Yam, Kit L. (ed.). The Wiley encyclopedia of packaging technology

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outsourcing are South East Asia, South Korea, and China.

The Philippines is a major source in Japan of printed

ﬂexible packaging for pouches and ﬂow wraps.

The solution to the cost base issue is to continue to

value-add packaging, while inventing and exploiting new

technologies in the process. Japan’s packaging industry

innovates with packaging and also commercializes pack

concepts from other countries. Toppan’s Cart-o-Can origi-

nates from Finland; it was developed and commercialized

by Lamican oy in Valkeakoski. This is a good example of

the Japanese commercial mentality to exploit, improve,

and get to market quickly.

The packaging industry leads globally in many consumer

pack areas; to highlight this fact, 3 examples are as follows:

. Print quality. The value of good quality print and the

exploitation the medium can offer (Image 3) is

underappreciated.

. Shaping of paperboard containers. Moving a

straight-sided carton into a curvy and feature-rich

pack has been a Japanese strength that has given an

added dynamic to what was once an unchanging

format (image 4).

. Light weighting of PET. This is a popular claim from

many countries, and Japan can claim important

success here especially with structural design and

the use of interlocking panels to create strength

(image 5).

Light weighting is a good example of Japan’s success

with materials application, but part of the pressure to

change is to increase savings because of expanding

raw material costs. As an example is a brand leader in

the bottle water market, ‘‘Tennensui’’ (brand owner &

producer Suntory), which was launched in March 2007,

Overview of production number and value of packaging machinery

2005 - ﬁnal - 2006 - ﬁnal - 2007 (incl. estim.)

Number Value Number Value Number Value

Grand Total 518,365

(97.2)

4501

(100.0)

492,647

(95.0)

4.665

(103.6)

494,537

(100.4)

4823

(103.4)

1. Packaging and packing machines

Total

516,662

(97.2)

4066

(100.8)

490.792

(95.0)

4.191

(103.1)

492,722

(100.4)

4324

(103,2)

Unit and inner packaging machine

Sub-Total

385,349

(98.2)

3253 (99.5) 367,501

(95.4)

3,354

(103.1)

367.744

(100.1)

3466

(103.4)

-Scaling machines 4070 205 4078 202 4128 213

-Filling machines 4429 397 4412 428 4544 448

-Bottling machines 2915 456 3222 496 3581 531

-Canning machines 160 29 158 18 163 18

-Pouch form/ﬁlling machines 7122 488 6996 512 6759 522

-Container form/ﬁlling machines 450 166 433 179 450 175

-Labeling machines 258,644 157 247,862 151 246,034 159

-Cartooning machines 331 64 305 61 335 69

-Overwrapping machines 18,493 236 18,748 233 19,707 250

-Sealing machines 57,087 164 50,821 184 50,711 188

-Shrink packaging machines 2898 112 2867 109 2840 119

-Vacuum packaging machines 6688 103 6734 116 7262 122

-Others 22,062 684 20,865 664 21,230 652

Outer packaging and packing machines

Subtotal

131,313

(94.4)

813 (106.0) 123,291

(93.9)

838 (103.0) 124,978

(101.4)

858 (102.4)

-Case landing machines 940 157 941 161 1118 174

-Case gluing machines 147 10 126 7 119 6

-Taping machines 3679 28 3662 26 3728 26

-Strapping machines 103,407 127 95,479 135 96,042 135

-Typing machines 3680 46 3530 52 3652 54

-Boxers 10,257 10 9078 9 9468 10

-Uncasers 17 3 20 4 25 6

-Others 9186 431 10,455 444 10,826 448

2. Bag making machines

Total

1265 (100.3) 274 (96.1) 1,308 (103.4) 287 (104.6) 1308 (100.0) 287 (100.0)

3. Paper and paper board converting

machines

Total

438 (82.3) 161 (89.0) 547 (124.9) 187 (116.2) 504 (92.1) 212 (113.5)

Production value in 100 million yen(\) ( ); Comparison with previous year (%).

628 JAPANESE PACKAGING

introduced a light-weighted 500 mL PET bottle at 25 g

with a new (and in some respects novel) shape that was

asymmetrical. This design was enhanced by a hewn ice

effect, and although it had good visual impact, standout,

and brand recognition at the point of sale (PoS), it proved

to be structurally weak. This was evident in the all-

important vending distribution system, where lateral

crushing became very evident. A modiﬁcation to the bottle

structural design was necessary through adding a rib to

the base (launched in April 2008) to enhance strength.

The net result in weight saved was another 4 g at 21 g for

this 500-mL bottle.

Although 21 g is lightweight the current lightest weight

500-mL PET bottle is 18 g for ‘‘Pokari Sweat’’ (brand

owner and producer Otsuka Pharmaceutical), which is

an 11 g reduction over the previous pack. The values of

this bottle through shaping were challenged, and the well-

known square cross-sectioned-based bottle was replaced

by a conventional cylinder with strengthening ribs added

to the perimeter body. Otsuka Pharmaceuticals believes

they have reduced PET consumption for this bottle

(launched in 2007) by 2700 t per annum.

These weight reductions also demonstrated that the

brand values of a pack through shaping and surface

treatment are critical, if not paramount. Although serious

shape change has taken place to reduce weight, the

essence and recognition of the brand has not been lost in

these moves. For new brands coming on to the market, we

expect more use of surface facets that not only deliver

compression and lateral strength in a lightweight con-

tainer but have the facility deliver light-reﬂecting high-

lights to enhance standout at the PoS and add emotional

values to a packaged brand.

