Custom Labels – No Custom Dies

Posted on December 21, 2011 by admin

With technology constantly changing in all industries, The Label Rack has jumped in with both feet. Enhancing the custom label run capability by going digital is the name of the game when looking at high quality short run custom labels in any shape and size. The problem in the past has been the cost of custom dies to make an attractive label that will let your brand stand out. Dies can run over one thousand dollars and if you are looking at only needing five thousand labels, then this cost prohibits any creative design in your label.

The answer is high speed digital die cutting in a linear web instead of the typical rotary dies used in rotary die cutting stations. Using a linear die cut station inline, diagonal cut speeds can reach well up to fifty two inches per second. This is a great speed for short run custom label jobs.

When you merry this technology with digital printing capabilities, all of the up-front costs of making custom labels has been eliminated. The main deterrent for many marketers to create fancy and unique designs has been the excess costs in setting up the dies and plates for the job. We explained above that a die can be over one thousand dollars. The custom plates can cost up to sixty dollars apiece for spot colors and even more for process color print jobs.

The use of digital printing eliminates the cost of printing plates. This greatly reduces the cost of short run jobs. Marketers can now get as creative as they want too and The Label Rack can become the source for test runs on labels, small market sampling, creating targeted messages to different target audiences, custom wine labels for events, new product launches, where demand is not known yet, and many other applications.

As the technologies of digital die cutting and digital printing are combined here at The Label Rack, turn around times have been improved greatly. A custom die can take up to five business days to have made. Plates can take a day or two to have made. All of these create an unacceptable lead time to many customers and that is all before the first label can be run. Now with the digital technology in place, the lead time is hours instead of days.

The customer just has to Continue reading →

Food Processing Labels and the Process Expo

Posted on October 28, 2011 by admin

Next week is the Process Expo in Chicago where end-to-end food processing and packaging suppliers meet to show off their new food processing equipment. This show will feature seminars like the Green Sustainable Technology and the Electrolyzed Water Subject of Cadence Technologies Seminar. Many food companies will be in attendance. One of the most vital elements of food processing is the packaging. Making sure the processor has the right labeling and branding to make their product stand out among the other competitors in their industry.

As food processors flock in to attend the show, they may or may not see a lot of custom label producers. Today’s label technology has come a long way and attendees should keep a look out for short run label capabilities. The short run market has become very large. With the ability to change products and test products on the fly, having a small run of custom labels will prove very valuable to the success of a product introduction.

In the past, labeling a new product would be very expensive due to the plates and dies involved. A typical die could be $600-$1000 and the plates could be $45-$65 a piece per color. This is just part of the setup. If a change is made, then that cost can double. And this is without printing a single label. So think if all of this cost can be avoided when trying to test a new label in the market. These factors can determine whether a test will even get off the ground.

With today’s digital age in label making, all of these up-front costs are wiped away. Think of both the time savings and the cost savings in a new product launch. Ordering labels on demand instead of guessing what the demand will be and investing in a large run, dies, and plates.

New salad dressings, spaghetti sauces, wine brands, and spices can be test marketed with different looks to measure effectiveness. Think of the options of testing 5000 with one look and 5000 with another look just to see which is more appealing to the customer. Then move into a full run as the volume takes off. This flexibility allows for great success especially in the food and drink label market.

Standard tests are usually done with standard label sizes as well. This is to avoid the cost of special dies. When you find a digital printer that can also digital die cut, then you can also work with many creative shapes for your labels. This is especially helpful with food products.

Lamination or no lamination? This really depends on how long the product will sit on a grocers shelf and whether the product has a chance of dripping onto the label. Most inks are water based. Lamination can help with UV protection preventing the label from fading over time, and lamination can protect against moisture. There is also protection against tearing when a label is laminated. All of these factors can benefit food and beverage products.

Check out your label suppliers’ digital capability and make sure they can turn your small runs into great product opportunities for your future product lines.

