Notes from the floor on labels, materials, and the decisions behind them, written by the people who spec and run the work.
Why barcodes won't scan or fail verification, and the fixes in cost order: printhead, ribbon and stock, heat and speed, quiet zone, contrast and size.
Read the article →How steam, EtO and gamma sterilization stress medical device labels, which constructions to start with, and how to qualify them in your own validation.
Read the article →Why cryogenic labels fail on tubes and boxes, how application and storage temperature differ, and what to confirm on the datasheet before you approve one.
Read the article →What a label printer needs to print a UDI barcode that scans and verifies: issuing agency, DI and PI fields, symbology, size, grade target and data file.
Read the article →How tamper-evident seals work: void film, destructible facestock and security cuts, where to place the seal, and how to choose one for your package.
Read the article →How foil stamping and embossing differ on product labels, when hot foil, cold foil or silver foil stickers fit, and when to combine both on one label.
Read the article →Why freezer labels lift on raw and frozen pet food, and how adhesive, facestock, line conditions and a freeze-thaw test keep them on in the cold chain.
Read the article →How label production, printed collateral, kitting and fulfillment fit together for a product launch, and where each partner hands off the work.
Read the article →PRIA 5 Spanish label deadlines by product type, what the translation must cover, and three ways to fit bilingual copy on a jug, bag or drum.
Read the article →How extended content labels add pages to a pressure-sensitive label so multilingual, regulatory and dosing copy fits on the same package size.
Read the article →When a product needs a warning label, what DANGER, WARNING and CAUTION mean, where the warning goes, and the materials that keep it readable.
Read the article →Which facestock, adhesive, and overlaminate keep chemical bottle labels legible through solvents, squeeze, and UV, and how to test them on real containers.
Read the article →How to spec a pressure-sensitive label: surface, environment, application, press, and regulatory scope, and what a label printer needs before quoting.
Read the article →What belongs on a medical or pharmaceutical label, who decides it, and how fixed, variable, and line-coded fields shape the label spec you send a printer.
Read the article →How custom supplement packaging comes together: what an accurate label quote needs, dieline artwork, proofs, roll specs, lot codes, and lead times.
Read the article →Vial labeling that holds through freezers, liquid nitrogen, autoclaves, and wet fill lines: adhesives, film facestocks, wrap sizing, and a spec checklist.
Read the article →Bottle dimensions for common hot sauce sizes, a measuring method for any tapered container, wrap versus front-and-back, and material guidance for oil, vinegar, and grease.
Read the article →Six questions that decide whether digital fits your next label job, when digital is the wrong call, and the two conversations buyers get wrong most often.
Read the article →Direct thermal or thermal transfer? Choose by label life and environment, match ribbon grade to facestock, and avoid the two mixing mistakes buyers make.
Read the article →Crowler or growler for your taproom? Sizes, freshness windows, counter workflow, cost per pour, and two labeling workflows for a rotating tap list.
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