Zebra supplies: labels, ribbons, RFID labels

Zebra labels are genuine supplies for Zebra label printers: paper labels for direct thermal and thermal transfer printing, and polyester labels for places where the label must withstand water, chemicals, abrasion or outdoor use. The range covers rolls for desktop, industrial and mobile printers, plus receipt rolls. The material is chosen by how long and in what conditions the label needs to stay readable. Z-Perform 1000T, economical thermal transfer paper: matte uncoated paper printed with a wax ribbon. Zebra expects more than a year of indoor use from −20 to 80°C. Typical uses are cartons, pallets, shipping and work-in-progress labels. Z-Perform 1000D, direct thermal paper without a ribbon: the simplest way to print, with no ribbon at all. Zebra expects up to a year of indoor use and does not recommend this paper for moisture, long sun exposure, high heat or PVC surfaces. It suits short-lived shipping and warehouse labels. Z-Select 2000D, direct thermal paper with a protective topcoat: the topcoat improves resistance to moisture and oils and protects the printhead. The label works from −40 to 50°C, so it handles cold stores and food labelling well. Z-Ultimate 3000T, polyester for harsh conditions: a gloss film resistant to water, tearing, smearing and scratching, with good chemical resistance when printed with 5095 or 5100 resin ribbon. It works from −40 to 150°C, indoors and outdoors, and is UL recognised. Available in white and silver. Food contact: Z-Perform 1000T, Z-Perform 1000D and Z-Select 2000D papers meet EC 1935/2004 requirements for dry and moist non-fatty foods. The direct thermal papers are BPA free. Tested on Zebra printers: the manufacturer tests its materials on its own printers at various speeds and darkness settings and controls production under an ISO 9001 process. The result is consistent barcode printing from batch to batch. Sizes from 25×13 mm to A5: from small labels for parts and electronics to 102×152 mm and 148×210 mm formats for shipping and pallet labelling. Print technology. A direct thermal printer prints only on direct thermal labels (Z-Perform 1000D, Z-Select 2000D). A thermal transfer printer handles both types, but Z-Perform 1000T and Z-Ultimate 3000T require a ribbon. Conditions and durability. For short use in a dry room Z-Perform 1000D is enough. With moisture, oils or in a cold store choose Z-Select 2000D. When the label must last longer in a hall or warehouse, Z-Perform 1000T does the job. Water, chemicals, abrasion, high heat or outdoor use call for Z-Ultimate 3000T. Printer class. Desktop printer rolls have a 25 mm core and a 127 mm outside diameter, industrial printer rolls a 76 mm core and a 200 mm diameter, which gives about twice as many labels per roll, e.g. 5180 instead of 2580 for the 76×25 mm format. For mobile printers there are rolls on a 19 mm core, some with a black mark. Ribbon. Z-Perform 1000T prints with Zebra 2300 or 2100 wax ribbon, and Z-Ultimate 3000T with 5095 or 5100 resin ribbon. Direct thermal labels need no ribbon. Colour. Z-Ultimate 3000T comes in white and silver, the papers in white.

