Durable labels | 105TAKINGLABELSTO THELIMITIndustrial labels deliver vital information while withstanding some of the harshest environments. Luis Rodriguez reportslabel, ultimately, is meant to “Take a freezer, for example, where the label is deliver information effciently. And when it’s attached to a product A going to be sitting in cold temperatures for a that’s being jostled around on the shelves long time. You need special materials, specifc by curious consumers or thrown into a shipping container and delivered across adhesions, that will hold through frost”the globe, the label needs to be durable to remain legible.But what about a label going through an label solutions at Avery Dennison. ‘Whether requirements, the specifcations from a enclave burning at hundreds of degrees? the label is going on a car or appliance or product standpoint, that starts to give Or a label attached to the outside of a there’s some specifc regulation, they just us the clarity we need to work out what snowcat plowing through a snowstorm in expect it to work. They don’t want problems we’re trying to do from a development the harshest Alaskan winter? Or even a or to have to spend time fguring it out.’ standpoint with the R&D team.’label attached to the outside of a spacecraft The answer, for both the supplier and the A durable label and adhesive might re-entering the atmosphere after foating converter, is extensive research, rigorous experience a wide array of conditions. For through the cold depths of space? testing, and a trust in its partners that example, a label attached to an HVAC How do material suppliers ensure their the standards and regulations in countries unit will experience the wear and tear of product is going to work in its intended across the globe have been identifed and the sun, rain, heat, cold and other intense way, and, following that notion, how can considered when delivering the product. weather conditions for years on end. a label converter ensure that the label it A drum label may encounter a highly provides its customers is going to stay Research and development corrosive material or be submerged in salt adhered to the product and continue to be ‘We’ve been doing this for a long time,’ water for a prolonged period.legible throughout its lifecycle? says Purdef. ‘We have a dedicated team At Avery Dennison’s Innovation Center ‘At the end of the day, it’s a labeled supporting the durables and industrial in Mentor, Ohio, research is conducted product, and most companies think, “We label business, and they’ve been doing in a wide range of conditions, including just need to make sure it sticks,” says Paul this for many years. Somewhere around accelerated aging in freezers reaching minus Purdef, director of marketing – durable fve decades. Once we understand the 40 degrees Fahrenheit and ovens reaching Jul - Sep 2022