Main Processes and Characteristics of Printed Labels

Main Processes and Characteristics of Printed Labels

Date Time: January 13, 2025
Reading volume: 32
Author: China LIJIE

Main Processes and Characteristics of Printed Labels


Below, the LIJIE Factory, a Chinese manufacturer of garment accessories, summarizes the main processes used in printed labels. There are three key processes: Screen Printing, Heat Transfer Printing, and Flexographic Printing.


Printed Labels

Screen Printing

Screen printing involves stretching woven fabrics, synthetic fiber fabrics, or metal meshes onto a frame and creating the printing screen using manual lacquer coating or photochemical plate-making methods. Modern screen printing technology uses photosensitive materials to create the printing screen through photographic plate-making. This process makes the mesh holes in the graphic areas open, while blocking the mesh holes in the non-graphic areas.

 

Process:

- A scraper is used to press the ink through the mesh holes in the graphic areas onto the substrate, producing an image identical to the original design.

Advantages:

- Strong color fastness

- Minimal width and length limitations

- Rich color options

 

Heat Transfer Printing

Heat transfer printing is a relatively new technique introduced from abroad less than 10 years ago. It is divided into two parts: transfer film printing and transfer processing.

 

Process:

- In transfer film printing, halftone printing (with a resolution of 300 dpi) is used to pre-print the design onto a thin film. The printed design is rich in layers, vivid in color, and has minimal color variation.

- Transfer processing: A heat transfer machine is used to apply heat and pressure, transferring the design onto the product's surface. After shaping, the ink layer fuses with the surface, creating a realistic and beautiful effect.

 

Advantages:

- Vivid colors with excellent reproduction

- Suitable for mass production

- Enhances product quality

 

Flexographic Printing

Flexographic printing (often referred to as flexo printing) uses a flexible plate and ink transfer rollers to apply ink onto substrates. Printing plates are typically made from photosensitive resin, with a thickness of 1-5mm. There are three main types of inks used: water-based inks, alcohol-soluble inks, and UV inks.

 

Process:

- Flexographic printing uses roll-fed materials, enabling double-sided printing and additional processes like inline varnishing, foil stamping, die-cutting, waste removal, and rewinding.

 

Advantages:

- High production efficiency: The process shortens production cycles, saves labor, materials, and costs, and enhances economic benefits.

- Wide range of substrates: Can be applied to paper, plastic films, aluminum foil, and self-adhesive papers.

- High-quality prints: The printing precision can reach up to 150 lines per inch, with rich layers and vibrant colors—ideal for packaging printing.

- Eco-friendly: Utilizes non-toxic, environmentally friendly inks, complying with green standards and food packaging requirements.

- Economic benefits: Flexographic printing costs only 10%-20% of gravure printing, with 1/3 less ink consumption, 40% less energy usage, and a lower waste rate of only 1%-2%, reducing overall production costs.

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