Finishing Services
Everything that happens after the ink is down: protection, shape, texture and delivery format. These choices decide whether a label survives your filling line and the shelf.
Surface Protection: Varnish or Lamination
Both protect the printed surface. They differ in cost, thickness and how much abuse they survive.
| Option | Protection | Appearance | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gloss varnish | Basic — scuffing in transit | Shine, slight enhancement of colour | Lowest |
| Printable matt varnish | Basic, but accepts overprinting | Matt | Low |
| Gloss lamination | Strong — moisture, abrasion, mild chemicals | High shine | Higher |
| Matt lamination | Strong, same as gloss | Soft matt, premium feel | Higher |
Printable matt varnish deserves a note. If your line adds batch codes, dates or weights with a thermal printer, a laminated surface will reject the ink. Printable matt varnish protects the label and still takes overprinting. Getting this wrong is one of the more common and more expensive specification mistakes.
Die-Cutting
Labels are cut to shape and the surrounding waste stripped away. We run 12 standalone die-cutting units, which means die-cutting is rarely the production bottleneck and short-notice reruns can be slotted in.
| Method | Best for | Tooling |
|---|---|---|
| Flatbed die-cutting | Complex shapes, thicker materials, short to medium runs | Flat die — lower cost |
| Rotary die-cutting | Long runs at speed, cleaner edge, less waste | Rotary die — higher cost, faster |
| Digital die-cutting | Samples, short runs, prototyping shapes | None |
Standard shapes — rectangle, rounded rectangle, circle, oval — usually run on existing dies at no tooling cost. A custom shape needs its own die, charged once and reused on every repeat order. Digital die-cutting means you can test a new shape before paying for tooling.
Corner radius matters. Sharp corners lift more easily in handling and on curved containers. A radius of at least 2 mm is worth designing in unless the shape demands otherwise.
Embossing and Tactile Finishes
Embossing raises part of the label above the surface using a die and counter-die under pressure. Debossing presses it in. Both add physical texture a photograph cannot convey — which is exactly why they work on shelf: the customer feels the difference when they pick the product up.
- Blind embossing — raised detail with no ink or foil, relying on light and shadow
- Combination embossing — raised area registered to printed colour or foil beneath
- Screen printing — a thick ink film that produces raised texture without a die
Embossing needs an embossing die, charged once. It works best on paper stocks with some thickness; thin films may not hold the shape.
Slitting and Delivery Format
How the labels arrive determines whether your line can use them. Get these four specifications right in the enquiry and you avoid a shipment that cannot be loaded onto your applicator.
| Labels per roll | Set by your applicator capacity and how often you want to change rolls |
| Core diameter | Must match your machine — commonly 38 mm, 76 mm or 152 mm |
| Unwind direction | Which way the label faces as it comes off the roll. Eight standard positions exist; the wrong one is unusable |
| Outer roll diameter | Limited by the applicator’s maximum |
Sheets are also available, cut to your specified size. Sheets suit hand application and desktop printing; rolls suit automatic labelling.
Our slitting lines run up to 450 mm, and a master roll slitter handles incoming stock up to 1,700 mm.
If you are unsure of your unwind direction or core size, tell us the applicator make and model — we can usually work it out from that.
Inspection and Packing
Every finished roll passes through one of seven high-speed inspection machines. Defects are removed rather than sampled. Rolls are then sealed against moisture and boxed to survive weeks in a container.
How quality control works → · Finishing equipment list → · Materials and finishes →
Tell Us How the Labels Will Be Applied
Hand or machine, and whether anything gets overprinted on your line. We will specify the finish and roll format that fits.