As someone who has been involved in linerless labeling since the 1980s, I’ve been somewhat frustrated by the slow rate of adoption of this technology, which can make the entire labeling infrastructure, from converting to recycling, more efficient and more sustainable.
One of the more obvious applications where linerless labels can make an impact is in logistics labeling, where a huge number of plain white labels are printed with barcodes and other information before being adhered to packages and pallets.
The German-based multinational logistics company DHL has teamed up with Herma and cab to introduce linerless labeling into a plant in Nohra, Thuringia, Germany.
DHL is using Herma’s InNo-Liner label technology, and the labels are printed and applied on cab print-and-apply labeling systems.
This video from Herma explains how the concept works:
The InNo-Liner concept reminds me of the idea introduced by NuLabel in the US some years ago, where the adhesive is dry until activated by a water spray. This avoids the need to coat the label’s front face with silicon to prevent the labels from sticking together.
DHL claims there is a 60% reduction in waste by eliminating the traditional silicon-coated liner and by cutting labels to the required length right on the label applicator. There are also savings from not having to manage the used liner material, which is usually not recyclable.
It’s great to see an important logistics company running linerless labels – it will be interesting to see if other locations of DHL do the same thing.