Changes in other materials have, like PET, been evolu-

tionary more than revolutionary, which is consistent with

the packaging industry by and large globally. Important in

this evolution has been Toppan, who have continued their

vapor disposition process created with GL ﬁlms (silica

oxide) to produce a range of ﬁlms called GX—hybrid

of thin ﬁlm, disposition, and barrier coatings—with a

claimed barrier equivalent to aluminium foil. Toppan

have secured over 400 patents in the development of GX

ﬁlms and with a market of some 12,000 t in 2005 and

Toppan seeking a 40% share, the prizes are high. This see-

through capability when compared with aluminium foil,

less heat to incinerate pushing down the dioxin emissions,

and other beneﬁts like not infering with metal detection

equipment on the production ﬁlling line. Toppan’s classic

Japanese strategy of taking a long-term approach and

with GX following on from GL, the disposition and hybrid

process approach is set to continue in pursuit of offering a

higher barrier on a lower material base.

In the early 1990s, Japan was a leader in two-dimen-

sional (2-D) pouches, and the process is now copied around

the world, especially in the United States. Now, Japan has

fresh thinking in three-dimensional (3-D) pouches. In

image 6, there are two standup pouches with unique bases

that give extra stability and enhanced branding opportu-

nities; the pouch to the left has a double skirt, whereas the

pouch to the right base is made with a separate ﬁlm piece.

Both approaches provide solutions to the issue of pouch

stability and competitiveness in that parameter when

compared with rigid containers.

Rigid containers in aluminium and steel have experi-

enced the introduction of shaping especially in three key

areas. First, the introduction of surface nonregistered

embossing, with aluminium beverage cans, adds enhanced

stand-out at PoS and tactile qualities in usage. Second, the

introduction of the two-piece bottle can for beverages has

been a signiﬁcant development and is in wide distribution.

Paralleling that in steel has been the thee piece bottle can

for carbonated beverages, which has a smaller diameter

aperture and closure. And in steel, the shaping of three-

piece cans with conventional closures, which are used

primarily for beverages, especially ready-to-drink (RTD)

coffees, and with some skilled surface decoration and

embossing to match. (Image 7)

As a vehicle of coordination of developments, training,

and activity, the industry in effect sponsors The Japan

Packaging Institute (JPI), which is an organization paid

for by the industry and not by the members. This economic

approach has ensured a lively and active packaging

institute in Japan in a decade when many packaging

institutes have downsized or even disappeared.

The JPI is the voice of the industry on government

bodies; it puts forward plans to meet government regula-

tions, such as on waste, and also promotes its own initia-

tives, especially this decade, on waste, recycling, and

sustainability. In addition, the institute organizes the

industry’s biannual trade fair, Tokyo Pack and Conference,

which can draw in 200,000 visitors over a 5- day period.

JAPAN, PACKAGING, AND SUSTAINABILITY

In some respects, the concept of the three R’s (reduce,

recycle, and reuse) arrived late in Japan compared with

western countries. By the mid-1990s, and again in the

mid-2000s, the situation has changed, and Japan leads

with a different strategy and plans for packaging waste as

part of an overarching national strategy.

Japan’s approach to sustainability is embedded in The

Containers and Packaging Recycling Act, which was ﬁrst

established in 1995 to meet the increasing need to reduce

the volume of solid waste and make full use of recyclable

resources by means of sorted collection, and to recycle

waste containers and wrapping. The key words at this

point in time are recyclable resources. A comprehensive

reassessment of the Act was started in 2004, with an

important

contribution from the

JPI, and the revised

Container and Packaging Recycling Act went into effect

just 2 years later in June 2006. The key points of the

revised act are as follows:

. Promote the establishment of a sustainable society

according to the three Rs of Reduce, Reuse, and

Recycle deﬁned in the Basic Act for Establishing a

Recycling-Based Society

. Improve cost efﬁciency throughout society

. Encourage cooperation of all interested parties, in-

cluding the government, municipalities, business

enterprises, and citizens

JAPANESE PACKAGING 629

The key words at this stage are establishing a Recycling-

Based Society. There are several drivers for this state-

ment, and I want to highlight two. First, Japan is not rich

in natural resources (and this, coupled with over 85% of its

land being mountainous, plus constant earthquakes,

means that there is little to be had from the ground, trees

are extensively grown for commercial use). Second, the

share of post packaging in the municipal waste stream

was high at 60.6% when the original 1995 Act was passed.

By comparison, Europe is municipal packaging waste is

5% to 25%.

There has a been a steep change in thinking, and

packaging waste is considered to be a resource—a valu-

able resource—in its own right. The national plan is to

harvest that resource.

Operating principles are similar to Europe and North

America, where manufacturers and users assume responsi-

bility. The 2004 Act states that there are ‘‘speciﬁed business

entities’’: These are manufacturers who do the following:

. Use containers and wrapping for shipping their

products, including retailers and wholesalers who

use containers and wrapping for selling merchan-

dise, manufacturers of containers, importers who

import and sell merchandise in containers or wrap-

ping, and importers of containers.

. Have been assigned the responsibility of recycling

these containers and wrapping in accordance with

the volume that they manufacture or sell.

