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Comparing Plastic Bottles or Glass Bottle Labeling

1. Product Handling

With glass bottle labeling, you need to be more careful with product handling as glass breaks. Extra precautions include ensuring there are no places where a build-up of the product would result in an overflow of product that would fall off the machine. Glass bottles can “catch” on one another and cause jams. Pinch points can shatter glass where plastic bottles will simply crumple. Some product handling can result in jams under just the wrong conditions because the glass jar will not budge in shape.

2. Labeling Surface Consistency

Plastic jars and Glass products can have crappy labeling surfaces or inconsistent shapes and labeling surfaces.

When dealing with round glass jars, we have found higher pressure of application along with softer application rollers produces better results where there are undulations on the surface.

With Plastic bottles you don’t have the luxury of applying more pressure as the bottle will deform.

In both plastic and glass labeling, the best solution is to change supply and find good quality packaging where there is no labeling surface undulations.

3. Adhesives and the Surface

Adhesives will perform differently with both Glass bottles and Plastic bottles.

With clear labels there is a term called adhesive wet-out where small microbubbles, visible just after application, simply “go away”.

It’s a good idea to check with your label stock supplier if the adhesive on your labels is well matched to glass or plastic depending on the products you are labeling.

4. Shape Changing

In some cases, plastic containers will change shape or panel with different temperatures or with certain contents where gases are either produced or consumed within a sealed container. On a labeled container this can lead to creases or bubbles appearing after what looks like a smooth label application. A glass bottle is very unlikely to have these types of issues.

5. Static Electricity

Plastic containers, compared to glass, are more likely to build up static electricity and this can affect label application and lead to bubbles or creases.

6. Outgassing

In some cases plastic can give off a gas or even let gasses pass through its walls. This can create bubbles on what looks like a previously well labeled product.

In most cases, if we have a representative sample of products to examine, and a short video of the current labeling process, we will be able to identify where the source of problem bubbles or creases is coming from.

Self Adhesive Labeling

Clients of LabelOn™ Modular Self Adhesive Labeling Machines are realizing that with the uncertainty of machine set-up removed they can concentrate on other variables that influence machine results.

One area that is often overlooked is the consistency of bottles. In this article, we concentrate on complex contours. This is where the bottle or product has a curved surface in more than one direction. The label applicator can control the movement of the products and its labels to be applied but it cannot control the shape of the products or label.

Testing for Complex Contours

The first step is to identify the area of the product where the label is expected to be placed. Then, using a business card, hold the edge of your business card vertically against the product. Move the edge over the entire area where the label is expected to be applied. If a gap appears between the edge of the business card and the bottle surface then you have at least one curve, in this case in the vertical direction, on the area to be labeled.

Note: A curve in the vertical direction is usually a problem for self-adhesive labels as it is a curve that is difficult for a label to follow as it is usually dispensed in a direction horizontal to the product; matching the way the bottle product/bottle travels on a product conveyor.

While a flat label can “wrap” in the direction of one curve on a product’s surface, it cannot wrap in more than one direction. Taking the business card used before, and holding it horizontally against the surface you now look for gaps between the card’s edge and the product surface in the same area you found gaps when the card was vertically orientated.

Note: Curves in a Horizontal direction alone are quote common – round bottles being an obvious case but also oval cross-section bottles such as shampoo bottles or detergent bottles.

If you do find a business card that can show gaps in both a Horizontal and vertical orientation then that area of the bottle cannot be labeled with a self-adhesive label without bubbles or creases.

Learning from the Mistakes of Others

To see some examples of complex contour mistakes, you can visit a supermarket and look for products labeled with creases or bubbles. Most of the time it will be because of a mistake in the bottle/label design where the label is expected to go over a complex contour.

Another test to convince yourself of the problem of over-complex contours is to take a sheet of paper and see what happens when you try to wrap the sheet of paper onto a ball. You will always get creases for the paper to be pressed against the ball.

For Round bottles and products, there is a very quick check to see if complex contours exist. Take two round products and put them beside one another with their edges touching. See if you can see any gap between the touching edges.[/su_column][column size=”1-2″ last=”1″ style=”1″]

Now rotate the bottles while they still touch and see if you see gaps appear and disappear. Gaps suggest complex contours and the likelihood of creasing in these areas if labeled. In this case, the complex contours are not designed but more a result of the bottle quality and variations.

