We show you how to successfully master labeling with rating plates and type plates. Printing CE, UL, WEEE & Co. accurately and in a legally compliant manner.
From approval to labeling
Ever shorter times-to-market, high quality standards, and cost controls require you to have a stable and flexible label management system. Your product labeling with type plates / rating plates must comply with legal requirements and, at the same time, should be capable of implementation with minimal effort. But it isn’t just that national and international authorities require approval in accordance with the applicable laws; your customers also expect it. CE, UL, WEEE or CSA are just a few of the logos you can use to show compliance with country, safety and sustainability requirements.
Label management and tracking as a key factor
Maximizing productivity, increasing efficiency, tracking, and process improvements are known to be the key to success. With our central label management system we control the use of logos, e.g. for CE marking, as well as the determination of the templates (label templates) to be used. This gives you a high degree of control and allows you to manage your processes centrally, which means you can react to new circumstances at any time. The release of labels goes hand in hand with your product life cycles. Historical logs ensure seamless traceability across all printed type plates as well as packaging labels. This ensures that you can provide information on the actually printed data, such as the UL marking, at any time during checks.
Requirements for type plates in the electronics industry
From the point of view of an electronics manufacturer, rating plates as a primary printed element as well as those on outer packaging must meet many requirements. In addition to the legal requirements for unique and individual identification, they also take into account production-relevant and logistical requirements. The main requirements of our electronics customers regarding labeling, logos and barcode standards are:
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The top 6 labeling challenges for type plates
Based on the experiences of our customers as well as the requirements for labeling systems, we have put together the 6 most important challenges for labeling in the electronics industry for you.
Coding with 1/2D barcodes
The use of barcodes is indispensable for the electronics industry You must be able to use different barcode types (Code 128, Datamatrix, QR code), depending on the requirements of the customer and products. In doing so, you create the barcodes on the rating plates in a standardized form and use 2D codes, as there is usually very little space available.
Logo control
In a very modular product structure with different approvals for the products depending on the target market or application, you need control of the appropriate logos. Logos such as CE, UL, WEEE or other pictograms can be dynamically assigned to the labels. Traceability of the printed logos also plays an important role.
Printing graphics
You often print not only the CE or UL marking, but also product safety and application information, scales and performance data as graphics on the rating plates. In doing so, you use dynamic placement of graphics on the template during label design.
Label versions and releases
Electronics companies place a lot of emphasis on efficient product release processes. It is therefore essential that you version labels and establish a controlled release workflow. Flexible release workflows with electronic signatures are just as important as corresponding audit trails to ensure traceability. This ensures that the correct versions of your type plates match the respective product revision.
Integration into production systems
Production control systems, MES systems or test systems are involved in the printing of type plates. Robust interfaces are required to ensure printing efficiently and locally. With our 2-stage printing method, we provide your labels to the production and packaging systems, for example, in a job-specific manner.
High-quality printing
To meet requirements such as UL marking, high print quality must be ensured. You therefore use different printing technologies, which allow you to ensure high-quality printing of the type plates based on the product surface and application.
A new era in labeling has begun
Arthur Schmucki
Head of the IPAX Team
With over 10 million type plates and pack labels, we cannot afford any mistakes! From Make-To-Stock (MTS) to configurable Make-To-Order (MTO) products, we have an enormous variety of labels. With the central label management system and an extensive set of rules, we have managed to generate dynamic labels from the PLM data. The entire product range can be traced back for years in the Content & Alert Manager! Our production has been able to simplify processes, and we have created uniform standards for our type plates and packaging labels. With the Web Print Client (WPC) from OPAL, we have implemented a printing process that uses scanner-based input to guide the user through the printing process in production. Just scan and print!
Exciting products for the electronics industry
Customers from the electronics sector
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Print type plates from SAP
