Cut and stack pressure sensitive adhesive substrates and process

A method of printing imaged single ply labels from a transparent or opaque film of polyester, polypropylene, polyethylene, cellophane or vinyl substrate having a top surface and a bottom surface by printing said labels in a variable imaging printer and then cutting and stacking the labels into stacks of single labels imaged in a sequence that is predetermined and synchronized with a planogram, production schedule or distribution plan, said method consisting of:

• (a) providing a polymeric single ply film of a transparent or opaque film of polyester, polypropylene, polyethylene, cellophane or vinyl having a coating on said bottom surface of said single ply film comprising pressure sensitive adhesive, optionally coated on said top surface of said adhesive coated substrate with a functional top coating to receive a variable image;
• (b) providing a layflat release liner, said layflat release liner comprising a coated paper liner coated on one side with a release coating where said layflat liner before being coated with a release coating, has on a side of said release liner opposite said release coating or on both sides of said release liner, a coating to seal said layflat liner to make said layflat liner more resistant to moisture under changing environmental conditions and laminating said layflat liner to the pressure sensitive adhesive on the bottom surface of the transparent or opaque film substrate in (a) to form a laminated transparent or opaque film substrate and thereafter converting said laminated transparent or opaque film substrate into a roll or fan-fold laminated transparent or opaque film substrate, by placing scores, die cuts and or optional pin holes for tractor feed, and
• (c) printing said roll or fan-fold laminated transparent or opaque film substrate obtained in step (b) through a variable image printer to form a variably imaged roll or fanfold laminated transparent or opaque film substrate, and
• (d) cutting said variably imaged roll or fan-fold laminated transparent or opaque film substrate obtained in step (c) in a cutter/stacker machine by feeding said cutting and stacking machine with said variable imaged roll or fanfold as a continuous sheet wherein said cutting and stacking machine slits the variable imaged roll or fanfold in the machine direction and cuts the imaged roll transversely with a knife mechanism while maintaining the synchronized sequence and delivering discrete individual labels into stacks of discrete individually cut labels where the coefficient of friction between the printable surface of the film label substrate and the back side of the liner is between 0.35-0.55 for optimum sheet stacking and separation and the image side of the laminated transparent or opaque film substrate has a volume resistivity of 109-1014 ohms-cm.

A method of printing imaged single ply film labels for labeling the shelves in a retail store which comprises sequentially carrying out the following steps:

• (a) developing a planogram of an arrangement of all or part of displayed items in a particular retail store;
• (b) printing indicia on a top side of pressure sensitive adhesive coated labels on a continuous roll or fanfold of a single-ply substrate consisting of a polyester or a vinyl film having on a bottom side, a layer consisting of a pressure sensitive adhesive coating covered with a layflat release liner said layflat release liner comprising a coated paper liner coated on one side with a release coating where said layflat liner before being coated with a release coating, has on a side of said release liner opposite said release coating or on both sides of said release liner, a coating to seal said layflat liner to make said layflat liner more resistant to moisture under changing environmental conditions to form indicia printed pressure sensitive adhesive labels on a continuous roll or fanfold, said single ply substrate being coated on said top side with a functional top coating to receive a variable image prior to printing;
• and said indicia printed labels being arranged in a sequence that follows all or part of a planogram of an arrangement of displayed items in a particular retail store;
• and
• (c) cutting and stacking said indicia printed pressure sensitive adhesive labels on said continuous roll or fanfold on a cutting and stacking machine by feeding said cutting and stacking machine with said continuous roll or fanfold of said indicia printed pressure sensitive adhesive labels wherein said cutting and stacking machine slits said roll or fanfold of a printed single ply substrate in the machine direction and cuts the imaged roll transversely with a knife mechanism before individually stacking cut and stacked pressure sensitive adhesive labels so that said cut and stacked pressure sensitive adhesive labels will be arranged in a sequence that follows all or a part of a planogram of an arrangement of all or part of displayed items in said particular retail store and the volume resistivity of the image side of the single ply substrate is 109-1014 ohms-cm where said release coating is a silicone release coating.

A method of printing imaged single ply film labels said method comprising sequentially carrying out the following steps:

• (a) printing a continuous sheet comprising multiple laminated labels in a printer to affix indicia to said continuous sheet of laminated labels to produce a variable imaged continuous sheet of laminated labels, wherein said printed indicia is affixed to each laminated label pursuant a sequence that is a synchronized sequence with a planogram, production schedule or distribution plan, and wherein each laminated label consists of a single ply of polymer film and a layflat liner laminated to a single ply opaque film label substrate with a pressure-sensitive adhesive coating in between said layflat liner and said single ply film label substrate, said layflat release liner comprising a coated paper liner coated on one side with a release coating where said layflat liner before being coated with a release coating, has on a side of said release liner opposite said release coating or on both sides of said release liner, a coating to seal said layflat liner to make said layflat liner more resistant to moisture under changing environmental conditions;
• and
• (b) cutting said variable imaged continuous sheet of laminated labels in a cutting and stacking machine wherein said cutting and stacking machine slits the variable continuous sheet in the machine direction and cuts the variable imaged continuous sheet of laminated labels transversely with a knife mechanism while maintaining the synchronized sequence with a planogram, production schedule or distribution plan and delivering discrete individual labels into stacks of discrete individually cut labels where the coefficient of friction between the printable surface of the single ply film label substrate and the back side of the liner is between 0.35-0.55 where the surface resistivity of the image side of the laminated labels is 109-1013 ohms/square.

A method of printing single ply film labels for labeling the shelves in a retail store which comprises sequentially carrying out the following steps:

• (a) developing a planogram of an arrangement of all or part of displayed items in a particular retail store;
• (b) printing indicia on a top side of pressure sensitive adhesive coated labels on a continuous roll or fanfold of a single-ply film consisting of a polyester or a vinyl film having on a bottom side, a layer consisting of a pressure sensitive adhesive coating covered with a layflat release liner comprising a coated paper liner coated on one side with a release coating where said layflat liner before being coated with a release coating, has on a side of said release liner opposite said release coating or on both sides of said release liner, a coating to seal said layflat liner to make said layflat liner more resistant to moisture under changing environmental conditions to form indicia printed pressure sensitive adhesive labels on a continuous roll or fanfold, said indicia printed labels being arranged in a sequence that follows all or part of a planogram of an arrangement of displayed items in a particular retail store;
• and
• (c) cutting and stacking said indicia printed pressure sensitive adhesive labels on said continuous roll or fanfold on a cutting and stacking machine by feeding said cutting and stacking machine with said continuous roll or fanfold of said indicia printed pressure sensitive adhesive labels wherein said cutting and stacking machine slits said roll or fanfold of a printed single ply substrate in the machine direction and cuts the imaged roll transversely with a knife mechanism before individually stacking cut and stacked pressure sensitive adhesive labels so that said cut and stacked pressure sensitive adhesive labels will be arranged in a sequence that follows all or a part of a planogram of an arrangement of all or part of displayed items in said particular retail store and the image side of the single ply substrate has a surface resistivity is 109-1013 ohms/square.