Digital Labels - Design
Digital labels design has few restrictions in terms of the size and shape. You can also include almost any number of ink colors in your design, but you should avoid including high color graphics and photos.
Our digital labels are printed using thermal transfer of color from a ribbon to the label material. This approach is great for applying individual colors, but will not produce photo-quality, CMYK printing results. If you need photo quality label printing, please look at our full color label printing product.
Digital Labels - Shapes and Sizes
Digital labels can be cut to almost any size or shape that you can design. This provides you with a great deal of design flexibility. Digital labels are cut on-the-fly which means that you will not have any die cutting or tooling costs associated with your design.
What size and shape should your digital labels be? Determine label size and shape using these considerations:
- What label size and shape best fits your application and design?
- What is the smallest area that your labels will be applied to? Make sure you design your digital labels to fit the size and shape of that area.
Once you know the answers to the above questions, plan your design. Remember; too, with digital labels printing your design can include internal cut outs and holes with no additional tooling or costs.
There are some size parameters for digital labels printing. These are listed below:
My1Stop® Digital Labels Size Parameters
- The Smallest Dimension Should Not Exceed 11"
- The Longest Dimension Is Unlimited
Based on the above size parameters, you could design and order a label 11 inches wide and 30 feet long. The cost for this size of digital labels could be prohibitive. As a guideline, the smaller the label size, the more economical digital labels printing becomes.
About label "kitting". Digital labels can be cut from the same sheet - allowing you to order all of the labels for your application on a single sheet - at a single label price. This can be a time and cost saving approach to labeling smaller quantities of labels. Label kits can be an excellent solution for bottle labels, product labels and even warning and hazard labels. For more information on label kitting, please contact customer care.
Digital Labels Printing - Materials
With more than 50 choices available from My1Stop, your digital labels materials options are many, ranging from simple white vinyl to static cling or exotic materials such as Lexan and tamper evident polyesters.
Digital label printing also includes options for various adhesives and laminates.
- My1Stop® Standard Digital Label Materials
- Available Materials for Digital Labels Printing (non-photo use)
Here are some guidelines to help in determining which material will work best for your digital labels printing project:
Digital Labels Material Guidelines
- For Extreme Heat or Cold Applications, Consider Vinyl or Poly Material with Laminate & Permanent Adhesive
- For Long Term UV or Direct Sunshine Exposure, Consider Vinyl Material with Laminate
- For Labels That Will Be Re-Positioned or Re-Applied, Consider Vinyl or Poly Material with Removable or Repositioned Adhesive Consider Static Cling as an Alternative
- For Labels That Will Be Applied To Plastics, Consider Thin 2 mil Material with Permanent Adhesive
- For Labels That Need To Be Clear or Transparent, Consider Clear Static Cling or Film Material
Laminates might not always be required for digital label printing. We use a "sub-surface" printing method which protects your artwork as part of the thermal ink transfer process. Since the printing embeds the ink, the ink will hold up to various conditions of everyday use that often would require a laminate.
If you need help with any material questions, please contact our customer service team. They can provide insight and possibly very helpful samples of the best materials for your digital labels project.
When you're ready to start your digital label project, get instant online pricing.
Digital Labels Printing - Special Features & Options
My1Stop® offers the options below for digital labels printing:
My1Stop® Digital Labels Printing Options
- Barcodes
- Human Readable Numbers (with or without barcode)
- Variable Text and Images
- Transparent Inks
- Pattern Cut Adhesives
- Internal Cut Outs
Barcodes and numbering for digital labels printing. We offer most types of barcode printing including 3 of 9 barcode printing, code 128 barcode printing and code 2 of 5 barcode printing. We also offer human readable numbering to match the optically scan able barcode. This type of numbering is useful for quick reference when a scanner is not in use.
Our barcodes and numbers are digitally printed with the highest available black-to-white printing ratios for optimal barcode scanability.
Variable text and images - Digital labels printing provides the opportunity to change text, images or numbering from label to label. With this capability, your digital labels could include different logos on some or on every label, as an example
Transparent inks - This feature is often used in control panel printing and graphic overlay printing. The special transparent ink is applied to a clear area of the label material allowing light to pass through the ink and the label. This a useful feature for colorizing indicator lights under a label or graphic overlay.
Pattern cut adhesives - If your label needs to be free of adhesive in a given area, choose the pattern adhesive option. Digital labels with pattern adhesives are often applied to control panels or incorporated into graphic overlay printing to prevent adhesive from covering a sensitive area of a device.
Internal cut outs - Your digital labels can include cut outs within the body of the label. The smallest cut is approximately 1/64" and can be as large as needed. This is a useful feature if your labels require a unique design look or if they need to fit over another part or piece.
Need help with getting the right digital labels design and materials together? Contact our graphic design services team for help.
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