Labeling Innovations from Weber

The next deadline for GHS labeling compliance is less than a year away! Starting June 1st, 2015 all manufacturers and distributors of chemicals will be required to comply with the Globally Harmonized System of Classification. 

Since the final ruling was announced by OSHA, we've been researching options for customers because we knew this change would affect everyone from manufacturers to day-to-day chemical users. In fact, we had to make changes to the chemical bottles we use in our plant.

At Weber, we use an EPSON C3500 Inkjet Label Printer to print our GHS labels for small chemical bottles. Because most users will only need to print a few at a time and may require variable printing, our labeling product team introduced solutions for in-house GHS label printing. 

To learn more about GHS Labeling, download our new 13-page eBook that includes the basics you need to know plus some of the best solutions to comply with GHS labeling. 

Download our Guide to GHS Labeling 

A label printer-applicator is an automatic labeling system that has the ability to print variable information onto a pressure-sensitive label, then apply it to a container. Sometimes companies want to use a label that has the same pre-printed information such as a logo, company info, or background color, then add different information to the label depending on the product that it is being applied to. You will find these systems applying shipping labels, product information labels, nutrition labels, barcode labels and more.

If you enjoy fresh juice like I do, then you've probably noticed a lot more options lately. From the crowded shelves at Whole Foods to the new juice bars popping up around town there seem to be new companies with new flavors every day.

The local juice bars are starting to venture into bottling and distribution while established brands are growing beyond their regional Whole Foods locations and becoming available nationally. As the competition grows between juice brands, the question asked is how do you make your product stand above the others? We thought you'd be interested in a few ways to make your juice label stick out in the crowd.

Here are 6 tips for juice labels and packaging.

Share a Coke

The campaign is primarily targeting Millennial consumers who look for personalization in brands. Coca-Cola selected hundreds of the top names of Millenials for their labels. If your friend's name isn't included in this list, don't worry, they also created labels that say "Friend", "Star", and "Bestie" for millions of Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Zero and Diet Coca-Cola bottles. Have you seen your name or a friend's on a label? Search for your name at the Share A Coke website.

HP Indigo Digital Printing Technology

This campaign would not be possible without digital print technology. To complete a project like this, Coca-Cola had the labels printed using several HP Indigo WS6000 digital presses.

Here's why:

On Press Variable Printing

The biggest aspect of this project is printing a large amount of SKUs or label versions. Typically a label project might have a family of a few flavors. That alone can be a challenge to print so imagine over 100 SKUs making up 800 million labels!

No Plates Required

If these were printed in a traditional method a plate would be required for each unique label. And every time the press would need to switch plates additional time, labor and cost would be required to complete the job. The digital press can easily switch from one name to the next without stopping the press.

Color Consistency
Color consistency is crucial for a project of this size. If the red doesn't come out "Coca-Cola red" each time it will be noticeable on the store shelf. We work with many food brands that require consistency for their digital labels and this is easily achieved on our HP Indigo presses.

One Shot Printing

With digital printing the entire image is printed in one shot. This means the label goes through one station to get the entire image rather than run through a long press that includes several ink stations. The HP Indigo process of printing all the colors on a blanket and then printing the image in one shot yields perfect color-to-color registration. No color trapping is required, allowing a clean crisp print job.

More Options

As you can see, using the HP Indigo press gives your company the flexibility to easily print variable data on your labels for personalization or other creative purposes. Coca-Cola used this feature to build brand loyalty with a younger generation of consumers while having a little fun along the way!

By now you've probably heard that OSHA is requiring updates to the Hazard Communication Standard label to comply with the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) label. As we've mentioned before, the challenge for chemical manufacturers and distributors will be the multi-color requirements of the GHS label.

In the past, your label manufacturer would print thousands of your labels with a template of the HCS label. Using your thermal-transfer or direct-thermal printer, you would then imprint the variable product information required by your industry. With the new GHS labeling format the red diamonds cannot be left blank in a template form, they essentially become part of your variable information.

We've talked about using an Epson ColorWorks in an earlier blog. This allows a manufacturer to print large drum and pail sized labels with durable materials and ink. But an interesting issue came to light on our own manufacturing floor: the relabeling of small chemical bottles used on our label presses.

If your manufacturing facility is like ours and you need GHS labels on small bottles around the plant, try what's worked for us. All of our small chemical bottles are labeled by our Safety Team using the Epson ColorWorks C3500 Inkjet Label Printer. We're able to print all of the necessary GHS safety information using durable inks and materials that won't run when they come into contact with the chemicals.

This is an affordable printer that will fit nicely into your manufacturing process. Take a tour of the Epson ColorWorks C3500 with our Vertical Markets manager, Paul Johnson.

Don't forget the GHS mandate deadlines are approaching! Keep in mind these importants dates for GHS labeling.

• June 1, 2015: Deadline for manufacturers to start using new GHS labels
• December 1, 2015: Deadline for product distributors to begin using new GHS labels
• June 1, 2016: Deadline for updated alternative workplace labeling and hazard communication program

 If you're experiencing challenges with GHS regulations, get a free audit from our GHS experts to learn if you're complying properly. 

It's time to order a batch of labels for my new product. I need to get this label order right the first time so production goes smoothly. What information does my label printer need from me?

There are a lot of specs you need to give to your printing company when it's time to order new pressure-sensitive labels. These usually include:

• Label material
• Label adhesive
• Final label size
• Number of colors
• Special label features (like booklet, coupon, extended text, etc.)
• And the Unwind direction

What is the unwind direction?

The unwind direction is the orientation of the label as it will feed out of a label printer or label applicator. There are eight different directions you could choose from for your unwind direction. Depending on whether you are applying them by hand or using automated machinery, this can be a critical factor.

If you are using a label applicator, make sure that you pick the correct orientation for your label to feed out onto your product. You don't want the label to be applied upside down! And some label applicators feed differently so be sure to check with your packaging team to make sure you order the labels with the right feed direction.

Why it matters

If your labels are to be fed out of a label printer or label applicator, then it is very likely that the label orientation is critical to the application. If you don't pick the correct unwind direction, you risk printing your barcode or other variable data in the wrong spot or even over your artwork. Selecting the correct direction also means you won't need to adjust your applicator because the labels are applying upside down!

Check out this handy guide to the various rewind directions.

Next time you are near your labeling operation, see if you can use this chart to figure out your current label orientation. Maybe you need to adjust it on your next order to improve labeling efficiency? If you are unsure or need help figuring it out, give us a call or email for more information.