What is Laser Cutting on the Fly - Self-Adhesive Labels

Self-adhesive labels, also known as self-adhesive labels, have been used on various commodities in our lives. Self-adhesive labels can use different types of paper and film as the surface material, which is easy to print and can be bonded to the target workpiece without brushing glue or other medium materials during use. In particular, with the rise of high-speed labeling automation equipment, self-adhesive labels can perfectly match it, saving labeling time, and its application prospects are bright.

The surface material of self-adhesive labels can be divided into paper substrates and film substrates

Common paper substrates include: offset paper, coated paper, glass cardboard, laser paper, kraft paper, fluorescent paper, gold-plated paper, aluminum foil, fragile (anti-counterfeiting) paper, silver-plated paper, masking paper, cloth label (Tyvek/nylon) paper, pearl paper, sandwich coated paper, variable information paper.

Common film substrates include: Film substrates are divided into: transparent polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyester (PET), polypropylene (PP), polycarbonate (PC), synthetic paper, PS, PE, shape memory anti-counterfeiting materials (SMP), etc.

The die-cutting of self-adhesive labels is usually carried out by using a mechanical circular die cutter.

It is obvious that although the mechanical die cutting method has the advantages of high position accuracy and high speed, it also has the following disadvantages:

1) Large mold loss

2) High mold cost

3) For complex graphics, such as graphics with multiple inflection points and broken lines, it is difficult to make the die, and the wear is uneven, which reduces the service life;

4) It is not suitable for the needs of small batches and multiple varieties;

5) The material application range is narrow, and different cutting edges and hardness need to be adjusted according to the characteristics of different surface materials;

The die cutting of self-adhesive labels is generally done after the printing of the labels is completed. The printing of labels is currently moving towards a digital printing method that adapts to small batches and multiple varieties. Laser die-cutting of labels is recognized and accepted to adapt to this trend.

The advantages of using laser to die-cut self-adhesive labels are as follows:

1) No mold is required, no mold loss, and the cutting trajectory is defined by computer graphics;

2) It is suitable for any graphics and can be dynamically adjusted as needed;

3) The material is applicable to a wide range, and only the laser parameters need to be adjusted according to the material characteristics;

4) The processing speed is comparable to traditional die-cutting processing.