As in other countries, it is difﬁcult for individual business

entities to collect waste containers and wrapping from

respective municipalities and recycle them on their own.

To provide an alternative, a government designated orga-

nization, The Japan Containers and Packaging Recycling

Association (JCPRA) was set up to operate the recycling

needs of businesses on behalf of the speciﬁed business,

to meet their statutory obligations. This is paid for by

the ‘‘business entities’’ on a fee basis to the JCPRA. The

JCPRA has a formidable board structure and is well

resourced. The legislation itself can be said to be modeled

on the French system of deposit–return and was designed

to limit the disruption of these existing systems, including

safeguarding the jobs of local government workers em-

ployed in waste management.

In addition, the consumer is expected to make a con-

tribution by sorting domestic packaging waste into

streams of glass, metal, paperboard, plastics, and PET

(as a separate plastics material). This strategy also in-

cludes the removal of debris on the container, which, if

with water, is a debatable environmental point.

In essence responsibilities can be tabulated as follows:

Consumers Sort packaging according to

municipal criteria

Municipalities Design and implement a

program for source-separated

collection of packaging

Prepare packaging materials for

market

Manufacturers, product

manufacturers (includes

importers)

Recycling of materials collected

by municipalities

Meeting the government set

targets

Develop recycling plants

Ultimately recycle all materials

from the waste stream

The national plan to implement this strategy is detailed

and impressive, and it sets test standards.

How is it working? It is fair to start by saying that the

industry fought to limit its responsibility under this

system. Yet, nearly two thirds of local governments and

municipalities had already implemented systems for se-

paration and collection of recyclable materials from house-

hold trash, prior to the law’s enactment.

Most municipalities or communities have introduced or

expanded curb-side recycling programs to meet these

requirements. This is paid for by the Municipal authority.

Once they have collected materials, municipalities must

prepare them for market. This preparation can include

washing collected bottles; removing contaminants, such as

caps and labels; and baling. In fact, Japan has some of the

most attractive curb-side containers for packaging waste

anywhere in the world (even when placed freely on the

pavement, it seems always to be neatly bundled and

stacked up for collection). Also segmented collection con-

tainers are every where, from the small convenience store,

to metro stations, to the big supermarkets.

Up-to-date information is not available, but in 2004 the

Ministry for the Environment states ‘‘that the number of

Municipalities conducting sorted collections has increased

with regard to every item except for steel and aluminum

cans* compared with 2002. The volume of waste collected

separately and recycled also increased with regard to

every item, except for and steel and aluminum cans, of

which consumption volume had decreased. This shows

that the system under this law is well recognized and has

taken root in society.

The volume of used PET bottles collected in 2003 was

approximately 110% that of 2002. The recovery rate of

used PET bottles, calculated by dividing the volume of

sorted collection by the volume of manufacturing, totaled

48.5% in 2003, and this rate steadily increased year by

year. Assessing trends

regarding the volume of wasted

PET bottles, which was derived from the difference be-

tween the separately collected volume of used PET bottles

* The number of municipalities conducting sorted collection and

recycling decreased, because the number of municipalities de-

creased by merger outnumbered the municipalities launched

sorted collection and recycling.

The voluntary collection of used PET bottles by businesses is

conducted in addition to sorted collection undertaken by munici-

pal governments. The ﬁgure here was estimated based on the

difference versus the volume of used PET bottles collected by

municipalities only. A survey conducted by the Council for PET

Bottle Recycling shows that the volume of wasted PET bottles

totaled approximately 171,000 t, which decreased by approxi-

mately 26,000 t compared with 1997, including approximately

54,000 t (collected rate was 60.9%) of used PET bottles collected by

businesses in 2003.

630 JAPANESE PACKAGING

and the manufactured volume, it was found that the

recycled volume increased by approximately 6% compared

with 2002, whereas the volume of waste decreased by

9000 t compared with 1998 ﬁgures.

The used plastic containers and packages other than

PET bottles and used paper containers and packages were

designated as additional items subject to the law in April

2000. In 2003, 4 years after this designation, the collected

volume of used plastic containers and packages and used

paper containers and packages increased 140% and 130%,

respectively, compared with 2002 ﬁgures.

The system is complex, and with the fees, quotas are

also imposed on the packaging supply chain at source as

part of funding this post consumer collection. The scale of

charges is determined by both weight and volume, and

this has driven innovation and technical development in

response. Reducing package weight has been an example

of this. It not only reduces the fees but also cuts other

related costs like distribution weight and cube efﬁciency.

The ﬁgures do not tell the whole story. Nearly all

Japan’s PET is shipped to China and selected South

East Asian countries for recycling (undermining some

serious new investment in this technology) for cost rea-

sons. Actual recycling rates per household are still below

that of the United States. But the system works, has a

different objective and ethic than other countries, and is

stimulating the packaging industry to create more sus-

tainable packaging and ﬁnd new ways of meeting product

protection needs.

Also, in a move to underline this, in March 2008 the

government decided to promote Japan’s knowledge and

expertise to other countries under the scheme ‘‘Sound

Material-Cycle Societies’’.

OTHER DRIVERS OF PACKAGING CHANGE

Japan’s economic success has come with a premium; the

birth rate has steadily fallen, and the population is living

longer. It is now predicted that by 2025 over one third of

the population will be 65 or older. Coupled to this the life

expectancy prediction (Government 2006) is 79.0 years for

a man, second only to Greenland, and 85.8 years for a

woman, which is the highest life expectancy in the world.

