Did you know that Labels have a memory?

It's True!  This is especially true for our removable adhesive labels .  These are manufactured with a special adhesive that is designed to easily release from whatever surface they're placed on.  But they will hold just like standard adhesive will.... you just have to "jog their memory"!

Here's a good example...

We had a customer that was using item 312153 on wooden cabinets.  Of course, they couldn't use permanent adhesive because eventually, someone would be buying those cabinets.  And nobody wants that nasty adhesive residue in their brand new kitchen, right?  Unfortunately, they found that the labels were peeling off the cabinets before they even got them out the door!

How did we solve the problem?

We started by first asking what their process was for installing the labels.  Well that sounds like a pretty silly question (which she was not afraid to inform us of that), but it's actually very important.  So, with some convincing, she said, 'we print them with our laser printer and then peel them left to right and stick them to the cabinet.'

My next question was about the environment.  Specifically, under what kind of conditions were the labels actually being installed.  She said ' Well, we use them out in the cabinet factory. It's loud, it's dusty and there's always dirt and sawdust lying around.  It's cold in the winter and hot in the summer, and I try to avoid going out there if I don't have to.  It's a typical factory. '

I chuckled at her illustrative picture, but did pick up a few key points.  1. It's always dusty and there's sawdust that is probably kicked up all the time.  And 2. if it's cold in winter & hot in summer, that means it's probably not temperature controlled. So they're not being used in the most ideal conditions that they could be. But that doesn't mean we couldn't help.

I told her this was a classic case of Picker's Curl.

She was a little offended at first.  That is until I explained exactly what this was.  Picker's Curl can happen when conditions are not as great as they could be. Depending on the environment you're working in and how they're removed from the backing, the label can "curl" as they're "picked" from the backing.  This can sometimes trigger the fiber memory in the label to think (well, okay, it doesn't really think, but that's the best word I know for it) that it should be curled just as it was coming off the page.

So, I advised her to start by pulling the labels from top to bottom instead of left to right.  When you peel them from top to bottom, there is a lesser chance of curl and then the fiber memory in the adhesive "remembers" that it should stay flat.  Peeling from top to bottom helps keep the memory in tact, and the labels will perform as they would if they were in a sterilized, temperature controlled environment.

So how did it all turn out?

Well, thinking we had lost our marbles, she gave it a shot just to see if we were trying to pass one over on her.  And guess what - It worked!  She called us back and said that they actually did a quick training class, right in the middle of the factory floor, to let everyone know the best way to peel the labels for what they were doing - and they've been "stickin' to it" ever since!  Their cabinets are now going out properly labeled, and their shipping line is running smooth.  All because the labels remember what to do!

Don't believe me?

Maybe you've never experienced this and think that I really HAVE lost my marbles.  Well, that just means that you've been doing something right all along. And to coin a phrase "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".  But you're more than welcome to try it for yourself!  We always offer free samples of our label products .  So if you want to test it out, just request a free sample and we'll send you a couple of sheets so you "Test the Memory" of your favorite label size.

Be sure to let us know how it turns out for you!