DESKTOP LABEL SYSTEM AT SANDWICH FIRM

When a company wanted to upgrade its labelling for sandwiches and other foods, it installed a new electronic desktop labeller.

The business, formed by husband and wife partnership Andrew and Jacqueline Ditton, has grown steadily since it was founded three years ago offering fresh sandwiches, business lunches and outside catering.

Two vans deliver the food to local industrial estates during the day. Each items has to be packaged and clearly labelled, and with a possible 88 selections in the sandwiches alone, as well as the home-made quiches, fruit crumbles and pies, it’s quite a task.

Before installing a new desktop label printer, sheets of labels were purchased pre-printed in red with the company name. To add the variable detail, Jacqueline had to programme her computer each time and print a full sheet for each sort, which could be wasteful when only one label was needed.

With the printer she can add variable information, from dates and descriptions to price, for just one label or as many as necessary. All the product descriptions are programmed ready for use, and should she need to, Jacqueline even has the facility to add bar codes or graphics as well. With a working day that starts at 5am, anything that makes the job easier and more efficient is welcome.

Five colour labels were also supplied as part of the package, each with the Jacqueline’s Cuisine name, phone number and eye-catching graphics. ‘I’ve made changes in the past which nobody seems to have noticed,’ said Jacqueline, ‘but nearly everyone has commented on these labels.’

The sandwich labelling system can be used to print by thermal transfer or direct thermal processes. Labels printed on it can be reel-fed, continuous, fan-folded or diecut. Label formats, scaleable fonts and graphics may all be stored.

‘An added bonus is the ability to add a customer’s name to a particular product label if they ask me to reserve them something,’ Jacqueline added. ‘They really think that’s nice.’