This society will have packaging issues for a large

section of the population. Part of the solution is in the

2005 2006 2007 2008

Sales

volume

(tons)

Percentage

(%)

Sales

volume

(tons)

Percentage

(%)

Sales

volume

(tons)

Percentage

(%)

Sales

volume

(tons)

Percentage

(%)

Glass bottles 321,990 324,967 316,288 308,853

Colorless 96,514 100.0 102,046 100.0 95,172 100.0 93,832 100.0

From bottle to bottle 93,472 96.8 99,488 97.5 91,783 96.4 91,505 97.5

Others 3,042 3.2 2,558 2.5 3,389 3.6 2,327 2.5

Amber 117,455 100.0 115,727 100.0 112,690 100.0 111,561 100.0

From bottle to bottle 102,935 87.6 105,051 90.8 102,148 90.6 102,826 92.2

Others 14,520 12.4 10,676 9.2 10,542 9.4 8,734 7.8

Other Colors 108,020 100.0 107,194 100.0 108,426 100.0 103,460 100.0

From bottle to bottle 19,880 18.4 22,967 21.4 17,209 15.9 26,707 25.8

Others 88,140 81.6 84,227 78.6 91,217 84.1 76,753 74.2

PET bottles 143,032 100.0 106,445 100.0 111,847 100.0 121,500 100.0

Textiles 64,103 44.8 55,458 52.1 61,292 54.8 67,685 55.7

Plastic sheet 58,788 41.1 41,088 38.6 43,285 38.7 46,808 38.5

Bottles 12,134 8.5 6,493 6.1 3,915 3.5 3,278 2.7

Molded products 6,217 4.3 3,087 2.9 2,796 2.5 2,965 2.4

Others 1,790 1.3 319 0.3 559 0.5 761 0.6

Paper 26,471 100.0 28,093 100.0 27,083 100.0 26,660 100.0

Materials 24,894 94.0 26,689 95.0 25,813 95.3 25,125 94.2

Materials for other than

paper

223 0.9 47 0.2 197 0.7 262 1.0

Refuse Derived Fuel 1,354 5.1 1,357 4.8 1,073 4.0 1,274 4.8

Plastics 365,924 100.0 380,434 100.0 381,163 100.0 374,590 100.0

Plastics 364,991 99.7 379,589 99.7 380,353 99.8 373,812 99.8

Molding materials 88,852 24.2 131,256 34.5 149,678 39.3 171,475 45.8

Pyrolytic oil 6,993 1.9 4,389 1.2 4,258 1.1 2,730 0.7

Reducing agent in blast

furnaces

36,444 10.0 37,282 9.8 31,259 8.2 15,605 4.2

Chemical raw materials 174,061 47.6 152,103 40.0 138,626 36.4 137,320 36.7

for the coke oven

Synthetic gas 58,641 16.0 54,559 14.3 56,531 14.9 46,682 12.5

Tray 933 0.3 845 0.2 810 0.2 778 0.2

Molding materials 933 0.3 845 0.2 810 0.2 778 0.2

JAPANESE PACKAGING 631

underlining need to value add and to provide packs that

match an aging lifestyle. An aging population is likely to

consume more pharmacy products, and there are packa-

ging opportunities there.

Another part of the solution is in the concept of

universal design (UD). The theory of universal design is

advocated by the U.S.-based researcher Ronald L. Mace.

refers to the design of products, elements, or spaces that

can be used with equal effectiveness by anyone, from the

elderly or physically challenged, to children or pregnant

women, irrespective of the user’s abilities or degree of

dexterity.

The packaging industry and their designers are re-

sponding. Product manufacturer Kokko has an oblate-

shaped cup that is designed to make it easy for the elderly

to take medication. At the everyday product level, plastics

company Osaka Hososha, in conjunction with ﬂexible

manufacturer Gunze, has developed a new sandwich

pack made from an easy opening heat seal of OPP ﬁlm

produced by Gunze. This pack features two tabs on either

side of the pack, either of which is simply pulled in an

upward direction to open. The ﬁlm separates smoothly

from the seal portion, leaving the label intact and enabling

the contents to be removed with ease without out the

ﬁngers coming in contact with the ﬁlling.

There is a strong enough eco-ethic in Japan to have a

packaging effect. The application of cellulose-based ﬁber

has been enjoying a renaissance. Pressure-formed paper-

pulp compartmentalized trays as replacements for plastics

are now well established. They are well decorated and can

have an elaborate shaping. When Lion launched a pow-

dered detergent in a paper pulp bottle (image 2) not only

was that a remarkable feat but also they were conﬁdent

enough to supply a reﬁll pouch as well.

Making use of waste packaging, Daiko Sangyo has

made a gift-wrapping cloth out of recycled PET bottles.

A company called Yutaka has developed tubs that are

edible. They are made from potato or sweet potato starch.

The tub can be an alternative for a small packs made from

paper or plastics. It can only be used where a barrier is not

required and the shelf life is short. Conventionally, this

type of edible wafer ﬁlm becomes fragile when it dries,

which makes it difﬁcult to form, but the Yutaka process

uses a controlled thickness of starch ﬁlm and then forms it

at narrow temperature bands. The material is claimed to

be resistant to oil and moisture. Its potential is seen for

small baked goods like mufﬁns and deli foods and for

boxed meals. The product is claimed to be sustainable as it

is a foodstuff in its own right from renewable plants and

does not need to be separated and disposed of.

