Your Problems / FAQ

We have a great deal of expertise in solving general Labelling and Label Printing problems for users with difficult application requirements.

If you have a Labelling or Label Printing problem that that you cannot find the answer too, why not try asking Lancer Labels, we will do our utmost to give you a suitable solution on this FAQ page.

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Just contact us and see for yourself.

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Q1 - I want to find out more about bar coding, where do I start?

A1 - This is a very common question, we recommend you visit these links and read up on the subject. If you still have questions. please do not hesitate to contact us directly. Bar coding Terminology Bar coding information

 

Q2 - My Zebra 105 printer is starting print halfway across the label, can you urgently get a service engineer to look at it.

A2. - It sounds as if the printer is not detecting the edge of the label, perform a media calibration and try again. If it still happens check that there is no debris/dust in the paper sensor path On this printer it will be a black plastic device on the top and bottom of the paper path next to the chassis. The customer checked and found a piece of label obscuring part of the sensor, they saved a very expensive service call.

NB - Yes! Lancer Labels could have sent a service engineer, however we are the first line of defence for our customers, it's part of our service to help the customer get back into operation by the best means.

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Q3. - These labels you provided for my TEC372 printer will not work, the print will not align on the label.

A3 - There are variations in the material properties of both the paper label and the backing paper that can result in the printer not sensing the gap between labels. Some printers have a media calibration routine to cope with this. With the TEC372 you can choose between 3 sensors settings.
Reflective - For use with labels with a black sensor mark on the backing paper
Transmissive1 - For use with most standard paper and backings.
Transmissive2 - For use with Pre printed labels or when media will not work with sensor 1.
Change your sensor selection to Transmissive 2, this can be found in Printer Setup.

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Q4. - We have to cure our products in an oven at 143 Deg C for 20 minutes, we want to label them prior to going into the curing procedure. We have tried normal paper labels but they sometimes fall off, can you help.

A4 - A normal paper label and adhesive is not meant for this type of environment. There are a number of high temperature synthetic label materials that may suit this environment Before going to this expense you could try using a quality laser label, they tend to have a better resistance to heat than normal paper labels as they are subjected to heat during the laser printing process. Let me know how you get on.

 

Q5. - We currently use a Polyester label with sequential numbers for warranty purposes, on equipment's that we sell. We suspect that some customers are moving the labels between equipment's and claim warranty on items that are out of warranty date. Do you have any idea what we can do to prevent this.

A5. - This is quite a common occurrence. There are several types of "Tamper Evident" labels that can be used in this application.
Type 1 - The label is destroyed when removal is attempted, available in Vinyl, Paper and Polyolefin.
Type 2 - This label leaves a diamond or chequerboard pattern or the word "void" when removal is attempted, available in Metallised Polyester.
Either of these labels should be suitable for your application, they can be preprinted with sequential numbers and replaced when service or warranty takes place.

 

Q6. - We manufacture flat computer cables that have ridges on the surface, our current vinyl labels are peeling off after several days, do you have any solutions to this?.

A6. - Normal permanent adhesive requires a flat surface for good adhesion. The cables you use are used in most PCs and the ridges do not allow sufficient surface area for good adhesion. I suggest you try a label with a Hi Tak or rubber based adhesive, both of these types are very aggressive adhesives and should be suitable for your application.

 

Q7. - We are a large Direct Distribution company running MRP SAP R4, we are having problems finding a suitable SAP Barcode software and printers with a reliable ethernet. What do you recommend?.

A7. - We have recently installed three Zebra 170XiII printers with integral ethernet interfaces onto a SAP R4 system and used Zebra's Bar-One R4 bar-coding software for generating the labels for these printers. Zebra have developed their Bar-One software for SAP R4 with a lot of thought and it seems to integrate easily into the system. There are other bar-code software's on the market and the review I am sending you will help you to make your choice for your particular application requirement.

 

Q8. - We are an Actuary and have a lot of documents each day that we need to scan the signatures, our current method is using a flatbed scanner but this is too slow, can you suggest an alternative.

A8. - A flatbed scanner is fine for scanning a full sheet but when you want to scan a small signature it still has to scan the whole page and subsequently takes a long time. You also have to select the signature area and save it a a bitmap file - long winded. 
We would suggest an "Image Capture Scanner", it can be used for linear barcodes, 2D barcodes and signatures or other small image areas. It will instantaneously scan the image and save as a bitmap, which can then be recalled as required. Visit our and click on the manufacturers logo to see what is available. Our personal preference for this application would be the Welch Allyn ImageTeam 4410LR.

 

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Q9. - I bought some clear thermal transfer labels but when I try to print, the print misaligns as the labels are printed ( it moves up the label). Do you know what is causing this, I have tried changing all of the sensor settings and have to set at continuous to get any print, all other settings indicate there is no paper or paper jam.

A9. - The media sensors require either a "Black Line" (Reflective sensor) or a change in "Light Transmission" (Transmissive sensor) between the backing paper and label. The sensor cannot tell where the edge of your labels are as they are clear and light passes through, there is no change in transmission or reflection. You require a black mark printed in between each label and set the sensor to "Black Mark". Your label supplier should have known this, if you explained that you were using a thermal transfer printer. See Answer 3

 

Q10. - Do you know where I can get Thermal printer drivers.

A10. - The first stop if you want the latest driver is your printer manufacturers site. As we know from experience the manufacturers driver is not always the most suitable for your application, we use "Seagull Scientific" driver. These drivers sometimes give you facilities that would normally be available using DOS commands or manufacturers program language.

 

Q11. - We want to ensure that the barcodes we print are able to be read by our customers scanners.

A11. - There are 2 ways of doing this.
1/ Use a normal barcode scanner to check the barcode as it is printed, this checks that the barcode is readable by your scanner and probably your customers. CAUTION! It does not tell you that the barcode print is within specification and likely to be read by all scanners operating within specification.
2/ To check if the barcode is printed to specification you would need a "Bar Code Verifier". If your barcode passed verification you can be sure that it will be read by your customers scanners. If it is not read by their scanner, then you can be sure that it is their scanner that is at fault, not your printed barcode. In the past we have used PSC verifiers.

 

Q12. - Our thermal print head is missing some dots, we have been quoted extortionate prices to have an engineer change it, can we buy the print head and fit it our selves.

A12. - We would not recommend you change the print head yourself, it is easy to misalign the print head or mark the thermal elements whilst fitting. Don't expect the print head supplier to swap the print head if you get it wrong and damage it - they won't.
Having advised you against it, you can do it yourself if you have an experienced electromechanical technician available. The ease of changing a print head varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, I strongly suggest purchasing the Service Manual for your printer before trying to fit the print head Best of Luck!

 

Q13 - We are a retail outlet with 3 shops and we want to print bar code labels to put on goods as they come in. We do not have a computers in the shops, can you suggest a solution.

A13 - What you require is a Stand Alone printing system. The label templates are pre programmed into the printer and then recalled from the printer keyboard when required. See the following site
http://www.zebra.com/ for the Eltron/Zebra range of stand alone printers.

Labels and ribbons can be supplied separately to your requirements.

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