How to Choose a GHS Label Printer for Your Workplace
Printer Printing Ribbon

Is it time for you to get a GHS label printer for your workplace or replace our current one? When it comes to health and safety, making the correct choice can mean the difference between compliance and a real danger to your employees. Do you know what it takes to select the perfect GHS label printer and keep your workers from coming to harm?

Whether you are a seasoned chemical-handling professional or only entering the industry now, this article can help you. Learn more about the key factors that will empower you to make the right decision in choosing from the different GHS options for your workplace.

The Significance of Choosing the Right GHS Label Printer

GHS labels are crucial tools for passing on information about hazardous chemicals in the workplace. Accurate labeling can help ensure that everyone understands what they are dealing with. These people may include:

  • Employees
  • Emergency responders
  • Cleanup workers

Thus, ensuring you have a suitable GHS label printer helps others quickly identify chemical hazards. It ensures you perform your due diligence in the creation and use of chemicals and prevents liability for many issues.

Ensuring Compatibility With All Types of GHS Label

One of the first things you should do when choosing a printer is to consider the requirements for printing different GHS chemical labels.

Primary chemical containers include cylinders, boxes, or other large receptacles. Companies use these containers to move around such chemicals, and their labels must resist wear and tear along with any attempts to tamper with them.

Secondary chemical containers are usually smaller products aimed at consumers.

Regardless of the label type you print, the device should handle various text and image formats. Essential elements for all labels include:

  • Signal words
  • Hazard symbols or pictograms
  • Supplier information
  • Instructions for use
  • Hazard statements
  • Ingredient disclosure or product name

While many printers will be able to print off pictures and text in this way, not all label printers can handle these demands. As such, you should check carefully whether those you are looking at can fulfill these needs.

You also need to check that the printer can handle the material that the GHS labels are made from. In turn, when selecting label materials moving forward, you will need to ensure they are compatible with the printer you choose. Doing your due diligence before buying a printer will help ensure that you always have usable labels for the task at hand.

How the Role of GHS Labels Affects Your Decision

As GHS labels play such an important role in communicating hazards, you need to ensure that the resulting printed text and images are clear. This will help with awareness of potential hazards and reduce the risk of accidents or injuries occurring

After you print off and apply these labels, you are unlikely to be the only business to use them. As such, any printout must ensure the safe handling, storage, and transportation of chemicals. This sometimes even needs to occur across several countries, so printers must be capable of making labels that display multiple languages.

Customers, distributors, and suppliers all rely on accurate labels to ensure safety and compliance. This means you need to also investigate the reliability of any printer you consider. Any defects or mistakes in a printout could cause a big problem for these people, and thus you should make sure you choose a reliable printer.

Factors Affecting Your GHS Label Printer Choice

The following are some of the technical considerations you may need to think about when choosing a printer. They may impact the nature of the labels you can print.

Printing Technology

Different GHS label printers use a range of printing technologies. Some of the main options available include thermal transfer printing or direct thermal printing.

Direct thermal printing is one of the more cost-effective options on the market and is often better for short-term labels. You may want to use these when creating secondary chemical containers you do not expect to last.

Thermal transfer printing results in much more durable printers. These can ensure the labels remain easy to understand over a much longer period.

Consider not only the physical printing but also your internal workflow once you start using the device. Check that the printing process for each printer will match your production processes. Ensure that your hardware and software are both compatible with the printer you wish to purchase.

Printer Durability and Longevity

You should assess whether the printer can handle long-term printing. If you only use it for the occasional chemical GHS printout, you will have very different needs from if you need constant output.

If you use a great many labels every day, look for a printer that has a long lifespan. You may also want to consider how easy it is to maintain and repair yourself. If you will need to call someone out to ensure it remains in pristine condition, that’s an expense that you need to factor into your purchasing decision.

Printing Speed and Efficiency

At the same time as durability, the amount you print will also dictate the acceptable level of speed and efficiency for any printing. If you output several labels in quick succession, you do not want a printer that needs to cycle all the time. A device that can output a significant number of labels before needing to cool or slow down is preferable.

Label Size and Format Options

GHS labels come in many different sizes and formats. This is to allow them to accommodate the wide variety of containers or surfaces they must adhere to. In many cases, the specific formats you must use are mandated by local laws or regulations.

The right printer should offer more flexibility in the label size and format you are looking for. This will ensure compatibility not only with the labels you use now but long into the future. After all, you do not want to find that you need to print a new size, only for the printer to not be compatible.

Considering Industry-Specific GHS Label Needs

Various industries have unique GHS labeling requirements. Some of the most prolific industries that use these labels include:

  • Manufacturing
  • Healthcare
  • Agriculture
  • Science and research

Each of these locations may have specific demands or regulations that mean you will need to output unique labels for each client.

Considering Top Printer Brands as GHS Options

When researching printers, begin by exploring the leading GHS label printer brands. Over time, they have built up a reputation for reliability, useful features, and efficient label creation. This has led to their position in the industry, reassuring you of their quality.

It would also be beneficial to look into the type of support companies offer after purchase. Many top brands have responsive customer support and service options, but it may be worth checking online for reviews. If your printer does not work for any reason, it is better to know you can rely on the manufacturer to supply help or repairs.

Popular-brand printers are also more likely to be compatible with your systems. At the same time, check online to see if there are any resources that users have created to give you more printing options moving forward.

Budgeting for a GHS Label Printer

It is natural to want to consider the cost to your company when looking at a label printer.

For most printers, expenses involve balancing the initial cost with any long-term benefits the device offers. This is because increased efficiency and reduced labeling errors quickly lead to cost savings. At the same time, a printer at a higher price point is likely to need less maintenance.

As such, consider your budget and whether you can afford to use more money in the initial purchase to prevent overspending later on.

GHS Label Options and Compliance

GHS labeling standards demand strict compliance. Any label you print needs to work alongside regulations and rules such as:

  • OSHA’s HazCom Standards (USA)
  • EU CLP Regulation (EU)
  • Transportation of Dangerous Goods (UN)
  • WHMIS (Canada)
  • REACH Regulation (Europe)
  • ISO Standards

This list is in no way exhaustive. You should ensure your products are intended only for markets where you follow the appropriate labeling rules. This will prevent confusion or accidents due to a lack of appropriate knowledge about the contents of any container.

Thus, look for GHS label printers that are capable of producing compliant labels. This way, you can ensure the safety of both your employees and those of your clients or customers, as well as avoid liability.

Selecting the Best GHS Printer for Your Business

Your workplace’s safety should be at the top of your list of priorities. Choosing the right GHS label printer is an important step in that process.

At Kelleher, Helmrich, and Associates, Inc., we can help you make the best chemical safety decisions. Following a brief discussion, you will learn how to align your business with industry regulations and demands. Contact us today to boost your workplace’s safety record and grow your reputation among both your peers and competitors.