Behind these developments, the environmental driver

is creating new improvements. Packaging company

Nagata has a liquid container that can be folded for

easy transportation and storage. The Giant paperboard

company Oji has developed a board product that uses the

leaves from green tea within its structure.

WHAT THE FUTURE MAY HOLD IN JAPAN FOR ITS

PACKAGING

Like many other countries and societies, Japan is at some-

thing of a crossroads with its packaging. It has a high cost

base, a complex but effective recycle packaging resource

strategy, a rapidly aging consumer market, and a relatively

large packaging sector, all in the context of potentially

severe global economic downturn starting in 2008–2009.

A prime key is in value adding with packaging, but in a

way that meets the demands of a changing and environ-

mentally aware society with the backing of government

sustainability legislation.

We see new packs emerging from ﬁber. Japan is

fortunate in that has a large forestry industry and an

inclination to be technologically innovative with cellulose

ﬁber. We predict that Japan will be a global leader in the

conversion of cellulose into new pack formats, and that it

will continue to perfect machines and paperboard materi-

als that can be shaped and made easy to open, easy to

dispense, and easy to reclose. Paperboard materials en-

gineering struggles with incorporating a barrier while

retaining some element of biodegradability or avoiding

complex, multilayered materials with this material.

Strength is in the packaging design base of paperboard

products and with the facility to create value-adding packs

without always increasing cost.

On the horizon is the development of high-function

resins—aliphatic polycarbonate—from carbon dioxide.

This work has been started with the objective to launch

the resins onto the market by 2012. The develop-

ment is a collaboration between the industry and the

universities.

When fully commercialized, it is judged to have the

potential to replace polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene

(PP) materials, which in turn account for 60% of the

worlds resin usage. If realized this would have the effect

of reducing CO

emissions by 30% when compared with

resins manufactured from oil.

The Japanese approach to packaging, society, and

commerce is different to that of most countries in the

world. It is ﬂexible; it embraces and drives change, and

accepts constant change as a way of life. It has a culture

that can implement change faster than most.

Compared with other countries’ packaging sectors, in

changing and challenging economic and global warming

times, that skill base, with change, has the potential to

retain its leading edge with packaging.

632 JAPANESE PACKAGING

LABELS AND LABELING MACHINERY

STEVE WERBLOW

MICHA NOAH

Labels can be afﬁxed to almost anything to indicate its

contents, nature, ownership, or destination. Labeling is

the art of applying or attaching the label to a particular

surface, item, or product (see also Tags).

Originally, labels were used merely to identify a pro-

duct or to supply information about the properties, nature,

or purpose of the items labeled. Today their use is often

required by legislation (1), and they are seen as sales and

marketing aids in the total design of a package or product.

In some cases, the labels have become products in

themselves.

TYPES OF LABELS AND MATERIALS

The range and variety of labels used, and the markets and

applications for them, are increasingly diverse. Materials

include paperboard, laminates, metallic foils, paper, plas-

tics, fabric, and synthetic substrates. These, in turn, may

be adhesive or nonadhesive. Even then, the range of

label materials can be further subdivided into a variety

of different types: coated or uncoated; pressure-sensitive

or heat-sensitive; conventional gummed or particle

gummed (2). Figure 1 shows the main types of labels

and materials.

Of all the different types of labels, nonadhesive plain

paper labels applied by wet gluing tend to dominate

the total user market throughout the world. In recent

years, however, there has been a marked trend toward

self-adhesive pressure-sensitive labels. Newer methods of

labeling such as shrink sleeve, in-mold, and heat transfer

have also gained market acceptance (see Bands, shrink;

Decorating).

Overall, the U.S. pressure-sensitive (self-adhesive) roll

label market is growing at about 10–15% per year, with

some printers and market sectors showing growth of 20%

or more. The two main markets showing above average

growth are electronic data processing (EDP) labels and

prime labels.

Plain-Paper Labels

The conventional wet-glue plain-paper label is widely

used, particularly for large-volume items such as beer,

soft drinks, wines, and canned foods, where high label

application speeds, sometimes in excess of 80–100,000

labels per hour, are required.

Most of the papers used in this type of labeling are one-

sided coated grades, which make up the familiar can and

bottle labels, but a fair volume of uncoated grades is still

used. These tend to be limited to special effects, such as

colored papers, embossed papers, or antique laids for wine

labels, where particular characteristics are required (3).

Gummed-Paper Labels

Gummed-paper labels have been declining in usage in

recent years and are now limited mainly to applicat-

ions such as address labeling for cartons, point-of-sale

displays, and any labeling applications where automation

is either difﬁcult or unnecessary. Two main types of

gummed labels are in use: conventional gummed and

particle gummed (4).

Conventional gummed labels are those that are made

up of a base support of paper coated on the reverse side

with a ﬁlm of water-moistenable gum. On particle

gummed papers, the adhesive is applied in the form of

minute granules. This avoids problems of curling often

associated with conventional gummed papers. Most of the

Figure 1. The main types of labels and

materials.

633

newer applications for gummed papers require the proper-

ties of high-tack particle gummed papers, which offer

many advantages in terms of processing efﬁciency and

security of application.

