What is wrap-around labelling?
Wrap-around labelling is the application of a flexible label around some or all of a cylindrical product or container’s circumference. The label may adhere directly to the surface or be sealed at a seam. The process commonly uses pre-printed labels applied on a production line.
Key takeaways:
- The target pack is generally cylindrical, and the label can cover the full circumference or only part of it.
- Wrap-around labels are flexible and pre-printed, usually applied on a production line after filling and capping.
- The finished label may adhere directly to the container or be sealed at the seam, forming a loosely held wrap.
- Assessment should consider product and pack format, label position, throughput, line layout, existing equipment, controls, printing, application and vision inspection.
The term describes the label arrangement on the finished cylindrical pack rather than the particular equipment used to apply it.
What pack geometry and label coverage does wrap-around labelling involve?
The relevant pack geometry is cylindrical with a curved circumference. Coverage may extend around the full pack or only part of it.
Full coverage takes the label around the entire circumference of the pack. Partial coverage follows the cylindrical surface without extending around the whole circumference. Complete encirclement should therefore not be assumed from the term alone.
State the required coverage during pack and label assessment rather than inferring it from the label name.
How are wrap-around labels applied?
Wrap-around labels are flexible and pre-printed, meaning the label is prepared before application. A pre-printed label does not make printing an automatic part of the application process.
Where a production line needs variable-data printing and automated application in one process, print-and-apply systems cover that combined equipment category.
Wrap-around labels may be secured in two ways. Direct adhesion to the container is one option. Alternatively, the completed wrap can be sealed along its seam.
Those choices describe how the label is held on the pack, not a universal adhesive or sealing specification. The securing choice is separate from the extent of circumferential coverage.
How does wrap-around labelling differ from a label applicator?
Wrap-around labelling identifies the label format and application arrangement on a cylindrical container. It covers placement around a partial or complete circumference.
A label applicator is equipment used to apply a pressure-sensitive label prepared in advance to a product or pack. The application method depends on the equipment and line requirements, so the wrap-around format alone does not identify a particular applicator model or arrangement.
Printing with industrial label printers also remains separate from application unless the selected system combines both functions. Print-and-apply is the combined category for that function. A pre-printed wrap-around label should therefore not automatically be described as printed on the line.
What should be assessed for a wrap-around labelling system?
For an assessment, begin with the cylindrical pack and intended label arrangement. Then consider the line layout and existing systems that shape the requirements for the selected equipment.
Product, pack and label requirements
Product and pack format set the physical context, particularly the cylindrical surface receiving the label. Label position specifies where the label should sit, including the intended coverage around the pack’s circumference.
The assessment should also distinguish the required functions. Consider printing and application separately, alongside any vision inspection requirement. A label prepared in advance does not imply that either printing or vision inspection forms part of the system.
Line, site and existing-system requirements
Throughput targets, line layout and integration requirements are practical inputs for the proposed arrangement.
Existing equipment, controls and any connected product handling should be considered when assessing how a wrap-around labelling system needs to fit the production line.
ALS Identify wrap-around labelling systems
For cylindrical packs, ALS Identify supplies and integrates labelling systems based on pack, label, line and integration requirements. View ALS Identify labelling systems to discuss the required wrap-around arrangement.
