Photo by mentatdgt
ARMOR, market leader in the design and manufacture of thermal transfer ribbons dedicated to the printing of barcode labels, is now making strides into the textiles market. Based in Nantes, France, the manufacturer has taken four years to develop an ink perfectly adapted to highly-demanding textile media.
A major new feature: in addition to the thermal transfer ribbon, for the first time ARMOR is also marketing a range of receptors composed of 10 care labels made of nylon, polyester and satin. With the new offering having required an equipment investment of €300,000, ARMOR estimates it will be able to cover over 90% of its customers’ requirements.
New ribbons and labels for the textiles market
In mid-April in Europe (and in June outside Europe), ARMOR is launching the AXR TX, a new grade of thermal transfer ribbon dedicated to the printing of textile labels. And a major new first, ARMOR is supplementing the offering with a range of 10 print substrates: specially designed for the textiles market, they are made of nylon (3), polyester (2) and satin (5). They offer a variety of properties: printable on one side, printable on two sides, treated to avoid curling up during washing, stain resistant and width sizes of between 10mm and 120mm. Textile receptors are delicate products with a highly specific life cycle. To guarantee the excellence of its products, ARMOR has conducted a battery of tests, both internally and at external laboratories operating under AATCC standards: washing, cold wash, ironing, sweat testing and skin test. The ribbon and labels of the AXR TX range are also Oeko-Tex certified. They can therefore be used for baby articles under the STANDARD 100 by Oeko-Tex certification, Annex 4, Product Class 1.
Financial and human investment
With this new range of receptors, ARMOR is targeting the textile cutting field. It is an activity the manufacturer used to do several decades ago, when it used to slit typewriter ribbons made of polyester or nylon. ARMOR has invested €300,000 in the new slitting machine dedicated to textile ribbons. The slitting principle is the same as for thermal transfer ribbons, but the technique is totally different. It was therefore necessary to train operators in the use of the new equipment.
Innovation to conquer new markets
With this combined ribbon-label offering, ARMOR estimates that it is covering over 90% of market demand. It is an offering that supplements the demands of traditional customers who are yet to get to grips with the textiles market. But it also represents an opportunity to penetrate the existing market of the large textile label printing producers.
"Innovation is an integral part of ARMOR’s DNA. The AXR TX product range has mobilized multiple departments: R&D, Sales, Marketing and IT. This collective effort now enables us to attack the textiles market with confidence", states Yohann Froment, Marketing & Communications Director of ARMOR Industrial Coding and Printing.
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