 ASK
ME A QUESTION
Please review the following questions
below, if you can not find an answer to a question you might
have please feel free to ASK WALT at the bottom.
What is copy position?
What are leaders or trailers?
What are positive, reverse, and mirror
plate types?
What is a standard pressure sensitive
label material?
What is a piggy back label material?
What is a face material?
What is a pressure sensitive
adhesive?
What is a release liner?
What is a surface treatment?
What are the more popular inks used?
What is a varnish?
What is slitting?
What is adhesive bleed?
What is web direction and cross web
direction?
What is label roll stock?
What is a back slit?
What is a face slit?
What is matrix?
What is a die?
What is copy position?
Copy position signifies which direction of the copy
dispenses first. Please see our Request a Quote
page on the website for a picture of the four copy
positions.
Top of page
What are leaders or trailers?
A leader is a portion of the initial unwind on a
label roll void of labels.
A trailer is a portion of the unwind closest to
the label core on a label roll void of labels.
Top of page
What are positive, reverse,
and mirror plate types?
Positive - Positive plates have graphics printed
on the surface and the label material is the background
color Reverse - Graphics are etched out of the printing
plate or screen and the printed color is the background
color and the material color becomes the text. Mirror
- Graphics are printed so they appear backwards
when they are read directly
Top of page
What is a standard pressure
sensitive label material?
A standard pressure sensitive label material consists
of a face stock to be printed on, typically made
of paper or film; an adhesive which is coated to
the release liner, and a release liner coated with
silicone which protects the adhesive until it is
applied using pressure to the substrate being labeled.
Top of page
What is a piggy back label
material?
A piggy back label material is a label construction
with one label material on top of another label
material (piggyback). The complete construction
is applied to a substrate and the top label can
be removed and applied to another substrate leaving
the original label affixed.
Top of page
What is a face material?
A face material is the material to be printed on
via a printing press or imprinted on via an electronic
means such as ink jet, thermal transfer, laser and
others. Face materials are typically paper-coated
or uncoated, films- including polyester, polypropylene,
vinyl, and TyvekÆ, and other specialty synthetic
materials including; ValeronÆ, HopSynÆ, and YupoÆ
Synthetic Papers.
Top of page
What is a pressure sensitive
adhesive?
A pressure sensitive adhesive is coated to a release
liner and then laminated to a face stock. The adhesive
requires pressure either by application equipment
or by human means to affix the label/adhesive to
its substrate. The more popular means of coating
pressure sensitive adhesives are solvent, emulsion,
and hot melt.
Top of page
What is a release liner?
A release liner is a paper, coated paper, or film
material coated with silicone. The coated silicone
side of a release liner has pressure sensitive adhesive
applied to it and the face stock is laminated to
the adhesive creating a pressure sensitive label
construction. The release liner protects the adhesive
until the label is applied to its substrate and
the silicone ensures clean removal of the face stock
and adhesive from the release liner.
Top of page
What is a surface treatment?
Face materials may require a treatment to enhance
ink adhesion on its surface. Two popular methods
of accomplishing this are chemical print treatment
which is a coating that bonds to the face material
and corona treating which requires passing the material
to be printed over an electric field, raising the
surface energy of the face stock which improves
ink adhesion.
Top of page
What are the more popular
inks used?
The most popular inks used are water base, uv cured,
and solvent based.
Water Base - This ink technology uses water, resin,
pigment, and an emulsifier to mix the ink. The water
and emulsifier are evaporated off using heat and
air to cure the ink.
UV cured - The uv ink contains pigments, resins
and organic solvents. The ink is exposed to uv light,
cross linking the polymers.
Solvent Based- Pigment resin and solvent are used
to make the ink. The solvent is evaporated using
heat and air curing the ink to the face material.
Top of page
What is a varnish?
A varnish is a coating applied in the last print
station to protect the graphics previously printed.
A varnish can also be applied to enhance imprinting
on the label stock. Most varnishes used for print
protection are uv cured and provide additional abrasion
and chemical resistance, but not as much as using
an over laminate.
Top of page
What is slitting?
Slitting is the process that occurs in finishing
and packaging. A roll of printed labels may be printed
in multiples across the web on a printing press.
When the web is removed from press it is sent to
finishing and packaging to slit the labels down
to the customer specified roll and trim dimensions.
Top of page
What is adhesive bleed?
Adhesive bleed is the oozing of adhesive beyond
the perimeter of the face material. Adhesive bleed
is typical in heavy coat weight adhesives or in
adhesives with low temperature flow. Adhesive bleed
can lead to labels offsetting to the back of a release
liner or to label roll blocking, Proper storage
conditions of roll labels and materials can minimize
this issue.
Top of page
What is web direction and
cross web direction?
Web direction is the forward parallel direction
the label material is processed through the press.
This can also be referred to as machine direction.
Cross web direction is the perpendicular direction
across the label web of material on a printing press.
Top of page
What is label roll stock?
Roll stock is a roll of material provided to a label
converter which is used to then make die cut printed
or plain pressure sensitive labels.
Top of page
What is a back slit?
A back slit is a slit or cut in the backing material
to assist in release liner removal. This is typically
more prevalent in sheeted labels.
Top of page
What is a face slit?
A face slit is a cut or slit in the face material
to create multiple part labels from a single label.
Top of page
What is matrix?
Matrix is the waste material removed between labels
during the die cutting process on a printing press.
Top of page
What is a die?
A die is a tool used to cut materials to their shape.
Top of page
|
