![]() Accelerated Ageing Artificially subjecting material to far more servere conditions than normally in order to predict behaviour during natural ageing Acrylic A general chemical term relating to a particular family of thermoplastic resins Acrylic adhesive Pressure Sensitive Adhesive based on high strength acrylic polymers; Can be coated as a solvent or emulsion system. Adhesion General characteristics of an adhesive when analysed in given conditions. Adhesive Bleed Adhesive surplus appearing on the edge of a roll, or label. Can have different causes. Adhesive ooze see "Adhesive Bleed" AFERA Association des Fabricants Europeens de Rubans Auto-adhesifs. European Association of self adhesive manufacturers Alignment Refers to the relative position of the printing and die-cutting units of a label press Anti graffiti Product that allows to remove quickly graffitis Application tape Tape designed to assist in the protection,application and transfer of unprinted die-cut pressure sensitive decals. Application temperature Starting from that recommended temperature to apply the product. ASTM American Society for Testing Materials Autoclave Pressurized steam heated vessel used for sterilization procedures Backing Protective material on the back of the PSA. It protects the adhesive side of a PSA while it is not applied Backlit Light box where light is diffused from the inside in order to enhance the color of the image. Bleeding see "Adhesive Bleed" BOPP Biaxially Oriented Polypropylene Carrier Material on which the adhesive is coated generally on both sides Cast coated Coated paper dried under pressure against a polished cylinder in order to produce a high gloss enamel like finish Cast film Plastic material manufactured by the casting process, as opposed to the extruding process Chemical Resistance Resistance of a pressure sensitive label to the deteriorating effect that could result from exposure to specified chemicals Clear Characteristic of an adhesive to be colourless and transparent CMYK Cyan Magenta Yellow Black : the process colours used when producing colour illustrations Coating weight Quantity of adhesive coated on the material Cohesion Ability of an adhesive to withstand forces applied in the same plane as the PSA Colour Management System Controlled conversion between the colour representations of various devices ( scanners, digital cameras, TV screens, printers), and corresponding media. See also ICC profiles Colour matching To duplicate the hue value and intensity of given colour sample by means of blending in specified colours. Computer cutting A plotter device is conneced to a computer in order to cut shapes in a face material Computer Imprintable Ability of a face material to be printed by computer driven printers Co-polymer Two or more mixed monomers which, when polymerized, yield a complex product having properties different from either single polymer alone Corona Treatment An electrical discharge is used to raise the critical surface tension of filmic materials in order to enhance printability Creep The lateral movement of a self-adhesive label after application due to low cohesive strength of the adhesive Curl The tendency of a material to curl in a specific direction. A condition generally aggravated by conditions of humidity Deep freeze adhesive Adhesive that will induce a bond to cold surfaces in cold environment Delamination The partial or complete separation of the layers making the laminate Die cutting Action of cutting through a required number of layers a required shape Differential release A backing material having a release coating on both sides with one being stronger than the other Dimensional stability Characteristic of a material indicating its ability to remain at given dimensions in spite of varying prevailling conditions such as heat or humidity Direct thermal Surface coated with a substance which turns black in the immediate areas where heat is applied Dispenser Device that feeds self adhesive labels ready for application. Dots per inch (DPI) Measurement which refers to resolution, sharpness or clarity of a printer, monitor or other output device Double sided adhesive Self adhesive coated on both sides in order to bind two elements EAN European Article Numbering system. The internation barcode system for retail food packages EDP Electronic Data Processing Emulsion adhesive Adhesive that is to be dispersed into water. Fading A gradual decrease in colour brilliance caused by exposure to UV rays Flammability Facility to disseminate a flame Flexibility Property of face material measured in specified conditions to determine how readily they will conform to curved surfaces Glassine backing paper Protective liner made of glassine paper HDPE High Density Polyethylene High speed release Force needed to separate the face material from its liner in high speed conditions