If you’re producing products, be it food and drink, pharmaceuticals, or anything in between, there’s a decent chance that they need labels. These contain all the necessary information about the contents, as well as some branding that helps sell your company.
But applying these labels by hand would be a monumental task, which is why you should invest in a labelling machine that work alongside dosing machines. But choosing the right label printers isn’t always easy, which is why we’re to help.
What are Dosing Machines?
Dosing machines are common sights in factories, as they are designed to dispense specific amounts of liquids or fine particles. This enables you to control dosages and create your products in the best way possible.
These machines can also be part of the labelling process. You can attach label printers to your dosing machines, so that as soon as the container is filled, the label is attached and the product is ready to move on.
Benefits of Pairing Labelling Machines with Dosing Machines
The most obvious advantage of a system like this is speed. As we said, labelling can be a time-consuming process if it isn’t automated, creating a bottleneck on your production line which directly affects your output.
But if you’ve installed another conveyor that transports products from dosing to a static label applicator, that’s extra time that could be saved by combining the machines together. This is a fairly simple change, there are a number of label printers that are designed to work with dosing machines, so you’re sure to find one that suits the make and model you’re using. But if you are struggling, there are combined labelling and dosing machines that have all the functionality you’re looking for.
Another benefit of this is the space it saves. Even in a large factory or processing plant, floor space can be at a premium. By installing a machine that does two jobs at once, you’re saving double the space, and can scale your growing business better than ever.
How do Dosing Labelling Machines work?
For a dosing machine to work effectively, it needs to be timed correctly, only dispensing fluid or granules when the container is in place. This can be done with sensors, but often a timer is enough.
The labelling machine works in a similar way. When the container is full, but has not yet moved, a label will be applied. If you’re using high-quality labels, the strong adhesive will bond immediately, so there is minimal risk of the labels being damaged in transit.
Some labels, especially those on drinks bottles, are designed to be easy to remove. Thankfully modern labelling machines can still attach such labels, so your customers will still be able to recycle your bottles after they’re empty. This may be seen as an added bonus but might be a requirement for your business if you want to stay compliant.
The best labelling machines for the job are any that give you maximum control over the process. If you can adjust rotation times and offsets, your labels will be applied perfectly every time, meaning less QC needed.
Servicing and Maintenance for Labelling Machines
When your labelling machines are working well, your business will run smoothly, churning out products and bringing in profit. However, you know that a fault with any of your machines can bring the entire process to a halt, and the same is true for your label printers.
Even the most reliable machines, from leading brands such as Zebra, can develop faults if they aren’t looked after properly. Thankfully, with a regular servicing agreement from Label Line, this will very rarely be the thing that slows your business down.
Our engineers will visit your application on a regular basis, always at a time and date that suits you and causes minimal interruption. They’ll take apart your labelling machine, examining each part and making note of how worn the peripherals are. Parts like print heads and consumables like ink rolls have a natural lifespan and should be replaced before they begin to affect the quality of your labels. Our team will know exactly what needs replacing and when and help you to order replacement parts.
Before they reassemble your machines, they’ll give them a thorough clean to maximise longevity and ensure they won’t let you down. But no matter how careful you are, faults can still happen suddenly. If this is the case, we’re still the team to call.
Our maintenance engineers are always on hand to help if your labelling machine develops a fault. With a warehouse packed with spare parts, we’ll almost certainly have what you need, and can make the repair quicker than our rivals.
If you want to ensure that your labelling machines won’t let you down, or you just want to find out more about us and what we do, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. We look forward to hearing from you.