Greg Hrinya, Associate Editor04.13.15
AWA IMLCON/IMDCON, held from February 18-19, 2015, in Miami, FL, USA. The International In-Mold Labeling & Decorating Conference & Exhibition featured concurrent sessions dedicated to in-mold labeling (IML), in-mold decorating (IMD) and the technologies specific to each method.
Mark Keeton, vice president of marketing, Product Marking & Decoration at Standard Register, examined some of the challenges hitting the market and ways in which Standard Register has responded. The company generates a significant amount of revenue from pressure sensitive labels and is a player in the in-mold space, as well.
As part of his presentation entitled, “Innovation in In-Mold Decorating,” Keeton discussed how Standard Register has approached three-dimensional labeling in an industry that has traditionally worked with flat materials.
“There’s some complex science here,” said Keeton. “It sounds like you put some ink on a sheet and you shape it to a three-dimensional form and you’re good. What people recognized at the show is when you start taking a flat product and forming it into a three-dimensional shape, you have problems and a lot of people have tried to fix this in the past.”
The two main issues involve color blanching and distortion. In order for the label to accommodate a three-dimensional shape, it will have to stretch. Therefore, a label originating as red will turn into pink as it is stretched and twisted. The same goes for shapes. A circle printed in the middle of a label will become distorted as it is stretched to fit a given shape. That circle will then turn into an oval.
Standard Register developed a proprietary solution that anticipates the changing shapes and colors in the application process.
“You have to plan for that–that’s physics–there’s no way around that, but there are technologies we’ve been able to leverage to allow us to plan for that distortion and plan accordingly,” added Keeton. “So, when that distortion happens in a controlled fashion, it looks like a circle when it’s done instead of an oval.”
According to Keeton, the market faces several challenges when dealing with IML and IMD. Cost and capacity are the two biggest roadblocks. Traditionally, these labels have been produced with screen printing.
“You have had to do screen printing for a variety of reasons,” said Keeton. “One is print quality and the other is to get the look of the product right from an ink perspective.”
Cost and capacity are not the only concerns, however. “Screen printing can only output a certain amount of product a day,” explained Keeton. “It’s a slow process. You can have a plant full of screen prints and still not be able to meet the high-volume application needs. Because it’s a relatively slow process, your cost is very high.”
Standard Register opted to go with a flexographic press to deal with these issues. This has enabled the company to run at faster speeds and operate at lower costs. According to Keeton, the flexo press can take the place of many screen presses and provides the kind of look necessary for 3-D objects. In the consumer durables market, these labels can be applied to automotive parts, sporting goods and household appliances.
“It’s been an interesting transition as we’ve introduced this lower cost, higher volume kind of product in a market that still has higher quality,” added Keeton. “People are now coming to us instead of having to go to them. They realize that we have something that will drive a better product for them at lower cost.”
Understanding IML and IMD
Keeton acknowledged that there is a fair amount of confusion when differentiating the two processes. Historically, IMD has been associated with film products that are printed flat and then fed into the molding process by heat transfer.
IML involves taking a cut piece, or an individual piece in a stack, and that piece is inserted into a mold via robotics or by hand. “It’s not on a film and it’s not a transfer,” explained Keeton. “It actually molds onto the piece of plastic itself.”
The decoration aspect of in-mold is associated with the heat transfer part of the process. As part of Standard Register’s IMD, the company uses a proprietary film called Grafilm. It is not limited to that material, however. Durable polyesters and polycarbonites are also common substrates. The right resin must also be selected for the application process.
“Any common plastic that you would see in the injection mold industry, we’re taking that plastic and creating a film out of that plastic,” added Keeton.
IML is a more specialized process whereas IMD is more common for generalized applications. Standard Register’s technology can be used on objects with special curves, tight angles and wraparound features.
Other trends include the look of the label. Not only must it fit a certain shape, the product has to have a high-quality look. From a decoration perspective, different labels will have wood-grain and metallic designs. Graphite or carbon fiber looks have also become popular.
Keeton stated that the intricate designs are not only eye-catching, but they now have an authentic look to them. “In-mold labels have been used in that space for some time, but they don’t really look authentic,” he said. “What I mean by that is many appliances have tried to use flat, in-mold labels, and essentially what you see is a flat shape with a weird edge that has an in-mold label on the surface and a flat surface that looks somewhat like a metallic finish or a wood-grain finish, but because it doesn’t have any curvature to it, you can kind of tell it’s like a sticker.”
Standard Register is focused on wrapping the label around the entire object. “If it has big, broad curves, in plastics terminology ... we’re able to wrap the full piece without any creases or crinkles, degradation to the image, and that three-dimensional piece now has an authentic look. It actually looks like a piece of wood or a piece of metal or a piece of carbon fiber as opposed to a fake look that just has a flat appearance to it.”
