Technical Details | Shrink Sleeve Material and Application Process

SHRINK SLEEVE MATERIALS

PVC – Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) is a high density film that shrinks at low temperature ranges. The most commonly used shrink sleeve material, PVC is the easiest film to control in the shrink process. It has excellent shrinkage rates, clarity, print quality, and a wide range of both shrink temperatures and shrink ratios. PVC also has high impact strength for extra weather resistance. This scuff resistant shrink sleeve material has the lowest cost, but is also less environmentally friendly than other shrink sleeve materials currently in use.

PETG – Polyproplyene Terephthalate Glycol (PETG) is a high density film with a high strength ratio and excellent clarity. While PETG is the most expensive and most heat resistant shrink sleeve material, they are the most scuff resistant, have a higher gloss, and also have a higher shrink percentage. Additionally, PETG is pasteurisable and can be recycled, an often-sought feature in today’s market.

OPP – Oriented Polypropylene (OPP) has lower shrink capabilities than other shrink sleeve materials, but it has excellent clarity and it’s moisture resistant. OPP works over a wide range of temperatures and offers superior printability and graphic appeal. In addition to use as a shrink sleeve label, OPP film can be laminated to other materials and used as a flexible packaging material.

PLA – Polylactide, or Polylactic acid (a misnomer since PLA is not an acid), (PLA) is a biodegradable thermoplastic made from renewable resources. The fact that PLA is biodegradable has increased its popularity in recent years and in addition to its use as printed shrink sleeve labels, PLA has also been used as a loose-fill flexible packaging material.

EPS Foam – Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) is a recycle-able thermal plastic material. Though a light material, EPS is relatively strong mechanically for its lightness and has a high resistance to heat, making it an excellent insulator. EPS offers exceptional form fit product protection.

SHRINK SLEEVE APPLICATION PROCESS

Manual – In this process, custom printed shrink sleeve labels are manually applied to containers before shrinking. This method is ideal for short runs and sampling prototype programs.

Automatic – Through an automatic application process, conveyors and other assorted machines are used to slip the shrink film material over the containers and then process them through the heat-shrink area for the form-fit that shrink sleeves create.

SLEEVE TYPE

Clear – A translucent sleeve which can be printed on but will otherwise show through to the container, and if a clear container, the contents therein. This type of shrink sleeve is ideal if you would like to showcase your product.

White – The shrink sleeve applied to the container is a white opaque film. Still printable, this type of sleeve will give the impression that the area of the container where applied is white.

Colored – This opaque sleeve will conceal the contents of your container. With a custom imprint this type of shrink material is great for all application types, from tamper evident bands to full bottle sleeves.

PEFORATIONS FOR SHRINK SLEEVES

None – There will be no perforations on your shrink sleeve, it will be a solid label for the type of label selected.

Vertical – There will be vertical perforations that will make it easy to tear the shrink sleeve apart. This perforation is commonly found on safety-seals, and can be used in conjunction with horizontal perforations to create an entirely removable tamper-evident band.

Horizontal – This type of perforation allows part of the shrink sleeve, such as a tamper-evident band, to be easily removed without damaging the rest of the label so your product identity stays in tact. This also gives customers piece of mind when purchasing a product so they know it has not been altered.

PLAIN OR PRINTED SHRINK SLEEVES

Plain – Your shrink sleeve labels will simply act as a barrier to protect your container and will not have anything printed on it.

Standard Printed – The shrink sleeve will be printed with a standardized print format that will reduce the design and setup of your custom shrink sleeve labels.

Custom Printed – In this format, you can print any design on the shrink sleeves however you want. Though this is more difficult to set up, it will be your custom design that makes your products stand out from all the others.

NUMBER OF COLORS PRINTED

The number of colors you select to print with will also determine the cost of printing. The fewer colors selected, the less expensive it will be to print. The number of colors may be based on whether you select custom or standard printed shrink sleeves.

PRINT STYLE

Line Printing – Line printing is a standard printing format, where information is printed one line at a time, rather than one letter or one item at a time. This is a common form of printing, often seen in desktop printers.

Process Printing – Also known as four color process printing, this type of printing uses screens to print percentages of four different colors to create most color combinations. Through the use of cyan, magenta, yellow and key (black), CMYK allows you to print a vast array of colors in high quality that displays exceptionally well on shrink sleeve labels.