In packaging, food and beverage and other industrial sectors, misapplied labels can slow down production or result in a poor impression of product quality. Labels are essential to identify products and convey important technical or safety messages. The equipment that dispenses them must function with accuracy and repeatability, often at high speeds. For example, applying labels to consumer-facing products typically involves high volumes and aggressive throughput targets. However, wear and friction can hamper a machine’s ability to quickly and accurately remove the label from its lining, which is typically a coated paper or plastic.

One label machine manufacturer contacted Magnaplate to help protect a steel plate that separates the label from its backing paper. The label and its backing paper take a path that runs over and behind the peel-off plate. At this point, the plate detaches the label and applies it to the package or product surface. However, the continuous flow of backing paper and its tension causes the plate to experience severe wear and friction, reducing its service life.

After the manufacturer tried several coatings, we applied our Plasmadize® to the plate. This enhanced thermal spray composite creates a stable, non-porous and moisture-proof surface that resists wear and impacts while also providing exceptional lubricity. In addition, Plasmadize features excellent chemical resistance — an important characteristic for labeling machines that undergo frequent cleanings to remove adhesives. Additional features and characteristics include:

• A wide operating temperature range.
• Hardness beyond the Rc scale.
• Thicknesses from 0.02 to 0.010 inch.

Among the coatings that the manufacturer assessed, Plasmadize exhibited the lowest friction. It also successfully prolonged the lifetime of the peel-off plate. When metal components require optimal wear protection or friction reduction, Plasmadize thermal spray composites can help lower their COF and create wear-resistant surfaces that ensure high reliability and performance for demanding tasks like high-speed label separation.

For more information about Plasmadize, visit our product page.