out the paper and then reseal the ream due to a repositionable adhesive. This was a less expensive design compared to delaminating, printing a dead zone and relaminating. It was a faster, cleaner, more accurate alternative, and it eliminated one color."
Sticky Situations
With regard to label adhesives, Gerlach pointed out that there have been some interesting developments. "We recently introduced EZ-Peel, which is a technically advanced adhesive that sticks to and stays on anything, yet it comes off as easily as a Post-it product," he said. And, like a Post-it note, repositionable EZ-Peel features beads that separate to allow the product to be removed without leaving any adhesive residue. It will retain its tacky properties for repositioning purposes depending upon how clean the adhesive remains—picking up dirt and dust will compromise performance.
Gerlach mentioned that EZ-Peel products are being used to replace some refrigerator magnets. "Many refrigerator doors are no longer being made out of metal. EZ-Peel also allows end-users to attach things, such as notes, to wood cabinets and other surfaces, and the product is finding a variety of applications in the direct mail market," he said.
While distributors don't need to know the nitty-gritty details concerning the various adhesives' construction and properties, they do need to know what is available. "We have six to eight different removable adhesives. The one that is used depends upon how removable it needs to be and what it is going on," noted Gerlach. "A removable adhesive for a bumper is different from one that's intended for glass, and a glass surface in Arizona is different from one in Minnesota."
New and Improved
At Birmingham, Alabama-based Mid South Graphics, President Mark Davenport reported that many consumer and industrial label applications that were once screen printed are now being run UV flexo as a result of ongoing improvements with UV inks. "In fact, the inks have gotten so good lately that it's possible to combine water-based flexo printing with the UV," said Davenport. "I've seen great advancements over the last year with UV flexo inks, and they are improving every day."
The major difference is with the opacity of the ink. Davenport went on to say that this provides a more economical way to produce a label, as opposed to silkscreening it by hand, since many of the screen machines are semi-automatic. "Now, all in one pass, the raw material comes off the roll and is printed, dried and diecut, and comes out as a finished product at the end of the press."
At Mid South Graphics, the specialty is prime product labeling for health and beauty applications. Davenport acknowledged that these new UV inks are more expensive, but they offer significant production and performance benefits. "It's still a lot cheaper to buy expensive inks than it is to have down time on a press because an ink isn't working properly," he commented.
In addition, the inks provide benefits for distributors haggling with customers over pricing on screen-printed products. "When I initially suggest UV flexo as an alternative, distributors are often hesitant due to quality concerns," continued Davenport. "But, they change their minds when I show them samples of the quality of today's products vs. what it was two years ago." The products also provide a durable application that can be even further enhanced through lamination or UV coating.
Another new ink product that Davenport mentioned offers results comparable to those achieved through foil stamping. The ink, although rather expensive, costs less than foil stamping. "It's a brand-new UV metallic ink that wets out very smoothly to closely resemble a gold or silver foil," he explained. "It also comes in different tints and is available with a matte or bright finish."
Looking Ahead
Like many other label manufacturers, Gill Studios has been watching developments with lenticular products for a number of years now. "We provide a lot of products for the promotional marketing industry, and lenticular is a creative application that can be used for a variety of marketing goals, including name changes and new product launches," said Gerlach. "Still, it will involve a big investment, and we want to make sure there is a strong market for it."
And, if there is a strong market for lenticular products, manufacturers are confident that distributors will be bringing in the orders.
"There is no lack of creativity among distributors for uncovering new label markets," observed Gerlach. "Distributors seem to be active in every market there is for label sales."
By Maggie DeWitt