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In the production of labels printing by flexographic or digital method, it is very often necessary to secure the printing additionally. The most often used modes are:
- coating
- lamination
Coating - is to cover all or part of the label surface with an additional transparent layer of paint, which positively improves its aesthetics. Depending on the destination of label and technological capability of manufacturer, there can be used more than one layer of paint.
Coating could effectively protect the outprint from abrasion by the influence of attrition and smearing while direct contact with water or other more aggressive liquids.
There are also coatings on the market that protect the labels’ outprint from UV radiation - extending widely the color stability in applications exposed to direct sunlight.
Lamination - is an extra layer coating of the entire surface of the label that need to be protected.
Design of label with the laminate:
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Durability
By laminating we receive the label with high durability. The laminate provides complete resistance to smearing, abrasion of printing and significantly increases the mechanical durability of the label. Specially selected laminate provides resistance of label and outprint to most chemicals (oils, grease, gasoline, brake fluid, alcohol or toluene).
Aesthetics
Application of the laminate also improves the aesthetics of the label: laminate with gloss - increases contrast and color depths, and the matte one - decreases.
Improving the physical and mechanical parameters
Laminate increases the summary thickness of label, which is strictly defined in some applications. In case of automatic application use of the laminate increases the stiffness structure which facilitates the wrapping-off from the base.
Laminate as a temporary protective film
In some applications, it is necessary to mark the product before spray processes (eg painting, sandblasting) - such processes usually prevents to read data on label, that is required in subsequent stages of production.
In such cases the laminate can be used as a temporary form of security. In this case, the laminate should have easy removable adhesive and label’s construction must allow to detach the laminate without damaging the proper label with outprint.
In some cases, you can use several layers of protective film that is subsequently removed during production.
Examples of applications where lamination is widely used:
- in the case of permanent marking of goods intended for use for many years (e.g., rating plates)
- to identify the model and serial numbers of equipment (e.g. warranty seals)
- warnings and safety precautions (eg warning labels)
- for thermal transfer printed labels (eg inventory / stock account labels)
- laminate as temporary protective film
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Laminates:
- PE - polyethylene film (one of the budget film) is characterized by good adhesion to the surface. It is a soft foil, allowing the apply onto the curved surface. It has limited mechanical strength and temperature.
- PP - polypropylene film - quite stiff, with high mechanical resistance and limited temperature resistance.
- PET - polyester film - the most widely used material for laminating labels – it has good mechanical strength, very high resistance to chemicals and temperature. It is suitable for use in exterior conditions (assumed minimum outdoor durability of 2 years)
- Vinyl - polyvinyl chloride - the material adheres very well to uneven surfaces, used in applications where high durability is required (assumed minimum outdoor durability of 5 years)
- PC - polycarbonate - is characterized by the highest mechanical resistance. It gives the label the "technical" appearance.
The general rule is to apply the same laminate as the base label.
