When it comes to creating labels, you need to look at it as a serious project. More than putting a name to the product, a label holds vital information that can either make or break the marketing efforts of the company. This is where the importance of following certain standards becomes important. Quality control checks for label production should be prioritized in order to prevent mistakes.
Quality Control Advancements
With the advancement of technology, quality control checks are made easier in the label printing industry. There are many ways to check the labels to ensure that they are printed perfectly. Depending on the complexity of production, you can choose at least three approaches to ensure quality results.
Photoelectric Sensors
In this method, infrared light is used to distinguish contrasting colors to check the presence of the label against the background. This will help minimize having label mistakes like missing prints.
Ultraviolet Detection
Instead of a light, ultraviolet detection utilizes electromagnetic radiation to detect any trace of ultraviolet responsive ink on the printed label. This is useful when you have a label that cannot be analyzed by a photoelectric sensor.
Visual Camera Inspection
Probably the most high-tech QC method, a camera will be used to inspect the label according to quality standards. It is also an efficient method since it can check plenty of label details in a short time. it can determine correct positioning, evaluate texts, check barcode accuracy, etc.
Manual Inspection
Even with all these advancements in quality control, you should not eliminate the importance of spot checking. DIY label printing is encouraged for small businesses and digital label printers like the VP700, is a great printer for a small-scale label printing. Despite the many benefits of technology, a manual inspection will still be best for some label projects.
Choosing Your Quality Control Strategy
In any label printing project, it is important that you are able to identify the QC needs of production. It is critical to identify the biggest concerns, if there are challenges, and what should be prioritized. These things are important because they are involved in the production.
QC methods must be in accordance to the type of labels being produced. Cosmetic labels, for example, must be checked closely since the consumers are very particular with the ingredients. The packaging type should also be considered because the color and size may not fit the QC method you will choose. Then there’s the question about your budget. Will the QC method cost more than the production costs? It will be irrelevant to use a visual camera inspection if you only have a handful of labels to check. A manual inspection will be cost-efficient instead.
With quality control checks for labels, identifying errors is very crucial. Priority should be placed on having a reliable quality control method for labels. The label itself should be free from imperfections because it is what the customer sees first. By having an impeccable quality control, then you can definitely make a great impression with your label.
