Direct Thermal Printable (DTP) Films – What are they and why do we need them?

Direct Thermal Printable (DTP) Films – What are they and why do we need them?

If your business or work ever dealt with airline baggage tags or food labels and barcode applications, you must have come across the term ​DTP films​, and might be confused as to what they are and why exactly do we need them.

What are Direct Thermal Printable (DTP) Films?

DTP films are ​BOPP based films​ with a proprietary coating which enables the formation of an image or impression on the films upon contact with the heated print head of a thermal printer. A protective layer is generally applied to protect the coated surface from mechanical abrasion, damage due to climatic factors or chemical products etc. Direct thermal printing is generally used for tagging and labeling applications where elaborate printing is not required and printing is done only for critical information like barcodes.

In direct thermal printable film, heat is used to print the image. This printing technology uses a matrix which contains “ink” in a colourless form as a coating on the surface. The application of heat from the print head of the thermal printer activates the ink to develop colour and the image is formed. Drying of coating is very critical and normally takes place at low temperature to avoid the pre-image formation.

Where are DTP films required?

DTP films are used in varied applications such as: ● Airline baggage tags ● Ready-made food labels ● Industrial bar code applications ● Retail price marking ● Logistics labels ● Courier industry labels ● Fruits & Meat labels So, if any of your businesses include the usage of any of the above-mentioned applications, you should definitely think about moving to DTP films to improve upon those compared to traditional methods.

Why are DTP Films preferred over traditional methods?

DTP films are water, oil and plasticizer resistant, and in addition to that, they also offer an outstanding paper like matte finish which in the end produces a fine, sharp dark image on printing.

Direct Thermal Printing is slowly gaining ground and is being extensively used for indoor use.

This is fundamentally because of its extreme ease of use while being cost effective as it does not require ribbon to print the image. Further, its non-tearability makes it an increasingly demanding substrate to replace paper with.

The direct thermal labels are extremely easy to use as the printer just needs to place the label stock into the printer and print. Thus, there are no additional high equipment costs and even the maintenance and troubleshooting/fixing costs are almost non-existent.

Further, the sensitive data is always imaged directly onto the BOPP DTP film, thus protecting the privacy and primacy of sensitive information.

Moreover, there is no requirement of additional inventory items such as ribbons, ink or toners, and the companies just need to order the label stocks needed for their initiatives. This makes the complete ordering and using process much simpler and streamlined, and also reduces the warehouse requirements.

Why Cosmo Films for DTP Films?

Cosmo Films offers direct thermal label films that serve a host of applications including information labeling, manufacturing tracking and weight & price labeling. The product portfolio includes BOPP based non-coated and top-coated DTP films, available in thickness varieties of 60/75/100 microns. The top coated direct thermal printable film is water and solvent resistant and can be used for tough weather labeling such as deep freeze product labeling, industrial bar coding, track & trace and logistics. The film can endure temperatures of -20 to 70 degrees.

A superior product, in addition to years of trust, and service that Cosmo has been providing to its extensive list of customer’s makes a compelling proposition vis-à -vis other players in the market.