Avery Labels: a perfect solution to your messy office

Posted on June 8, 2009 by admin

One of the greatest tools to get structured and get control over a disorderly file cabinet or office is implementation of various labels. Not only for organized looks, a clear, laser printed address labels insert a professional touch to your business letters and packages that are exchanged for official reasons. Avery labels, beyond a doubt, are the most popular in labeling products. This offers a wide variety of colors, sizes, and types to satisfy your requirement to label anything, absolutely anything.

With Avery labels, the process of getting organized is even easier. It is because their templates and sizes are supported by a huge majority of word processing software and printers. So, your demand for a right format and size for your labels is met without difficulty.

Avery labels are popular for filing labels, that not only help organize the filing system, but also make it far easier to read and accessible and adding color coding makes it more efficient.

Printer labels by Avery for files and folders are also available in different sizes, white and clear colors. Even, removable labels are presented that allow you to re-use and re-label the file folder, which helps you to cut down costs.

Using a quality return address labels on every single personal letter and official packages can save your time to a good extent. So, no more loosing important letters or packages in post, no more wastage of time for tracking the lost item, because, your inkjet printer, less than 10 minutes of your time and a leaf of small Avery labels with your address on it, are enough to solve this problem.

Direct Thermal Custom Labels

Posted on May 27, 2009 by admin

Did you know that there is a wide range of standard and premium products specifically designed for Direct Thermal printing applications? Most product offerings include various facestocks from paper to synthetic. Custom labels also offer a variety of adhesive systems including permanent, removable and freezer grade to fit any application. Direct thermal label media performs well with all popular printers made by Epson, Zebra, Sato, Datamax, Eltron, and more.

Things to consider when using Direct Thermal:

Ideal for short term labeling (less than 1 year)
Sensitive to heat and light
Requires no ribbon for printing
Durability is fair

Typical applications include:

Retail weigh scale
Case ready meats
Industrial bar code
Travel bag tags
Parcel tracking

For more information and proper product selection for your application, give our specialists a call today to help.

Custom Label Conferences

Posted on May 12, 2009 by admin

There have been two different conferences in Dubai and Turkey, where label converters debated if they considered themselves to be manufacturers of labels or service providers.

It was very surprising that the result showed over 90 percent of the converters gave their response as ‘manufacturers’. This response proves why so many customers shop around to find a custom label manufacturer that cares. If converters want to maintain profitability and grow, this must change.

In today’s increasingly competitive environment, the art of producing high-quality custom labels is no longer sufficient to differentiate you from your competitors. The label converter must become a consultant to his customer – the end user – offering expertise and services such as lean manufacturing or environmentally sustainable processes.

There are many label converters in the industry today who are thriving thanks to increasing their focus on service instead of simply manufacturing. It helps them win business and increases their profitability. Viewing yourself as a service provider when making custom labels for customers and not just a manufacturer will help earn and keep business in these trying times.

Many customers do not know exactly what they want when ordering labels. It just takes a few key questions from the converters sales team to uncover these issues and prevent a dissatisfied customer. That is the key to growth in this market.

Custom Barcode Labels – Personalize your Business

Posted on April 17, 2009 by admin

An organization that does not own its personal bar coding equipment, but wishes to have their unique design for bar code, can definitely think of using custom bar code labels. Several companies are specialized in making custom bar code labels that have to be fully dependant on the demands of their clients. These companies can manufacture bar codes in big or small number.

Designing of bar code labels

Manufacturers of customized bar codes generally take the help of the bar code software to create the unique labels established on specifications from the company which has ordered for that specific kind of barcode. The ordering company determines the size of bar code label. These manufacturers can provide some of the color options are to be finalized by ordering company. Same thing is also done with the basic material of a bar code label. Paper, plastic, aluminum and laminates are some options that are offered by bar code label producers.

After that, bar code software is used to design the basic format of barcode label that is also known as template. The template shows all the important details provided by the ordering concern. Some organizations want to get their company names printed on each of the barcode label. The name of item that is to be affixed is also important to be filled in.

Various security measures are provided by the companies to their own bar code labels. The materials that are used in making of the bar code are vinyl and metal. Both are resistant to heavy pressure and chemicals. Some of the labels are also tamper-proof.