Coding or dating of consumer products has become an integral part of our everyday lives. They are a quality feature and essential for product safety, especially as they are required by law on many consumer goods. The statutory framework conditions must not only be followed by manufacturers; their suppliers must also adjust to these conditions. One option for positioning product markings on containers is to integrate marking systems in the labeller. 

Wide range of marking options 
Gernep, a family-run company, has been developing and manufacturing innovative labellers for a global customer base in the food and beverage industry for 40 years. The top priority is the precise application of labels using self-adhesive, wet-glue or hotmelt technology. The labellers are usually tailored specifically to the customer's needs, meaning that they vary in size, in the arrangement of their labelling stations and in their additional equipment (e.g. camera alignment, mechanical alignment, dating or coding systems). The fact that container marking has taken on an ever more important role over the decades is also stressed by Gernep's Managing Director, Martin Hammerschmid: "The integration of marking systems in the beverage industry has become standard practice. During the planning phase of their labeller manufacturing process, our customers are provided with a range of manufacturer-independent integration options for printers or lasers." Over the course of the company's history, Gernep has built up an extensive network of partners from whom its customers can freely choose. The network includes a variety of manufacturers of thermal transfer or inkjet printers, as well as laser printer and hot-foil suppliers. 
An EU regulation prescribes that information on food and drink packaging must be clearly legible. Clear print is therefore a basic requirement for any label and must be guaranteed even at high labelling speeds. Gernep’s labellers are designed for a speed of 2,000 to 40,000 containers per hour, as per customer requirements. Depending on the printer model, practically all speeds can be achieved. However, this also depends on the number of characters or the type of print. The fonts vary depending on the printing system, meaning there is something for everyone - to complement the branding. Almost any desired information can be printed on a label, on the container base or directly on the bottle. The most common information includes best-before dates, batch traceability, production data, QR codes or barcodes. Inside the labeller, the printing systems are located either at the label applicator, so that the label is already coded before it is transferred onto the bottle, or at the end of the machine carrousel. There, the marking is applied either directly to a container or to a label that is already on the bottle. A smooth production process is guaranteed for all variants. 
 
Integrated inspection of the appearance and quality of the print
Gernep's labellers are in use all over the world. Marking techniques are used throughout the food and beverage industry. For particularly discerning customer demands, more complex printing processes with integrated (camera) control of the print quality and appearance can also be integrated into the labeller. A Scottish spirits producer with 70 years of experience in the distilling of single malt Scotch whisky has been relying on the expertise of the Bavarian labeller manufacturer for several years. The new labeller labels nine different bottle formats with a capacity of 0.5 to 1.0 litres, each with a neck-around, body and back label. The Gernep Soluta 20-1200 3SK SD is equipped with three self-adhesive units and processes up to 14,400 whisky bottles per hour. The customer’s fine spirits are also marked with a best-before date and a batch number. The data is engraved directly onto the bottom area of the bottle using a laser printer from a German manufacturer. Laser marks are characterised in particular by their lasting good legibility. However, they require appropriate protective measures to ensure a safe working environment. With Gernep, the entire laser printer is included in the labeller scope of delivery. The relevant required safety inspection is therefore carried out at the Bavarian machine manufacturer's plant by a certified expert who checks the protective housing, among other things, to ensure that no laser beams are released to the outside of the equipment. 
To ensure that customer products are decorated with perfect labels, there are various inspection and control systems that can be integrated into a Gernep labeller. Precise label inspection is possible thanks to the integration of high-tech cameras. In the basic version, a camera is positioned on the dispensing unit of the label applicator to check the print quality of a previously defined imprint on a label directly before the label is transferred. However, this was not enough for the Scottish spirits manufacturer who then opted for a further upgrade in the form of an additional high-performance camera. As the whiskies produced are of particularly high quality, the labelling and coding must also be perfect. Once the bottles are fed into the labeller, all three labels are firstly applied. After labelling, an enable signal is sent to the laser, which then marks the bottles at the pre-set position. At the end of the machine carrousel, another camera is installed which has been programmed with an additional function to check the labels not only for exact positioning, but also for the plausibility of the lasered data by reading out the contents.
The labelling requirements of the food and beverage industry are becoming ever more demanding. Gernep, the Bavarian labeller specialist, supports its customers worldwide with innovative solutions for the integration of printer and laser technologies, for the rule-compliant and reliable coding of consumer products.