Self-Adhesive Labels

Self-adhesive label materials (see Figure 2) today range

from permanent to removable adhesive types, as well as a

whole range of special adhesive materials (see Adhesives).

Permanent adhesives are those that are required to

stay in position for a long time or for application to

surfaces that are round, irregular, or ﬂexible. Because of

the strong adhesive ‘‘grab,’’ the label normally becomes

damaged or defaced if attempts are made to remove it.

Removable adhesives are those that can be removed

after a speciﬁed time without damage to the surface on

which they have been applied. Uses include short-term

food-packaging applications, point-of-sale or advertising

stickers, china, and ovenware, where the label should be

easy to remove before use.

Within the broad categories of permanent and remo-

vable self-adhesive labels, there is a wide variety of special

adhesive types to cover requirements such as water

removability, low- or high-temperature adhesion, ultra-

violet-light resistance, and high- and low-tack properties.

Adhesives, which at one time were largely solvent-based,

have moved rapidly in recent years to hot-melt or water-

based acrylic adhesives (5) (see Acrylics).

For all normal self-adhesive labeling requirements

(food and supermarket labels, retail/price marking labels,

etc.), surface papers in a variety of weights and ﬁnishes,

colors, and radiants are available. For special applications,

such as outdoor labels, instruction and nameplates for

appliances, underwater labels, ampules and vials, and

luxury-labeling of cosmetics and toiletries, there is a

wide range of nonpaper materials. These include metallic

foils and plastic ﬁlms.

One of the most recent developments in self-adhesive

materials is a range of thermal imaging label facestocks,

which have become popular for in-store supermarket

labeling of meat and ﬁsh and fresh produce (fruit and

vegetables). These materials contain a surface coating of

chemicals that darken under the action of a heated print-

head (see Figure 3) (6), thereby providing clear price and

weight information and accurate scannable bar codes (7)

(see Codebar; Code marking and imprinting).

Almost all self-adhesive label materials are available in

sheet form, from paper merchants and suppliers, or, for

reel-fed conversion, from manufacturers and specialist

suppliers in roll form.

The main markets for self-adhesive labels in the United

States are basically segmented into three areas: industrial

labels (or primary and secondary labels used in retail,

wholesale, and industrial packaged goods), which make up

about 80% of the U.S. self-adhesive label market; EDP

labels (those used for marking/imprinting variable informa-

tion); and price-marking and imprinting (which addresses

label applications through handheld dispensers and the

whole range of imprint technology). Split into some of the

main market application areas, this includes promotional

labels, price labels, functional labels, ofﬁce/retail labels,

nameplates, stickers, EDP labels, and prime labels .

Heat-Sensitive Labels

There are two basic types of heat-sensitive or heat-seal

labels: instantaneous and delayed-action. In the former,

heat and pressure are applied to the label to ﬁx it directly

on to the product, whereas with delayed action, applied

heat turns the product into a pressure-sensitive item. No

direct heat is applied to the goods; and this clearly is vital

to some products, such as food.

Typical market applications for delayed-action heat-

sensitive label papers include pharmaceutical, price/

weigh, some glass-bottle, and rigid or semirigid plastic

container labeling. Instantaneous materials are used for

applications such as (a) end seals on biscuit or toilet tissue

packs and (b) labels on ‘‘pleat wrapped’’ articles (e.g.,

disinfectant pads, pies, cakes), as well as for some banding

applications (8).

In-Mold Labels

In-mold labels are printed on paper or synthetic papers

made of polyethylene (PE) or biaxially oriented plolypro-

pylene (BoPP). They are introduced into the container-

producing mold before the molten resin is added. The heat

Figure 2. Self-adhesive labels consist of three

main layers: the label-face material itself, the

pressure-sensitive adhesive coating, and a re-

lease coating on a backing material to prevent

the adhesive from sticking to the face material

in the reel or sheets.

Figure 3. The chemical components in the thermal label paper

coating combine and darken when activated by heat.

634 LABELS AND LABELING MACHINERY

of the resin fuses the heat seal layer of the label to the

container, combining label and container to create a sleek,

seamless no-label look, as if the graphics were screened

directly on the container.

Because they can be produced on high-qualit y roto-

gravure or rotary offset presses, in-mold labels can

deliver beautifully sharp and nuanced graphics, far sur-

passing the quality of direct-screened or dry-offset

printing.

In-mold labels are typically used where a no-label look

is desired, for ﬂexible containers, or for applications in

which pressure-sensitive, glue-applied, or heat-seal labels

could be challenged by scufﬁng, freezing conditions,

grease, or solvents such as cleansers.

Shrink Sleeves

Shrink sleeves offer full 360-degree graphic space and

conform to the shape of nearly any rigid container when

heated. Because of their ability to conform to most con-

tours, shrink sleeves have gained tremendous popularity

on curved bottles and jars, as well as squeezable contain-

ers, all of which have traditionally been very difﬁcult to

decorate with conventional labels.

Shrink sleeves are printed, then rolled and sealed into

a tube shape. On the packaging line, the tube is placed

over the container and sealed in a heat tunnel, where

controlled blasts of hot air or steam shrink the ﬁlm onto

the container.

Designing graphics for shrink sleeve labels requires

software that compensates for the shape of the container.

Graphics look distorted as the sleeve material comes off

the press; when shrunk onto the container, it appears as

the designer planned.

