Labels (Adhesives) for Powder Coat Paint

MSI knows labels with powder coating and testing instructions

Love the look of powder coats instead of traditional wet paint on your products? Many people do. It looks sharp! Why do OEMs choose powder coating over traditional wet paint? Here are a few key differences:

  • Powder coats are durable, resist chipping or wear and tear, and can stand up to the elements.
  • While traditional paint boasts better color matching, powder coats offer better color retention. No fading.
  • Powder coating can be more cost-effective.
  • Powder coats can be more “green” and environmentally friendly than traditional paints. Wet paint can emit volatile organic compounds, which can lead to breathing problems among painting professionals.
  • Powder coating is safer to store than liquid paint, which is flammable.
  • Both powder coating and wet paint are made up of some similar elements, like resins and pigments.
  • Wet paint contains solvents. Powder coats do not.
  • Powder coating is applied dry, whereas wet paint is sprayed on. Frankly, people will tell you powder coating is much easier to apply. Wet paint, even when sprayed on, is almost an art form to get right.

Many OEMs consider powder coating to be an upgrade from traditional wet paint. But there’s one problem with powder coats. Label adhesion.

Why labels won’t stick

It’s a frustrating problem but it is still common. OEMs still see product labels falling off their units — sometimes even before the product leaves the factory. For us at MSI, that’s simply unacceptable. We needed to find a better way. Here’s what we found.

In many cases, as OEMs have upgraded from wet paints to powder coat paints, they have not upgraded the adhesive on the labels. The adhesive that worked on the old wet paints (while a perfectly good adhesive for that application) does not work on the powder coat paints.

The solution

At Marking Systems Inc, we’ve found the solution to this bothersome problem. Both Flexcon® and 3M® have solved this problem with product label adhesives designed specifically for powder coat paints.

3M Solution:

  • 300LSE family of adhesives designed specifically for polycarbonate overlays and nameplates comes in both a 2mil version (smooth surfaces) and a 5mil version (textured surfaces).
  • 3M7868 2mil white polyester with .001 adhesive and 3M7871 2mil white polyester with .002 adhesive both using 3M’s #350 family of adhesives.

Flexcon Solution:

  • RTS (rough-textured surface) adhesive comes on most of their lines of 2mil polyesters in a 2mil version for textured surfaces.

Need help with an unusual application or have a problem label?

Call MSI at 972-895-3433 and let our label printing experts help solve your problem or project.