Analysis of the development status of in-mold labels
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In Mould Label (IML) has not been around for a long time, but it has had a major impact on the label packaging industry in a new form that is different from traditional labels. In fact, in-mold labels have been popular in some countries in Europe and America for many years, and have now entered a period of stable development. In the United States, for example, in-mold labels have grown faster than the label industry's average growth rate. In China, in-mold labels have increasingly attracted the attention of industry insiders and end consumers. It has been reported that the growth rate of in-mold labels in China is as high as 70%, which will become a strong opponent of self-adhesive labels. So, why is the in-mold label sacred? What is the current status of in-mold label development in China? In the overwhelming coverage, the in-mold label is really as fast as a visitor? In this article, the author will come together for you.
What is an in-mold label?
The in-mold label refers to the surface of the synthetic paper, and the back is coated with a special hot-melt adhesive material. When the bottle is blow molded or injection molded, the label paper is bonded to the bottle body and processed into a bottle body. Special labels together. Specifically, it is to first pre-print the in-mold label (
Including the front and back labels, they are placed in a single sheet in the two label boxes of the in-mold labeling machine. As the bottle mold is opened, the label is sucked up by the robot, the printed side of the label is facing inward, and the solid adhesive is placed face outward on the molds on both sides. The vacuum hole on the mold attracts the label to the mold. Inside. When the raw material of the bottle is heated and drooped in a hose shape, the labelled mold is quickly closed, and the air is blown into the hose so as to be in close contact with the mold wall. At this time, the temperature in the entire mold is high, and the label-shaped adhesive adhering to the original shape of the bottle begins to melt and is combined with the plastic bottle body. Thus, when the mold is opened again, the plastic bottle body is formed, and the label is integrated with the bottle body. In this way, the printed trademark is firmly embedded in the surface of the bottle, and the label and the bottle are on the same surface, and there is no label on the touch by hand.
Compared with the traditional label form, the advantage of the in-mold label is that it has a beautiful appearance, good anti-counterfeiting effect, recyclability and environmental protection. Compared with self-adhesive labels, in-mold labels have better chemical resistance, scratch resistance and corrosion resistance, and can better display printing effects and spot colors than screen printing labels. Therefore, in-mold labels have been rapidly developed in foreign countries in recent years, and they have quickly gained widespread attention in China, and they have begun to take off slowly. However, in-mold labels also have certain limitations. Although the popularization price of mass production is lower than that of ordinary labels, the introduction of equipment is expensive due to the special process required. Moreover, the in-mold label is integrated with the container, and the anti-counterfeiting also limits the replacement of the label content for the manufacturer, and the flexibility is insufficient. In addition, the in-mold label has certain requirements on the size and curvature of the container. The standards for the production of in-mold labels are not uniform, and the domestic technology is not perfect. However, these limitations do not constitute a hindrance to the development of in-mold labels. From the development situation at home and abroad, in-mold labels are mainly used in the following industries: oil industry, daily chemical products industry, food industry, pharmaceutical industry.
In-mold labeling process status
In China, in-mold labels are commonly used in plastic film substrates. They are printed in the traditional way. The surface is coated with a layer of UV or EB curing varnish to protect the surface. The hot-melt adhesive material coated on the back of the label is generally solid. Chemical adhesive. At present, in-mold label printing has a certain level of application in China, but many manufacturers have different technologies, and the proportion of high-quality suppliers is still very small. The in-mold label material is suitable for a variety of printing processes and different inks, including: screen printing, UV letterpress, flexographic, gravure and lithographic offset printing. Different printing manufacturers can choose different printing processes according to their own equipment conditions. In foreign countries, in-mold labels generally use flexographic printing, and flexo printing has great advantages in spot color printing and in-line processing.
In-mold label materials are divided into two major categories of paper and plastic film. The first to enter the Chinese market is the Japanese YUPO in-mold label. Now there are American Avery, French Polyart (Prya) blow molding in-mold labels have also entered the Chinese market, in addition to some domestic companies. The advantage of the label printed on paper is that there is no static electricity interference, which reduces the loss of the label when blowing, but it will be deformed when it is exposed to water or moisture, which will reduce the value of use. In addition, it is not homogeneous material with plastic bottles, and is recycled and reused. There are many inconveniences. At present, plastic film-based in-mold label materials are generally used at home and abroad. In the production of in-mold labels, in order to improve the ink receptivity of the printing surface material, it is generally required to apply a surface coating or to increase the surface energy by a corona discharge method. Prior to ink selection, the adhesion, scratch resistance, and chemical resistance of the ink on the in-mold label material should be tested according to the requirements of the final application.