Managing shrinkage is therefore of the utmost impor-

tance in designing and applying a shrink sleeve. The

process starts with material selection. High-quality ﬁlm

is critical to obtaining good results, as is selecting ﬁlm of a

material and gauge (thickness) that offers the appropriate

amount of shrinkage.

Poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) tends to yield the most easily

controlled shrinkage, the lowest shrink temperature, and

the most cost-effective alternative.

Poly(ethylene terephthalate) gly (PETG) is signiﬁ-

cantly more expensive, but can shrink far more, which

makes it appropriate for dramatic contours such as very

narrow-waisted or long-necked bottles. Where recycling is

important, PETG may be the favored choice, because PVC

on a PET container can be difﬁcult to separate from PET

during the container recycling process.

Oriented polystyrene (OPS) is less expensive than

PETG, but its instability can make it difﬁcult to handle,

print, and seal. However, it may be desired for its ﬂex-

ibility and low vertical shrink, which makes it well-suited

for squeezable containers.

Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) offers a compostable alterna-

tive, but man y converters have been wary during PLA

shrink sleeves’ introductory years because shrink char-

acteristics have not been as well understood as with more

familiar ﬁlms.

Shrink Sleeve Application

Shrink sleeves are applied by setting the tube-shaped

sleeve around the container and conveying the sleeve

and container through a heat tunnel, where they are

exposed to hot air or steam. The heat in the tunnel must

be set to a temperature at which the shrink sleeve ﬁlm

shrinks at a controlled rate in order to ensure that the

sleeve covers the container evenly and conforms to each

contour. Shrink sleeve applicators and heat tunnels often

have to be ﬁne-tuned—by adjusting temperature as well

as directing the nozzles or heating elements inside the

tunnel—to ensure that proper application and shrinkage

are occurring.

In most cases, the contours of the container and the

tight ﬁt of the ﬁlm are enough to ensure that a shrink

sleeve will remain in place throughout the package’s

useful life. However, for packages whose shape could allow

the sleeve to slip off—for instance, a yogurt cup or a simple

jar—a few dots of heat-activated adhesive applied on the

inside of the sleeve during the printing process can keep

the sleeve in place.

In-Mold Label Application

In-mold labels are applied during the creation of the

package itself, fusing the label to the container. In the

United States, blow molding is the most popular produc-

tion process, while injection molding is the dominant

technology in Europe.

During the container manufacturing process, a label is

held in place in the mold by vacuum or electrostatic forces.

Hot resin is injected or blown into the mold, forming the

container while fusing the label into its wall. In blow-

molding applications, the label contains a heat-activated

adhesive. In the injection-molding process, no adhesive is

necessary. In both cases, the label is integrated into the

wall of the container.

The high cost of molds has been a barrier to the wider

adoption of in-mold labeling. However, many companies

appreciate the opportunity to decorate packages during

the manufacturing process, eliminating the time, labor,

and equipment needed for a separate labeling step. The

look and performance of in-mold labels also has tremen-

dous appeal.

LABEL PRINTING

The main printing processes in use for label production

are ﬂexography, letterpress, gravure, lithography, silksc-

reen, and, to a lesser extent, hot-foil stamping. This

applies for most types of labels whether printed ﬂat or

from a reel (see Decorating; Printing).

Although the principles of each process remain the

same for reel- or sheet-fed printing, the selection of the

particular process and the cost factors in that decision are

different for each particular section of the label industry.

or example,

printing of sheet labels is done primarily by

lithography or gravure; but letterpress and ﬂexography

are major processes for the production of reel-fed self-

adhesive labels.

LABELS AND LABELING MACHINERY 635

The fastest-growing technique of label printing is the

narrow-web roll label conversion of self-adhesive materi-

als using presses that may be printing and converting

webs as narrow as 2 in. (50 mm), ranging up to 250, 300, or

400 mm wide (9). These presses not only print substrates

up to 6, 8, 10, or more colors in one press pass but also

undertake ﬂat-bed or rotary die cutting of the labels and

possibly UV varnishing, over-laminating with clear syn-

thetic ﬁlms, removing matrix waste, slitting, fan-folding,

sprocket-hole punching, and so on, and, ﬁnally, rewinding

of the printed reel of labels ready for automatic application

(10). A schematic diagram of a typical roll label printing

and converting press is shown in Figure 4.

PRINTING METHODS

Flexography

The main advantage of ﬂexography, the most widely used

process for reel-fed label printing, is its output speed,

which is due to full rotary printing and machine die

cutting. In addition, spirit-based inks evaporate quickly,

allowing printing on a wide variety of substrates other

than paper (see Inks).

Owing to speed of output, ﬂexo labels generally cost

less than labels printed by the other major processes.

Because presses can be purchased at a relatively low

capital cost, many of the smaller label printers use the

process. The presses do, however, vary enormously in

complexity. Equally important, the quality of the labels

produced depends greatly on the skill of the operator.

Letterpress

Although letterpress has declined in usage in the general

printing industry, it is a major process in the label

industry and gaining in popularity. It is the second most

popular process in the roll label industry after ﬂexogra-

phy, and in some countries it is almost the only process

used.

The process has adapted well to the needs of the label

industry, giving good-quality reproduction and relatively

low-cost origination. Presses are available in ﬂat (platen)

form, semirotary, or full-rotary letterpress (9).

