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Are label feeding issues giving you problems?

Are label feeding issues giving you problems?

 

Here is a helpful hint to check:

Important to any process is quality. While labels seem simple enough, they can be the largest root cause for feeding and jamming issues. Quality is primarily focused on the conversion process, although the label contrast for print is important too. In the process of cutting the waste material from the label web, the cutting head can become dull. These are not sharpened, but rather more pressure is used to cut, just as a dull knife needs more pressure to cut through a steak. Unfortunately, this can result in cutting through the protective silicone layer that keeps the label from sticking to the liner. When this happens, the adhesive begins to dry and bond the label to the liner. This results in labels that are difficult or impossible to separate from the liner. And the end result, labels that are not applied to products, printer jams, and eventually torn liner. These all result in lost production. But there is a quick way to test for this….

 

By using a permanent marker, draw on the back side of the liner (opposite the label side) and color in the border of where the label is positioned. Remove the label and see if the marker bleeds through the liner. If it does, there is a diecut issue. The protective silicone layer prevents the marker from coming through the liner, but if that layer is damaged, it will allow the liner to absorb the ink. If this occurs, the label roll is considered defective. An experienced label converter can review these results, improve the quality of conversion, and usually refund the defective material.




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