There are two main methods for labeling in-mold labels: vacuum adsorption and electrostatic adsorption. Vacuum adsorption is currently the most common and widely used method. By applying this method, plastic packaging products enterprises can add vacuum micropores to the original molds themselves, without special equipment, and the cost is low and the use effect is good. The electrostatic adsorption method relies on the instantaneous static electricity generated by the robot to adsorb the label, but the vacuum adsorption method is technically difficult and has poor stability; the label is prone to surface unevenness.
In-mold label market status
At present, the domestic in-mold label market has passed the wait-and-see period and began to slowly start. Due to the particularity of the Chinese market, the entire label field is still in a state of “two heavy, light in the middle”. Low-grade labels occupy a large number of consumer markets, while high-end, high-profit labels only occupy a small number of consumer markets. In the middle and high-end markets where in-mold labels can best play an advantage, in terms of domestic consumption awareness, it is still in the development stage. Due to the pressure of in-mold label price and equipment technology, some small and medium-sized enterprises with small reserves and few orders are afraid to introduce in-mold labeling equipment, which has a certain resistance to the popularization and application of in-mold labels in the domestic market. . According to relevant surveys, China's current consumption is only about 5 million square meters, less than 10% of the entire self-adhesive market share, far less than 30% of advanced countries.
For in-mold label manufacturers, if the order is large enough, the cost of the in-mold label is close to the sticker. In-mold label products are also divided into three grades: medium, low and high, targeting different users. The end users of in-mold labels are mainly concentrated in the oil, food, daily chemical and pharmaceutical industries. For example, Beijing Longmen and Tiankuan Food Co., Ltd. are the first companies in the condiment industry to adopt in-mold labels; Xi'an Kaimi's washing series supplies all use in-mold labeling technology. The environmental protection of the in-mold label is enough for many manufacturers, because the in-mold label is integrated with the bottle body, the chemical composition is the same, and the recycling efficiency is high. In addition, the anti-counterfeiting property of the in-mold label is also the reason for many customers' choice. .
In-mold labels have passed the wait-and-see period in China, and the supply chain for in-mold label production has begun to take shape. The supply chain from the material supplier to the manufacturer to the end user is not very mature, but it has already seen optimistic prospects. Although the variety of materials on the market is not yet perfect, the increase in the variety has been exciting. In terms of producers, we began to notice that more and more manufacturers began to invest or pay attention to in-mold labels, such as Beijing Honghe Weiye. In the end users, many well-known foreign companies have already selected in-mold labels. As these brands enter China in large quantities, in order to keep pace with the international market, foreign products will naturally choose in-mold labels in China. In addition, with domestic With the increasing awareness of branding, many manufacturers are paying more attention to anti-counterfeiting and environmental protection, so in-mold labels have become the first choice. At present, China has gradually formed a user market dominated by motor oil in the north and a daily market in the south.
In-mold label development prospects
From the global label market, the development of in-mold labels is inevitable.
According to the survey, from the growth of label usage, global label usage will increase by 6.2% by 2006, compared with 20.4 billion square meters in 2001, it will grow to 33 billion square meters; the label market under development will be The two-digit ratio has increased, and the developed market has grown at a rate of 3% to 5%; China has the highest growth rate of 15% per year. Therefore, the rapid development of the entire label industry will certainly lead to the take-off of in-mold labels.
The development of in-mold labels in foreign countries has given the domestic market a great deal of confidence. The advantages of in-mold labels have enabled more companies to pay attention and even choose in-mold labels. The maturity of the in-mold label supply chain will also drive its popularity. Therefore, with the popularization of in-mold label recognition and the promotion and improvement of in-mold label technology by domestic enterprises, in-mold label is a potential new labeling technology and will be accepted by customers.