Best Date Code Printers

By: Sean Williams - Founder BGW Mfg, XYCode USA

Best Date Code Printer 2022 - Introduction

So you've found yourself looking for a date coder and you don't know where to start. Understandable - there are seemingly limitless choices and it's hard to know what'll work for you. Before we start, there's one thing you need to know: batch code printer manufacturers purposely obsfucate points of difference so they can charge more. Who'd have thought!

There are two primary technologies for date coders that rely on ink deposition: continuous inkjet (CIJ) printers and thermal inkjet (TIJ) printers. We won't dive too deep into the technicals, but thermal inkjet printers are the "relative" new kids on the block. Like a photo printer, they use standardized cartridges with an integrated print head to fire ink directly onto the target. They are a closed system with no moving parts, so they setup quickly and are typically very easy to use. And perhaps their greatest feature is that the do not require maintenance - in the rare case that there's an issue, it can always be fixed by swapping an ink cartridge.

Continuous inkjet printers on the other hand have been a mainstay coding solution for decades. You may have even operated one. They can be identified on a code by their characteristic dot matrix marking pattern. These printers are typically extremely expensive and require routine maintenance. They are ideally suited for extremely high speed production environments where the distance between printhead and target area is high, i.e., the bottom of an aluminum beverage can. If you're coding on products that have extreme surface height variability (> 5mm) you'll definitely want to look at a CIJ solution.