Label Makeover Successful label sales require evolution. Charles St. Clair, president of distributorship Information Documents Inc. (IDI), Little Rock, Ark., provides a clothing distributor with millions of labels a year. Much of his success results from his distributorship's ability to adapt easily to clients' changing needs. Earning one client's business first required revamping a problematic label. Seven years ago, IDI questioned how a clothing distributor was handling its pick/pack/ship area. At the time, the clothing distributor was using a twin-web continuous form printed on NCR paper. The form, which was integrated with pressure-sensitive, multifunction labels, wasn't sold by IDI. The clothing distributor's application was keyed to preprinted bar codes on the labels. The bar codes started with a 7-digit number and ran consecutively. Because the client's bar code system was key, disrupting the numbering system would have shut down the facility until the problem was resolved. Disruptions usually were related to printing, as bar coded numbers would be skipped or printed incorrectly. A pick-and-pack operation, the clothing distributor also needed labels that could adhere to boxes in harsh conditions. Plus, the client needed to remove labels easily without having them curl. Enter IDI. The distributorship partnered with manufacturer Pinnacle Label, Lackawanna, N.Y., to supply the cl ient with better-quality labels and a solution to the preprinted bar code problem. Together, they designed 8 1/2 x 14-inch cut sheets of blank labels. According to St. Clair, each sheet contains 39 labels, including one picking/packing slip, a 4 x 6-inch shipping label, an LTL shipping label (for UPS, FedEx, etc.), 30 pricing labels and six labels for the clothing distributor's payroll department. To create the self-adhesive labels, Pinnacle Label first creates a release liner. According to the manufacturer's web site, a silicone coating is applied to backing paper. This helps the finished label release cleanly for easy application. The release liner then is cured, dried, moisturized and rolled. Next, face stock runs through Pinnacle Label's print station, and an adhesive plate applies adhesive in a predetermined pattern. This stock then is joined to the release liner, forming the pressure-sensitive label. Last, the label stock is die cut and sheet trimmed. Because of this manufacturing method, Pinnacle Label is able to control the coating process, solving the clothing distributor's curl and release problems. Pinnacle Label's ability to print labels on the back of face stock also solved the clothing distributor's preprinted bar code problem. Instead, the distributor was able to print bar codes directly on the labels in house, using special software and laser printers supplied by IDI. (IDI partnered with a software supplier and is an IBM Business Partner, enabling the company to supply printers to clients. The distributorship also can provide maintenance service for the printers.) The clothing distributor now has less down time—the bar codes have better scan rates and are more scratch-resistant than its previous, preprinted bar codes. Overall, the client benefits from a more user-friendly system, cost savings and a label that's more durable and easier to read. IDI has maintained a healthy relationship with this client in part because of its ability to adapt. The client's label has undergone major changes four times. For example, although the clothing distributor has printed the face of the labels, initially IDI provided the distributor with labels with preprinted backs that included security features. The distributorship plans to continue evolving the label when necessary, St. Clair says.