Zebra ribbons for thermal transfer printers are genuine supplies for Zebra label printers in three types: wax, wax-resin and resin. The range covers rolls for desktop and industrial printers, from 33 to 174 mm wide. The ribbon is chosen by the label material and by what the print must withstand: from a standard shipping label to polyester exposed to chemicals. 2300, standard wax ribbon: for coated and uncoated paper labels. The most common choice for logistics, warehouse and product labels on paper. 2100, high-performance wax: prints on paper and many matte synthetics, and according to Zebra resists smearing and scratching better than other wax ribbons. It supports print speeds up to 304.8 mm/s on coated paper. Designed for industrial printers. 3200, premium wax-resin: for paper and matte synthetics, with good resistance to smearing, scratching and many everyday chemicals. It suits moderate abrasion and exposure to steam and solvents. Available in rolls for desktop and industrial printers. 3400, high-performance wax-resin: for paper and matte synthetics when the label faces abrasion, friction, heat and steam. Designed for industrial printers. 5095, high-performance resin: for matte and gloss synthetics, including polyester. The print withstands moisture, abrasion, extreme temperatures and many chemicals, such as isopropyl alcohol, motor oil and degreasers. Available in rolls for desktop and industrial printers. 4800, resin: for matte and gloss synthetics and selected Zebra topcoated papers, with very good chemical and scratch resistance. Designed for industrial printers. 74, 300 and 450 m rolls: 74 m rolls on a 12.7 mm core are for desktop printers, while 300 m and 450 m rolls on a 25.4 mm core are for printers with a larger ribbon capacity. A longer roll means fewer changes during a shift. Label material. Paper prints with 2300 or 2100 wax ribbon. When paper or matte film needs more resistance to abrasion and chemicals, choose 3200 or 3400 wax-resin. Polyester and other gloss films require 5095 or 4800 resin ribbon. Label conditions. In a dry warehouse wax is enough. Friction, steam, oils and solvents call for wax-resin or resin ribbons. Even resin has limits with aggressive chemicals: Zebra does not recommend 5095 or 4800 for contact with acetone and xylene. Printer. Length and core must match the printer: the model's specification gives the maximum ribbon length. The 2100, 3400 and 4800 series come only in 450 m rolls. Width. The ribbon should be at least as wide as the label to cover the whole print area. Widths in the range: from 33 to 110 mm in 74 m rolls and from 40 to 174 mm in 300 and 450 m rolls. Print speed. For fast printing on coated paper, 2100 supports 304.8 mm/s, 3200 254 mm/s and 3400 203 mm/s.

Zebra RFID labels are UHF labels with an embedded inlay, an antenna with a chip, that a Zebra RFID printer prints and encodes in a single pass. They are used to tag cartons, pallets, containers, parts and fixed assets, including metal ones. Zebra produces them to order: the typical lead time is 4–6 weeks, and they are sold in full rolls or boxes only. Tested with Zebra printers and readers: inlay placement is matched to Zebra RFID printers, which reduces the number of labels voided during encoding. Zebra still recommends testing in the target application, because reading depends on the item and the environment. ZBR2200, ZBR2100, ZBR2000, ZBR4000 and BT781 inlays: the theoretical read range on cardboard is from 10 m (BT781) to 18 m (ZBR2200 with the Impinj M830 chip). These are laboratory measurements in the 865–868 MHz band. Actual range depends on the reader, the antenna and what the label is applied to. Advanced version (ZBR4000) for glass and plastics: on glass and some plastics it reads noticeably further than general purpose labels, theoretically 16 m on glass versus 9 m for ZBR2100. Silverline II for metal: polyester labels read directly on metal, theoretically from 3 m (Micro II, 45×13 mm) to 15 m (Classic II, 100×40 mm). They withstand washing, water, motor oil, salt water, sulphuric acid and caustic soda. They print only on the ZT410 or ZT411 On-Metal. Paper or synthetic material: Z-Select 2000T coated paper suits logistics labels, while matte PP film and gloss polyester suit products and parts where the label needs to last longer. 96- or 128-bit EPC memory: 128 bits means 32 hexadecimal characters instead of 24, leaving room for a longer identifier. Silverline Micro II and Slim II add 32 bits of user memory. Large rolls for industrial printers: a ZT roll has a 76 mm core and a 200 mm outside diameter, which gives up to 5000 labels of 44×19 mm. ZBR2200 labels are perforated between labels and packed 2 rolls per box. Printer. Most variants are for the ZT231R, ZT411R, ZT421R, ZT610R and ZT620R industrial printers. For the ZD621R and ZD611R desktop printers there is a separate 44×19 mm variant on 127 mm diameter rolls, packed 2 rolls per box. Silverline II labels require a ZT410 or ZT411 On-Metal printer. Surface. General purpose labels are designed for cardboard and non-metal plastics. For glass and more demanding plastics choose Advanced (ZBR4000). For metal, including IT equipment, tools, cages and returnable containers, only Silverline II is designed for the job. Size. 102×152 mm and 102×51 mm are shipping and pallet labels. 102×25 mm and 76×25 mm fit cartons, containers and parts. 44×19 mm is a label for smaller products and parts. Material and ribbon. Paper labels print with Zebra 2300 wax ribbon, while PP film, polyester and Silverline print with Zebra 5095 resin ribbon. The ribbon number for each label is listed below. Memory. 96 bits gives 24 hexadecimal characters in the EPC number, 128 bits gives 32. The choice depends on the identifier your system writes.