Company insight
Labelling at sub-zero temperatures
Labels adhere poorly at low temperatures. Yet, new concepts with special materials can solve the problem, as Frank Jäger, managing director of the Faubel Group, knows.
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iologics must be stored at very low temperatures. With the help of nitrogen, they can be frozen down to -196 °C. However, for vaccines to retain their efficacy, temperatures must be higher, between +2 °C and +8 °C. Cold and freezing temperatures affect the properties of paper, film and adhesive. “Anyone who produces adhesive labels for research on biologics, vaccines, cell and gene therapies faces the same problem every day,” explains Frank Jäger, one of three managing directors of the Faubel Group, who is responsible for sales, marketing, product development and smart labels.
they must also be durable. Suppose they directly stick to products, like labels usually do. They must withstand the same conditions, including freezing and thawing cycles down to -196 °C. When selecting paper, film or adhesive, label manufacturers can turn to special materials. “The materials we receive are indeed certified, but we still test them in-house again,” says Frank Jäger. Such tests usually run through product development and quality management and are based on extensive criteria. The ambient temperature during application, the time gap between application and
“Transfer labels are used to protect the adhesive meant for final labels and ensure that containers are marked durably even at sub-zero temperatures.”
As a manufacturer of labels for pharmaceutical products, the Faubel Group has decades of experience in the field. Not only must labels be correct, but
freezing, and container temperature and condition have to be considered. Containers can be dry, wet, or icy and have flat or curved, rough or smooth surfaces.
Easy application with transfer labels After selecting materials for the labels, it is time to design their structure. Jäger explains that labels that wrap around containers several times before sticking to themselves at the end of the process are often used. They are typically referred to as ‘wrap-around labels’. Yet, in the case of biologics or other products that need refrigeration, the design strongly depends on the process step in which labels are applied and the temperature at which they are applied. “At sub-zero temperatures, layers of ice tend to form on the surfaces of the containers. That is why we use special adhesives to prevent the glue from freezing. In addition, we have developed another solution.”
Jäger recalls a label once designed for an active ingredient packaged in a vial for a Phase III-clinical trial. “The vial containing the active ingredient had to be deep-frozen before the labelling contents were finalised,” he says. “The cooling process could not be interrupted to apply the label. That is why a transfer label had to be used before freezing the product, leaving sufficient adhesive for the final label before being peeled off in the deep freeze,” explains Jäger. However, he added that applying labels to containers by hand while wearing cold- protection gloves always proved difficult. That is why transfer labels were designed with large neutralized grip tabs slightly protruding from the packaging. Lab workers could easily grasp the tabs and remove transfer labels from vials despite wearing such gloves. In addition, using those grip tabs meant that the adhesive for the actual labels was still intact after peeling off. “Transfer labels and grip tabs are indeed small aids that greatly benefit label effectiveness and durability at sub-zero temperatures,” summarises Jäger. ●
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www.faubel.de 31
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