Hot melt adhesive Adhesive coated thanks to its faculty to obtain the required viscosity by heating it up Humidity Degree of moisture. Compares the quantity of water in the air to the quantity of water it should take to saturate (relative) ICC profile International Color Consortium is an industry consortium which has defined an open standard for a Color Matching Module (CMM) at the OS level Initial tack see 'quick tack' Kraft backing paper Protective liner made of kraft paper Lamination A clear plastic film is bonded with adhesive to a printed web to both enhance the appearance and add protection. Liner Element in a PSA that protects the adhesive before it is applied Linearization Ensures print tones evenly throughout the scale to obtain consistent colour result and good tone. Low speed release Force needed to separate the face material from its liner in low speed conditions Material memory The phenomena whereby a material retains a memory of its original dimension and returns to it after tension has disappeared. Matrix stripping Taking of the skeleton of face material around the die cut labels Monomer Constituent of oligomers and polymers Oozing see "Adhesive Bleed" Pantone Standard colour guides enbling the designer to describe colours for reproduction Pattern coated When specified areas are required to be coated or areas are to be left clear of adhesive. PE Polyethylene Peel Force needed to separate a PSA after it has been applied on a substrate Peel 24 H on glass Force needed to separate a PSA after it has been applied on glass during 24H Peelable adhesive see "removable adhesive" PET Polyester Permanent adhesive Adhesive intended to stay permanently applied Polymer Molecule chain made up of smaller units (monomers and oligomers) Printability Collective term used to describe the properties required of all components needed in the printing process PSA Pressure Sensitive Adhesive. Generally composed of a Face material - an adhesive and a siliconed protective liner Quick tack Gives a measurement of the initial grab of a PSA. Also called "loop tack" as a strip of the material is placed in a loop and enters in contact with a specified substrate RAL Colour coding system mainly used in paints. Raster Set of horizontal lines composed of individual pixels Rasterization Conversion of image data into pattern of dots usually performed by an imagesetter. Registration Maintaining in position of the various elements of a printed design Release force Force required to separate the face material of a PSA from its protective liner Release liner see "backing" Removable adhesive Adhesive intended to be removed after a certain time RIP Raster Image Processor. Part of an output device that rasterizes information so that it can be reproduced on paper or film Rubber adhesive Adhesive made of synthetic rubber resin Service temperature Temperature range within it is recommended to use the PSA. Shear See 'cohesion' Shrinkage Reduction in size of a self adhesive face material Silicone coating Unique polymer system which can be a very effective release coating Slitter Equipment to cut a reel and rewind this divided reel in separate reels Smudge resistance The resistance of a printed ink to smearing Solvent based adhesive Adhesive that is dispersed into organic solvent Squeegee Flat plastic tool used to apply large format self adhesive film Stringing Under close examination strings of adhesive can be observed Substrate Generic name used to describe the material on which the Self Adhesive is applied on, and sometimes by confusion the Self Adhesive itself Tack The feeling of stickiness obtained when the surface of an adhesive is touched or when a label is applied to surface and quickly pulled away Tamper evident labels Labels that after application will fragment or split when removal is attempted Tear strength Property of a material that is measured by the force required to tear it under specific conditions Tensile strength Force required to break a piece of material by pulling it under controlled conditions Tension Mechanical control of material in roll form between unwind and rewind stations. The condition caused by a force to extend, stretch or pull apart Thermal transfer Printing process consisting to drive printheads that melt spots of dry thermoplastic ink from a donor ribbon and transfer them to a receiver to produce an image. Top coat A surface coating to a material designed to improve ink key or opacity or prevent migration or other properties Varnish A thin clear coating made up from a mixture of natural and synthetic resins and drying oils. It may be applied on the printed material in order to increase protection or appearance Vinyl A synthetic material also known as PVC (PolyVinyl Chloride) Viscosity Resistance to flow. It is measured by recording the time it takes to pass through a regulating hole. |