Labeling Innovations from Weber

Our Digital Label Presses were really busy again this year cranking out some amazing-looking craft beer labels for our customers. I took a walk back to the Digital Press Room and gathered up 10 cool labels to share with all of you.  Weber has some amazing customers that trust us to take their incredible artwork and turn it into labels that will showcase their brand.

It is really interesting to see what different breweries around the country think about both naming their beers and creating artwork for them. I am continuously amazed at the thought process and creativity often overlooked when enjoying one of these beverages. I view labels as a look into the soul of a brewery and a reflection of who they are and what they are like (Humorous? Serious? Artistic?)

We are now also printing lots of labels for craft soda, ciders, cold press beverages and even kombucha. And, wow, these are some great looking labels!

So here is a sample of some cool labels from a couple of my favorite crafters in 2022. Enjoy!

1. Benny Brewing Company - Wilkes-Barre, PA

This one caught my eye right away. White Sangria IPA? And then the recreation of a Capri-Sun-like label looks amazing! Check out the "attached straw"! Benny Brewing has an incredible artist creating all their labels and each one is truly something to look at. Plus the puns never hurt, right?

Ben Schonfeld opened the Benny Brewing Company on June 10th, 2010. His nano-brewery is brewing on a 30 gallon SABCO system and supplies many local establishments with his 4 core brands and a wide variety of seasonals. A WIDE variety. His beers are inspired by a variety of ingredients, social and cultural trends along with fun food pairings.

All of Benny's labels are colorful masterpieces of art, using bright colors and special effects to catch the customer's eye. They might be a small local brewery, but their products would be well-received by a larger audience.

His labels are printed on white BOPP film with a gloss laminate to enhance the color and protect the label from moisture and abrasion.

And Again This Year - 2. and 3. and 4.

Benny Brewing Company - Wilkes-Barre, PA

I told you all their labels are cool. Check these out.

I know my scans don't do them justice but our HP digital label presses sure do! All of these labels are bright illustrations that jump out at you. Our hats off to the designer who does these for Benny Brewing. Each of them makes me want to grab a six-pack of each just to see what they taste like.

I'm sure we will be seeing more great labels and craft beer flavors from this small but mighty brewery in the near future. Stay tuned!

90 Years and Just Getting Started

This year, we celebrated our 90^th anniversary–a truly momentous occasion. As we interviewed customers and employees throughout 2022 as part of the celebration, one thing became clear. Labeling excellence starts with excellent service. Whether it’s how we treat our employees, how we support our customers or the technologies we provide, at Weber, we work in service to others.

Read on to explore some of the highlights from this year’s celebration.

Our Customers Are the Best–Plain and Simple

At Weber, we don’t look at our customers like a transaction, we look at our partnership as a shared path and at our customers’ success as our own. We were thrilled to hear what some of them had to say about us!

Jeremia Steves from Boar’s Head shared, “Great folks with great solutions–plain and simple. Weber has experience within the space and does a great job of connecting customers' needs with executable solutions.”

The Future of Our Legacy

After 90 years in business, we continue to look for ways to innovate and carry our legacy of labeling excellence into the future.

We’re not just thinking about what’s now – we’re thinking about what’s next. As our business continues to expand, we work towards meeting current and anticipated needs of our customers, who make it all possible.

Read on to learn more about how we’re continuing our legacy.

Making print-apply labeling more efficient

At Weber, we’re setting a new standard for print-apply labeling. By moving to more customer-based solutions, our products will be the most robust, hard-working systems available. And with a more modular feel for expanded versatility, we’re giving our customers the flexibility they require. For instance, our Model 4050 label printer-applicator is a modular high-speed system that is more energy efficient than previous models, easier to service and will be the new standard of print-apply labeling.

“It's a team effort–that's why we're here 90 years."

To celebrate our 90^th anniversary, we asked some of our employees what this milestone means to them. We were flattered to hear that they believe in us as much as we care about them–a testament to why we’re still in business after all these years.

Here’s what they had to say:

Our President/CEO Doug Weber, the grandson of Joseph Weber Sr, said, “It’s something we can be very proud of. This isn’t just something one individual, one person can do, but really, it’s the whole organization–those that preceded us and those that will be part of our future.”

Watch Doug and his sister Connie’s full interview 

"Everybody here is great to work with, and we do so well together as a team,” said Jim Vanderwiel, our Manager of Systems Engineering. “It's not just an individual, it's a team effort by the company–that's why we're here 90 years."

Listen to Jim’s testimonial

“Weber has always been a very iconic company,” said Harrison Chien, our Vice President of Sales & Marketing. “It's a company I’ve always admired throughout my career, and being here is being part of this group, part of the family. There’s a lot of pride that I think our employees and especially myself have, and it’s a testament, really, to the Weber family.”

