Fiji chooses premium labels

In the mineral water and fruit juice segments, premium products packaged in PET bottles are an emerging trend. One example is Fiji Waters mineral water, which is marketed in the absolute high-end segment. The square PET bottle is dressed in up market pressure-sensitive labels.
The body and back labels are applied to the empty bottles prior to filling. The advantage of pre-labeling is that the bottles do not have to be air-blown to create the dry surface needed for labeling. The pre-labeled PET containers are passed through an aseptic filling process. Once the bottles have been filled and closed, the condensation water around the closure is blown off and a tamper-evident seal, also a pressure-sensitive label, is applied.
With its Autocol series, Krones offers a wide selection of rotary machines for fully automatic application of pressure-sensitive labels. Autocol labeling stations can also handle transparent labels in the no-label look, waterproof plastic labels and multi-layered labels. Krones has created a new label applicator for pressure-sensitive labeling, called the APS 3, which combines speed and precise label positioning with simple operator control and easy adjustment. The Autocol APS 3 label applicator – with automatic splicing – can be retrofitted to existing Autocol labelers and to modular machines already fitted with an APS 3 label applicator.
For applying pressure-sensitive labels an Autocol station in a modular labeler will suffice. This is advantageous if only one product is to be dressed with the pressure-sensitive labels while the majority of the plant’s output is being run with other types of labels.