subject: Labelling Guns In A Nutshell [print this page] Used in both the retail trade and industry more generally, label guns are easy to use hand held devices. They enable operators to mark products quickly, easily and cheaply with specific data. The information given might include price, origin, date, batch or other coding data. Not only are they useful in the retail trade but also in laboratory procedures, batch work and production processes. The trigger of the labelling gun runs the process of label presentation, printing, removing the backing and offering up the label for application to your chosen item.
There are four main parts or processes in the label gun; The print head, inking roller, label and adhesive and label roll mechanism.
The printer head is a simple device made up of flexible bands with raised reverse characters much like an administrator's desk stamp. These character sets can be varied by flicking the print head bands to create the info desired. The variety of combinations is limited only the mathematical restraints of the characters on each of the bands. With block style bands, complete words can be printed such as specific words. Examples where this could be suitable is labelling country of origin or variety of produce information. (e.g. cos, romaine, round, iceberg lettuces)
Label gun print heads can be fitted with serial numbering units where required so a count can be made on each dispensed label. It is possible for the sequencing to be incremental or in batch increments. This means, it may print one label then move on or any number of labels before moving on. Process control and monitoring can benefit significantly from successive numbering.
The ink roller of the label gun can add an extra dimensionaspect of usability and solves other problems. Thermo-sensitive inks can be used to add extra protection in temperature-sensitive applications such as food labelling. Catering is a specific operation which can benefit from temperature sensitive inks to indicate if a product has thawed since freezing for instance. Labels attached to items placed in an autoclave can indicate that the item has been subjected to the necessary heat. This is signified with ink colour change.
Labels do not only come as paper and paper alone - alternative materials can be utilized for difficult environmental conditions. Plasticised, impregnated paper or metallic labels are all different options to meet specific circumstances. Evident free removal is impossible where labels are pre-cut so as to encourage them to perish on peeling. More complex security can also be utilized, like foil strips and holographic images.
Finally, the label gun can administer labels with different glues aimed at surmounting environment and process difficulties. Adhesives can be permanent or removable, water-resistant or not. There are few situations for which a suitable cement cannot be found.
The label gun coupled with dyes, papers and pastes can achieve much more than merely marking soup tins in the local spar shop.
