Pressure Sensitive Labels
Adhesive coated material that have a range of adhesive technologies that all require pressure to be applied to the label when applying it to a substrate.
Tag Stock
Thermal Transfer or Direct Thermal printable material that does NOT have adhesive (Most common size is 7mil (pt).
Thermal Transfer
Specifically designed material to accept heat-activated ink from a ribbon in a Thermal Transfer printer. Important factors – Smoothness Receptivity. Not all blank white paper can accept Thermal Transfer Ribbons.
Direct Thermal
Label material that has a heat activated coating that is selectively turned black by direct application of heat from Direct Thermal Printer ( NO RIBBON REQUIRED) End Use Testing is recommended to determine which type of DT to use.
Non-Top Coated Direct Thermal – A Direct Thermal product that has medium sensitivity for short-term use (most applications fall into this product). It shouldn’t be used for extreme conditions.
Top Coated Direct Thermal – A DT product that has a higher sensitivity rating for exposure to more abrasion than a NTC product would be (Testing recommended).
Premium Top-Coated DireTop-Coated – A high sensitivity product designed for exposed to harsh conditions. The topcoating allows for the label to be protected while still providing terrific print quality.
Inkjet Printing
Nonimpact process that prints digital data using jets of very fine ink droplets onto the material.
Floodcoat
The entire label is colored one color (Reference PMS for color options).
1 Color Printing
1 Color Logos or Border/Bar on the label.
Back Slit
A cut in the release liner (or backing) to allow the face stock to be easily peeled away by hand when the label is not die cut (Common in Continuous products).
Face Slit
A cut in the Face Stock of a label to allow for part of the face to be peeled and stuck in a different place than the rest.
Face Perf
A Perf in the Face Stock that allows part of the label to be torn from the rest of the label when necessary (difference from Face Slit – Face Slit is always separated, Face Perf is only separated when tension is applied).
Face/Liner Perf
A perf in the label that goes through the Face Stock and Liner. This allows the label to be split while the liner is still attached so the adhesive will not stick where it isn’t supposed to.
Piggy Back
Label that has two release liners built into the construction. The allows the label to be applied to a substrate (by peeling off the first liner) and peeled again to apply to a different substrate in the future.
Fanfold
Labels produced in a folded manner rather than on a core.
PMS
The Pantone Matching System. The standard we use to determine the specific color and reproduce a color requested by our customers.
Substrate
The material that the label is being applied to. This is important to know so we can recommend the best adhesive to stick.
Ribbon Recommendations
Let us know what your application is and we recommend the best product for it. These are some general guidelines to help you get started.
Wax or Resin Enhanced Wax – Thermal Transfer Paper labels
Wax Resin – Thermal Transfer Paper/Film labels that are exposed to conditions
Resin – High resistance and durability