A pallet label is the last thing you print and the first thing your customer scans. If it is wrong, missing, or on the wrong face, the load stops at their dock and the whole shipment becomes a phone call.
Every case on a pallet has already been identified. The pallet itself has not. It needs its own identity, which under GS1 rules is an SSCC, and it needs that identity on a face a receiver can actually scan without walking around the load. Putting it there, on every load, is the job of a pallet labeling system.
Marapack Services specifies, supplies, installs, commissions and services pallet labeling systems from a base in the Pacific Northwest, from a single face print and apply station to a four axis robotic arm labeling several faces of a stationary load. We are the Pacific Northwest distributor for Altech labeling systems, importing direct from the factory in Bareggio, Italy.
Labeling the pallet is only half of it; the data behind the label is the other half. Book an end of line equipment audit and we look at both before anything is quoted.
What does a pallet labeling system do that a case labeler does not?
A pallet labeling system has to place a label accurately on a tall, uneven load face, often on two adjacent faces, carrying an SSCC that is unique to that one load and printed the moment the load is complete. That makes it a print and apply machine with a large format applicator, an arm, or a load that turns.
Four things, and each one changes the machine.
1. Reach. A pallet face is tall and the label position is specified by your customer, not by where the applicator happens to be. That means a large format applicator, a vertical axis, or an arm.
2. Multiple faces. Receiving specifications commonly want the label on two adjacent faces so that a forklift driver can scan from either side. Some want three. A fixed single applicator gives you one.
3. A unique code per load. The SSCC identifies this specific pallet, once. It is generated at the moment the load is complete, which makes pallet labeling a print and apply application by definition. There is no such thing as a preprinted SSCC roll.
4. An unforgiving surface. A pallet face is not a flat panel. It is case edges, gaps between cases, stretch film, corner boards and whatever the top layer did when it settled. Where the label lands and what it lands on is a real specification question.
The label itself, its data structure and its print quality requirements are explained in our guide to GS1-128 and SSCC pallet labels.
Which pallet labeling system configuration fits your end of line?
There are three configurations. A fixed print and apply station suits a conveyed load labeled on one face, or two with the load turned. Large format and three axis applicators suit presented loads with awkward geometry. A robotic arm suits a stationary load that needs several faces labeled without moving the pallet.
1. Fixed station print and apply
A print and apply head mounted at a fixed point on the pallet conveyor or beside the stretch wrapper, with a large format applicator that extends to the load face and applies the label.
The ALcode P is Altech's dedicated pallet labeling system, and we are confirming its price list code and specification with the factory. Behind it sits the same architecture as any other print and apply system: a thermal transfer print engine, its integration assembly, the data interface and the applicator. The detail is on the ALcode P pallet labeler page, and the wider range of heads is on our label printer applicators hub.
Right when: the load is conveyed, the label goes on one face, or on two faces with the load indexed or turned between them.
2. Large format applicators on a print and apply head
Where the load is presented but the geometry is awkward, the applicator does the work rather than the conveyor. The range covers:
- Large format tamp applicators at 500, 750 and 1000 mm (a big label tamp at 500 mm, and heavy duty tamps at 750 mm and 1000 mm)
- Three axis applicators, which position in three axes before applying, and can therefore reach two faces from one head
- Rotary arm applicators, where the label has to travel to a face the head cannot see
The same application methods run on case lines too; the full set and the rules for choosing one are on our labeling heads and applicators hub.
3. Robotic pallet labeling
Where the load is stationary and several faces need labels, an articulated arm reaches faces that no fixed applicator can, without turning the pallet.
The ALrobot is a four axis articulated pallet labeling arm working within an 1100 mm radius (about 43 in), driven from a 7 inch touchscreen.
Worth knowing, because you will not find this out from a catalog: as of September 2026 there is no product page for this arm on altech.it, altech-us.com or altech-uk.com. If you have been told robotic pallet labeling is not available on this platform, it is: the ALrobot is on the same distributor price list as every other machine we sell. The specification is on our ALrobot robotic pallet labeling page.
How do you label a pallet for shipping?
To label a pallet for shipping, print a GS1 logistics label carrying the load's SSCC and apply it to two adjacent faces, inside the height band your customer specifies, clear of corners and film seams, over or under the stretch wrap as their receiving specification requires. An automatic pallet labeling system does this identically on every load.
Receiving specifications vary, and the ones that matter are your customers', not ours. What is consistent across almost all of them:
- Two adjacent faces. So the load can be scanned from either approach without repositioning it.
- A specified height band on the face, usually placing the barcode within comfortable scanning range from a forklift or a handheld.
- Clear of the corner and clear of stretch film seams, so the symbol is flat and not distorted.
- Under the wrap or over it. Applying under the film protects the label; applying over it means the label can be replaced if the load is reworked. Both are common. Your customer's spec, not ours.
We ask for your largest customer's receiving specification before we quote, because it constrains the machine placement more than anything on your own site does. The GS1 rules on symbol size, quiet zones and placement are in the guide linked above.
