Unwind

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Label Unwind Chart

What is unwind?

For labels finished on a roll, unwind is the direction the label faces as well as the orientation of the label in relation to how they unroll.  This direction is represented as a number during the ordering and production process.

To avoid applying your labels upside down or sideways reference the list below:

Unwind numbers 1 through 4 unroll on the outside of the roll
Unwind numbers 5 through 8 unroll on the inside of the roll
1 and 5- the top of the label unwinds first from the roll
2 and 6- the bottom of the label unwinds first from the roll
3 and 7- the right edge of the label unwinds first from the roll
4 and 8- the left edge of the label unwinds first from the roll

To determine the unwind direction that you require, check the unwind direction of your applicator.

For more information about printed labels or print capabilities on your product, contact us at the Lauterbach Group.

Roll Unwind Direction
Roll Unwind Direction

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Common Shrink Material

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Shrink Wrapped Can

Probrew Can

Shrink sleeving is a heat activated conforming label product.  It is widely used to attain 360 degree full container coverage without direct container printing.  This allows better cycling of packaging inventory at a lower cost.  There are multiple materials available to create the sleeves that best suit a product.

PVC- Polyvinyl Chloride

This is the least expensive option and most used (an estimated 70%) of shrink materials.  It’s best characteristic is that it has great control during the shrinking process, shrinking up to 64% at a low temperature between 122-140° F.  It offers decent clarity and scuff resistance but is the least environmentally friendly option. This material is used a lot in tamper-evident bands.

PETG HS-LV – Polypropylene Terephthalate Glycol

PETG combines high density and strength with high shrinking capability of up to 78% at temperatures of 158-176° F.  This material creates the highest quality clarity, gloss, scuff resistance, and heat resistance of all of the shrink materials.  With growing popularity, this material has become commonly used in the beverage industry.  It also maintains excellent recyclability.

OPS- Oriented Polystyrene

OPS Film generally is used in squeezable packaging.  Shrinking up to 75%, it has the lowest vertical shrink of the shrink films allowing for a very consistent and soft finish.  It has the highest yield savings vs. PETG and PVC.

PLA- Polylactide

PLA is a renewable film made from corn and plant-based resources, allowing it to be biodegradable.  This prevents recyclability but maintains environmental benefits.  It shrinks up to 72% and is FDA approved for direct food contact.  PLA is very rigid and brittle and can be the most difficult of the options to handle.

Similar to our pressure sensitive labels, we can also apply specialty varnishes on to shrink film in order to obtain a tactile or unique touch and feel on your product (see our raised varnish and spot varnish posts).

For more information about shrink or print capabilities on your product, contact us at the Lauterbach Group.

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Shrink Sleeve and Labels vs. Printed Cans

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Canned Wine, Beer and Specialty Drink:
Shrink Sleeves and Pressure Sensitive Labels vs. Printed Cans

Customers that are interested in 360° top-to-bottom graphics on cans for wine, beer or specialty drinks have three labeling options:

Printed Cans
Shrink Sleeves or
Labels

Printed cans have a high minimum order requirement -100,000 cans at a time, longer lead times – 12 weeks, and can be more expensive for small to mid-size producers who are not buying truckload quantities of a single version. Given the setup charges for art, version charges and split shipment charges for printed cans, it is not always the best choice for brands that want more flexibility with their design, and faster print-to-market solutions, and better graphic and decoration quality.

Shrink sleeves and pressure sensitive labels allow brands to trial different designs in the marketplace easily, add fun and eye catching designs to draw product attention on the shelf, and do so with very short lead-times to react to market needs. They also lower overall cost.

LOWER OVERALL COSTS / SPEED MATTERS

Shrink sleeve and pressure sensitive labels provide the ability to print only what is needed and when it is needed. They also provide the highest quality graphics, shelf value-add and product differentiation.

Our OmniMark Art Management System provides great flexibility to change or upgrade designs literally real-time providing speed to market opportunities. Why wait 4 to 6 weeks to get a design, when you could have it in days?

With shrink sleeve and pressure sensitive labels, clients do not have to invest in vast warehouse space dedicated to printed cans which consume expensive warehouse costs, get damaged through warehousing and material movement and become obsolete as designs change.

COLOR AND DECORATION QUALITY AND VALUE

Shrink sleeve and pressure sensitive labels provide exceptional print quality. Vignettes, background screens, vivid colors and many decoration opportunities are available, from spot varnishes, soft touch varnishes, tactile print and varnish, as well as metallics.  We invest in state-of-art digital and flexo printing equipment to push the limits of print quality and creativity.

Ink that is printed directly on cans appears muted and hazy due to the gray metallic of the can showing through the ink. The print quality simply does not provide the necessary value and shelf appeal. Shrink sleeves and pressure sensitive labels ensure your graphics pop and help your product stand out on the shelf.

For more information or someone simply to help you navigate your can labeling needs, please give us a call at 262-820-8123 or email craftbrew@lauterbachgroup.com.

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Can Label Sizes

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Are you new to the beverage industry or just need a quick lesson on can and label sizes?

There are standard sizes for 12 oz and 16 oz aluminum cans.  The canning industry refers to them in sizes that aren’t quite measured numbers.  In American Canning’s line of Brite Cans for example, they offer a few sizes like a 211-12 oz and 211-16 oz.  Of course the 12 / 16 oz refers to the volume and 211 refers to the diameter, but 211 isn’t in measured in millimeters; it actually is more of a reference than a measurement.  The first digit is the number of inches and the next two numbers are the number of 1/16 fractions of an inch.  So a 211 can has a diameter of 2 11/16 inches or 2.6875 inches.

Using my prior knowledge of geometry formulas that I learned in 7th grade (shout out to Mr. Kolosinski in Burlington WI with his πD story), circumference is equal to pi multiplied by diameter, so the total circumference of a “211” can is 2.6875 x 3.1416 or 8.443 inches.

In terms of label size, technically you could use labels that have a total width of anything up to 8.443 in, which is just a bit more than 8 7/16 inches.  Overlap could be a concern and it just looks nicer to have a bit of a margin in there,  so we tend to go with a 8.125 or 8 1/8 inch label.

The label height that you want is easier to measure on the can itself.  For the 12 oz cans, our standard is a height of 3.625 inches (3 5/8 in).  For the 16 oz cans, our standard is a height of 5 inches.  In fact, the bulk of all of the labels that we produce for craft brewers and beverage customers are using the dimensions of 8.125 x 3.625″ for the 12 oz cans and the dimensions of 8.125 x 5″ for the 16 oz cans.

At the Lauterbach Group, we keep many sizes of dies (the tools that cut after a label is printed) in stock that can be used for bottle and can labels, but if you need a custom shaped or sized die, after customer approval, it only increases your overall turnaround time about a week.

Find out more about our labels by contacting us at craftbrew@lauterbachgroup.com or calling our craft brew label number directly at 262-820-8123.

**Update** Be aware that in this post-COVID day and age where it is getting harder and harder to find your standard aluminum cans, we have found (especially for the 16 oz pint aluminum cans) that they are not all the same!  When the circumference is smaller, that means that the can will be taller in order to fit in the same volume, which then could also affect how the label looks on the can.  Think more margin on the top and bottom of the can and a slightly smaller gap where the label meets.  Take a look at this mocked up demonstration of a label for our awesome customer Raised Grain.  The can on the left is 207-16 can vs. a standard 211-16 can on the right.  The 8.125″ x 5″ label on the right is much more fitting.  The can on the right used to be the standard size for a 16 oz can and now… well you get what you can find.

Cheers!

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