Industry professionals explored some of the latest trends hitting the in-mold market during Mark Keeton, vice president of marketing, Product Marking & Decoration at Standard Register, examined some of the challenges hitting the market and ways in which Standard Register has responded. The company generates a significant amount of revenue from pressure sensitive labels and is a player in the in-mold space, as well.
As part of his presentation entitled, “Innovation in In-Mold Decorating,” Keeton discussed how Standard Register has approached three-dimensional labeling in an industry that has traditionally worked with flat materials.
“There’s some complex science here,” said Keeton. “It sounds like you put some ink on a sheet and you shape it to a three-dimensional form and you’re good. What people recognized at the show is when you start taking a flat product and forming it into a three-dimensional shape, you have problems and a lot of people have tried to fix this in the past.”
The two main issues involve color blanching and distortion. In order for the label to accommodate a three-dimensional shape, it will have to stretch. Therefore, a label originating as red will turn into pink as it is stretched and twisted. The same goes for shapes. A circle printed in the middle of a label will become distorted as it is stretched to fit a given shape. That circle will then turn into an oval.
Standard Register developed a proprietary solution that anticipates the changing shapes and colors in the application process.
“You have to plan for that–that’s physics–there’s no way around that, but there are technologies we’ve been able to leverage to allow us to plan for that distortion and plan accordingly,” added Keeton. “So, when that distortion happens in a controlled fashion, it looks like a circle when it’s done instead of an oval.”
According to Keeton, the market faces several challenges when dealing with IML and IMD. Cost and capacity are the two biggest roadblocks. Traditionally, these labels have been produced with screen printing.
“You have had to do screen printing for a variety of reasons,” said Keeton. “One is print quality and the other is to get the look of the product right from an ink perspective.”
Cost and capacity are not the only concerns, however. “Screen printing can only output a certain amount of product a day,” explained Keeton. “It’s a slow process. You can have a plant full of screen prints and still not be able to meet the high-volume application needs. Because it’s a relatively slow process, your cost is very high.”
Standard Register opted to go with a flexographic press to deal with these issues. This has enabled the company to run at faster speeds and operate at lower costs. According to Keeton, the flexo press can take the place of many screen presses and provides the kind of look necessary for 3-D objects. In the consumer durables market, these labels can be applied to automotive parts, sporting goods and household appliances.
“It’s been an interesting transition as we’ve introduced this lower cost, higher volume kind of product in a market that still has higher quality,” added Keeton. “People are now coming to us instead of having to go to them. They realize that we have something that will drive a better product for them at lower cost.”
Understanding IML and IMD
Keeton acknowledged that there is a fair amount of confusion when differentiating the two processes. Historically, IMD has been associated with film products that are printed flat and then fed into the molding process by heat transfer.
IML involves taking a cut piece, or an individual piece in a stack, and that piece is inserted into a mold via robotics or by hand. “It’s not on a film and it’s not a transfer,” explained Keeton. “It actually molds onto the piece of plastic itself.”
The decoration aspect of in-mold is associated with the heat transfer part of the process. As part of Standard Register’s IMD, the company uses a proprietary film called Grafilm. It is not limited to that material, however. Durable polyesters and polycarbonites are also common substrates. The right resin must also be selected for the application process.
“Any common plastic that you would see in the injection mold industry, we’re taking that plastic and creating a film out of that plastic,” added Keeton.
IML is a more specialized process whereas IMD is more common for generalized applications. Standard Register’s technology can be used on objects with special curves, tight angles and wraparound features.
Other trends include the look of the label. Not only must it fit a certain shape, the product has to have a high-quality look. From a decoration perspective, different labels will have wood-grain and metallic designs. Graphite or carbon fiber looks have also become popular.
Keeton stated that the intricate designs are not only eye-catching, but they now have an authentic look to them. “In-mold labels have been used in that space for some time, but they don’t really look authentic,” he said. “What I mean by that is many appliances have tried to use flat, in-mold labels, and essentially what you see is a flat shape with a weird edge that has an in-mold label on the surface and a flat surface that looks somewhat like a metallic finish or a wood-grain finish, but because it doesn’t have any curvature to it, you can kind of tell it’s like a sticker.”
Standard Register is focused on wrapping the label around the entire object. “If it has big, broad curves, in plastics terminology ... we’re able to wrap the full piece without any creases or crinkles, degradation to the image, and that three-dimensional piece now has an authentic look. It actually looks like a piece of wood or a piece of metal or a piece of carbon fiber as opposed to a fake look that just has a flat appearance to it.”