The main advantage of letterpress is superior quality

and ability to hold accurate print deﬁnition throughout

the run. Solid- and ﬁne-line printing are no problem,

because the inks are fully pigmented with excellent light-

fastness and color matching. Printing plates can be metal

or photopolymer.

The development of UV-cured inks has meant that

previously difﬁcult or even impossible to print substances

such as vinyls and polyesters can now be ‘‘cured’’ using

polymer inks and UV lamps.

Gravure

The gravure process gives excellent quality and print

deﬁnition. With a very fast throughput it is best suited

to long runs where the high cost of originating printing

cylinders can be recovered.

Silkscreen

The unique method of applying ink through a screen gives

screen process an ink coverage that cannot be completely

matched by any other printing method (9). It will also

print on virtually any substrate.

The presses are made as complete screen printing

units, or a series of screen printing heads can be added

to suitable letterpress machines, giving a combination of

beneﬁts.

Hot-Foil Stamping

Hot-foil stamping is generally done in one of two ways: by

complete hot-foil presses in their own right and by hot-foil

units set in-line onto an existing label press. The process

gives striking effects when combined with other processes

and is very much a designer’s medium (9).

LABELING

Once a label has been produced, it must be applied in the

correct position to a particular surface or product. The

Figure 4. Rotary letterpress roll label

press.

636 LABELS AND LABELING MACHINERY

label must be applied securely enough for it to remain

ﬁxed in that position throughout the useful life of the

product or container. It must stand up to whatever condi-

tions it is likely to be exposed to and should also maintain

a good appearance. In the case of returnable bottles,

however, the label must be able to be removed easily

during the washing operation.

The labeling operation must also be able to meet produc-

tion requirements. On packaging lines, the labeling ma-

chine must be able to keep pace with the line, often at high

speeds, having minimum stoppages and downtime (11).

Some labels are applied to products or containers with

a simple handheld gun or dispenser; others are applied by

a semiautomatic or fully automatic labeling machine

suited to the particular type of label: wet-glue, pressure-

sensitive, or heat-seal (heat-sensitive).

Wet-Glue Labeling Machinery

Wet-glue labeling is the least expensive labeling system in

terms of label costs. There are many machines on the

market from the simple semiautomatic to the high-speed

advanced models for speeds of up to 600 containers per

minute. Straight line or rotary, vacuum transfer of the

label or transfer by picker plate, and allover gumming or

strip gumming all have a place and are used in many

industries, particularly in food, wine, and spirits plants.

New types of adhesives make glue labeling important

for plastic containers as well as glass. Hot-melt adhesive

can be used. Large labels are probably cheaper to apply

with wet glue than with a heat-seal or pressure-sensitive

system, and wet-glue labels are probably superior for

applying multiple labels to a range of containers, such as

liquor bottles.

Labels may be applied by hand or by semiautomatic or

automatic machines (see Figure 5). There are many

different types of wet-glue labeling machines, but they

all have to perform the following functions:

1. Feed labels one at a time from a magazine.

2. Coat the labels with adhesive.

3. Feed the glued labels on to the articles to be labeled

in the correct position.

4. Ensure that the articles are held in the correct

position to be labeled.

5. Apply pressure to smooth the label on to the article

and press it into good contact.

6. Remove the article when it has been labeled.

If any of these operations are not performed at the right

times, with everything positioned accurately, the results

will be unlabeled articles, badly positioned, skewed, or

torn labels, and machine stoppages. Machines vary mainly

in the way they perform the various functions. For exam-

ple, some machines may use suction to remove labels from

the magazine, and others use the tack of the adhesive

itself (11).

The adhesives used for wet labeling fall into ﬁve main

classes: dextrin-based, casein-based, starch-based, syn-

thetic-resin dispersions, and hot melts.

Apart from the hot melts, all these adhesives are

waterborne. The speed at which they set depends, there-

fore, on the rate at which the water phase can be removed

by the absorbency of the label stock. If the water cannot

get away, they will not set.

Synthetic resin dispersions, of which the most widely

used are those based on poly(vinyl acetate) (PVA),

have the major advantage of faster setting, owing to

the ability of the polymer particles to draw together to

form a continuous ﬁlm for the loss of much less water

than is the case with those adhesives based on natural

materials. They are used particularly in the labeling of

plastic bottles or coated glass, where normal dextrin,

casein, and starch adhesives have difﬁculty in producing

a permanent bond. They are limited to nonreturnable

bottles, however, as the dried ﬁlm has considerable

resistance to water and cleaning ﬂuids. One advantage

is a low initial tack, which restricts their application to

certain types of machines with sufﬁcient brushing-on

capacity.

Hot melts are 100% solids, melting when heated and

setting almost instantaneously on cooling. They have high

initial tack, thus labels adhere to surfaces such as PVC

and polyethylene (PE) at high speeds, but are not suitable

for wet bottles. To select the correct adhesive for a

particular application, every factor of the operation must

be taken into account: the operating conditions, type, and

condition of the articles to be labeled, nature of the label

papers, transport and storage conditions, and any parti-

cular usage requirements (12).

Figure 5. Stages in the labeling of cans.

Adhesive is ﬁrst applied to the container. As

the container rotates over the label magazine

it picks up its own label, which is then rolled

around it. A second adhesive application to

the trailing edge of the labels, followed by

pressure, completes the labeling operation.

LABELS AND LABELING MACHINERY 637