HOW DO LINERLESS LABELS AND LINERLESS LABEL APPLICATORS WORK?

As environmental awareness increases, more and more manufacturers and producers are looking to linerless labels and linerless label printing to improve sustainability and reduce costs. But what exactly is linerless labelling and how does this revolutionary technology work?

Labels without the Liner.

Conventional self adhesive labels have a release liner material (or backing paper) that functions as a carrier for the label and protects its adhesive layer until it is ready for application. Most label material is manufactured with this standard liner, however Linerless Label Printing, as the name suggests, involves pressure sensitive labels that have the need for this liner completely eliminated.

With linerless labels a release coating is applied to the label facestock on which they are wound, preventing the adhesive on the underside of the facestock from becoming attached to the label below (see diagram). With conventional labelling this release coating is applied to the liner material to allow it to separate from the labels adhesive layer, resulting in large amounts of waste liner by-product that cannot be recycled and is potentially harmful to the environment.

Linerless labels remove the need for a release liner and thus significantly reduce the amount of waste material in a label printing workflow. At the same time other associated business costs are reduced in areas such as waste disposal, storage, shipping/freight and paper consumption.

Linerless labelling technology can also improve the productivity of a business. For example, without the need for a release liner the number of labels on a roll can be increased by upwards of 40%! More labels per roll means fewer roll changes for Operators and ultimately a reduction in label applicator downtime as well as decreasing the amount of inventory space needed for stock. Additionally linerless labels can improve some aspects of health and safety in the working environment - discarded silicone release liner on a production floor can be slippery and hazardous - removing the liner can aid in the prevention of falls and injuries in the workplace.