Other sources of complex contours for label applicators can be very thin-walled flat-sided bottles. Here the thin walls of the bottles can lead to surface irregularities before and after filling. Depending on where the label applicator is placed it can be a good idea to label thin wall bottles while they are empty; especially if they are hot-filled.

Used Labeling Machinery and Packaging Machinery:

Purchasing used labeling machinery, sealing, and packaging machinery will definitely provide a path to lower machinery purchase costs- and it will feel like a great deal. But watch out- you could be setting yourself up for huge costs that far outweigh any savings you thought you might make by purchasing second-hand.

There are many ‘unseen’ costs of purchasing used label application machines, sealing machines and other packaging machinery. This is especially the case with Labeling machines.

Consider Employee Skill Set Requirements

The skills required to operate older labelling* machines will far outway the skills to operate modern good value labeling equipment. Increased skill set employees means, increased training and dependence on higher paid more experienced staff to keep an old machine running (if you can find such staff – or keep them). Newer labeling machinery provides ease of use technology such as touch screen controls, motor speed synchronization and far more simple job changeovers; put simply new labeling equipment is usually far easier to operate. Setting up an old/used machine and teaching employees to properly use it can quickly eat into the “savings” you made buying the machine.

Machine Condition and Reliability

Reliability is a big factor. Although a machine may look like it is in good shape from the outside, used equipment is subject to previous wear and tear including items that might not be immediately visible. Even with a thorough manual inspection from a skilled technician, there are internal problems that can be missed. To name a few of the very likely things you will inherit; consider bent shafts, worn down gears and teeth, electronics on its last legs, obsolete operating systems and electronics and mechanical parts no longer produced.

Loss of production

The Big One: Loss of production TIME.
When production stalls your reputation, your profits and your business opportunities can all be significantly impacted.

Lengthy job set up times are NOT GOOD things; even if you have the advanced skill set employees to do them now. Compared to new labeling machines, most old machines have significantly longer and more complex set-up procedures.

Would you buy a car you could not service for all the likely AND unlikely service events? New and old machines alike come with the responsibility of maintenance. Maintenance of old equipment is a much more tricky affair that often involves long waits for replacement parts ; if you can find them or if they still exist. You may want to back yourself that you are qualified to self service an old labeler, however, labeling machines have a simple task that is achieved with literally thousands of parts. Even experienced label machine representatives and engineers call upon their teams to solve some issues – with your old labeling machine you are a team of one with a fraction of the labeling knowhow of a company that designs and supplies the current labeling machinery.

Good new labelling* equipment can be serviced quickly if a problem arises. “Current” parts are much faster and easier to identify, reorder and install.

Consider the enhanced position you are in if you were to order a good value LabelOn™ labeling machine with its online gallery support. Communicating any service issue is instant, recorded for future reference and identified using pictures and video of current machinery and parts (see below).

Older labeling equipment may initially have a lower bottom line, but could really cost you in the long run. Current labeling machinery allows for ease of use, quicker training, assured service and support plus significantly fast job turn around.

Buying your labelling* machine, induction sealing machine and other packaging machinery can be a big decision, for your production process, its dependability and your pocketbook.

You really need to find great machinery; where you know it will work without breaking the bank or compromising the integrity of your production.

We have solutions:

We provide the options that fit your needs and your budget- you won’t be overspending here. We can provide consulting and testing before you purchase your label applicators, induction sealers, or other packaging machinery. We are confident that in most cases we present the best value production solution.

If you are looking for affordable and trustworthy Labelling, Sealing, and packaging machinery, visit Adeneli Packaging websites and talk to one of our machine specialists,

Give us a call at (844)-233-6354 (844-ADENELI) or click the direct chat link below!

http://adenelipackaging.com – https://label-on.com/ – https://sealeron.com – https://capliningmaterial.com

*Labeling vs Labelling: We understand that you may see ‘labeling machines’ and ‘labelling machines’ within our web content. These are synonymous- just spelled differently in different regions of the world. We want our posts to be available to our world-wide audience, so we freely interchange the spelling to encourage easy searching for our content. Please rest assured, we are doing this on purpose!