See the full interview 

Oscar Altergot, our Senior Press Operator, said, “When Mr. Weber started this company, he had a goal to produce high quality equipment and labels for the customers. And 90 years later, here we are, still doing the same thing.”

Hear what else Oscar had to say

“The years that people have worked for Weber certainly makes me feel good about working for Weber–because I feel needed,” said William Laboy, Lead Field Service Engineer. “I feel that they appreciate everything you do for them.”

Listen to William’s full interview 

Todd Peterson, Production Manager, shared, “I’ve been here over 36 years, I've had my wife working here, I’ve had my son working here, I've had my daughter-in-law working here. So, at one time, there were four of us working here in this plant. Weber’s 90 years means a lot to us. We’re a very grateful family.”

See what else Todd had to say

"Great folks with great solutions – plain and simple."

For 90 years, we’ve been committed to building lasting partnerships that promote growth at Weber. From offering a range of labeling solutions to our unmatched service and support, we aim to provide our customers with the best experience possible. We do this by bringing technologies to market that improve packaging automation, product identification and brand recognition.

As we have grown as a company and the technologies we provide have continued to evolve, it has been amazing to watch our customers grow alongside us, and we look forward to a future of continued growth.

But don’t take it from us – our incredible customers say it best!

Here’s what some of them are saying:

“Weber has really helped out a lot. It’s been a great relationship. I’m saving about six cents per can by labeling instead of using shrink. A pallet of 100 cases saves me $600 per pallet. Times 10-20 pallets a month, that pays my rent!”

 - Monte Summer, Owner, 2 Fools Cider

💡Read more about 2 Fools Cider on our blog, Constant Improvement Leads To Cidery Success.

“Great service, Weber knows the importance in what we do and quickly respond to keep us up and running.”

 - Louis Deering, Abbott Diagnostics

“We knew right away that we had a good solution with the Weber system. We liked everything about it, including the footprint of the machine itself and the fact that Weber manufactured labels, too.

The Weber system is very efficient. It's very fast and it just keeps on working. And our labels look great. We’re very satisfied.”

 - Tim Smothers, Owner, Julian Pies

💡Read more about Julian Pies and watch a video, A Labeling Solution As Easy As Pie!

“Very reliable company. My orders are on time and accurate.”

 - Dawn Sellner, Kraft Heinz Co.     

“Great folks with great solutions–plain and simple. Weber has experience within space and does a great job of connecting customers' needs with executable solutions.”

 - Jeremiah Stevens, Boar’s Head

Paper or plastic?

You have heard this question in the grocery store. However, what do you do when you need a labeling solution to this adage old question? When it comes to labeling, many factors come into play that you may not have even considered. Paper versus plastic refers to both the substrate (what the label is being applied to) and the actual label material itself (paper versus film face sheet).

In labeling, substrate refers to the surface onto which a label is applied. In printing, substrate refers to the surface that is to be printed, meaning that the face material (and top coatings) of a label may also be referred to as a substrate.

The substrate the label is applied is a great starting point to determine the type of adhesive and material that will perform best in the application. The most common substrates are corrugated cardboard shipping boxes and HDPE containers for many markets such as case/pallet labeling, food, and health & beauty to name a few.

A pressure-sensitive label, or self-adhesive label, is made up of three layers: a face stock, an adhesive and a release liner. We refer to this as the "label sandwich." When a label is manufactured, these three components are sandwiched together to create a label material that can be printed on, laminated, die-cut, and finally peeled off and applied to your product.

The facestock is the main part of the label. The material could be paper or film.The adhesive is what makes the label stick to the surface of the product or packaging. Pressure-sensitive adhesive forms a bond when pressure is applied to marry the adhesive with the substrate. The liner is the paper or film that makes up the backing web material.

Check out more information on what is a pressure sensitive label.

The right facestock material must be used to match the application to ensure good adhesion, weather resistance and legibility. Each facestock features certain characteristics for superior performance in specific work environments.

Here are some basic questions you will have to consider for selecting the proper face stock and adhesive combination for the best fit of your label application. 

• What is the substrate the label will be applied to?
• What is the labeling environment?
• What is the temperature range for the product?

Paper The most common and economical type of facestock, paper is used for many simple indoor applications. Paper labels are made of paper. The color, thicknesses, and coatings of paper substrates can vary, but the base layer is still composed of the same raw material.Think short-term labeling.

Plastics BOPP films, PET films and vinyl films that provide greater strength, stiffness, transparency, and resistance to tearing. The flexibility and durability of film label materials allows them to conform and fit about the shape of your product container. Film labels are made from films (like plastic), making them a more durable and flexible material than paper. Designed for longer-lasting applications.