What else goes into a pallet labeling system?
Beyond the head and applicator, a pallet labeling system needs a thermal transfer print engine and its integration assembly, a data interface that knows the load contents and reserves the SSCC, load handling with safety interlocks, and optionally an in line camera that reads the printed code before the truck leaves.
The print engine. A thermal transfer engine inside the head, in 200, 300 or 600 dpi. For a pallet label, 200 dpi is usually right: the symbol is large, the text is large, and the speed matters.
The integration assembly. Each print engine family needs its own mechanical assembly to mount into the head. It is a commonly missed line item on a print and apply quote. Ask about it.
The data interface. Ethernet, serial, USB or wireless LAN, connecting the head to your label design software, your ERP or your warehouse system. The SSCC has to be generated and reserved by something, and the pallet contents have to be known at the moment of printing. That integration is the real work in a pallet labeling project, and it is part of what we commission.
Load handling. Pallet conveyor, turntable, stretch wrapper interface, load present sensing, and the interlocks that stop an applicator extending into a load that is still moving.
In line camera options. A pallet label that does not scan at your customer's dock is discovered at your customer's dock. Altech's over print camera reads the code after printing and can flag or reject a load before the truck leaves. It is an equipment line item on the system, quoted with the machine.
Spares. The wear parts on a pallet labeler are the same family as on any Altech head, and we quote parts for Altech machines against the machine serial number so they fit the machine you own.
How much does a pallet labeling system cost?
A pallet labeling system costs what its configuration adds up to: fixed station, large format applicator or robotic arm; the print engine and integration assembly; the number of faces; the load handling and interlocks; the data integration; and any camera. We quote itemized after walking the end of line, not from a list price.
The two drivers buyers underestimate are the data and the faces. Connecting the labeler to whatever knows the load contents is engineering time, not hardware. Moving from one face to two changes the machine: an indexing or turning step, a three axis applicator, or an arm.
If the end of line already has a conveyor and a stretch wrapper, a fixed station is usually the least expensive working answer, and we will say so when it is.
Where are pallet labeling systems installed?
Pallet labeling systems are installed at the end of produce and fruit packing lines, in food processing and cold storage, on beverage and general manufacturing lines, and in distribution and third party logistics operations. In each case the pallet label is the handshake with the customer's receiving dock.
Produce and fruit packing. Under the Produce Traceability Initiative, a mixed pallet needs a hybrid pallet label carrying the SSCC plus a line per unique GTIN and lot combination on the load. That is a data problem before it is a machine problem, and it is why we ask what builds your pallets before we ask what labels them. The case side of that work is on our PTI label applicators page.
Food processing and cold storage. Where the label goes on in a chilled or wet environment and adhesion is the constraint.
Beverage and general manufacturing. Usually higher volume, usually conveyed, usually a fixed station.
Distribution and third party logistics. Where loads are built to order, the SSCC comes from a warehouse system, and the label is the handshake with the customer's receiving.
For everything upstream of the pallet, from case labeling to complete linear machines, see our labeling machine range.
Frequently asked questions
What is an SSCC and do we need one? An SSCC is the GS1 Serial Shipping Container Code that identifies one specific logistics unit: this pallet, once, never reused within a year of shipment. If your customers scan pallets at receiving, or you ship under GS1 rules, you need one. It is issued from your own GS1 company prefix; neither we nor any other equipment vendor issues them.
Can a pallet labeling system label two faces? Yes, three ways: index or turn the load between two applications, use a three axis applicator that reaches two faces from one head, or use a robotic arm. Which is right depends on whether your load moves and how much floor space you have.
Do we need a robot? Only if the load is stationary and you need more than one face, or the geometry defeats a fixed applicator. A fixed station with a large format applicator is simpler, cheaper and easier to maintain. We will say so if that is the answer.
Can this go after our stretch wrapper? Usually yes, and often that is the right place, because the load is stable and its dimensions are final. The decision to label over or under the film is your customer's receiving specification, not a machine limitation.
Our loads are mixed SKU. Does that change anything? It changes the data, not the machine. A mixed load needs a label that identifies every unique product and lot on it, which means whatever builds the load has to tell the labeler what is on it. That integration is the project.
How tall a load can it label? Reach is set by the applicator and the mounting geometry; give us the load height and we will tell you which configuration reaches it. Bring the label position from your customer's receiving specification too, because the height band matters as much as the load height.
Can you retrofit pallet labeling to an existing end of line? Frequently. The constraints are floor space beside the conveyor, load stability at the labeling point, and where the pallet data comes from. That is what the line walk measures.
Get the end of line assessed
Pallet labeling projects often fail at the data handoff rather than at the machine, so the assessment covers both. We walk the end of line, measure load dimensions, conveyor layout, label position and available space, and find out what system knows the pallet contents at the moment the load is finished. Call 253-709-5566 or schedule the end of line walk.