How IST America is Raising the Standard for Label Manufacturing Through UV Innovation

Buckeye Business Products, based in Cleveland, is a vertically integrated label manufacturer with an end-to-end production model that sets it apart from traditional converters. Operating out of a sprawling 600,000-sq.-ft. facility, Buckeye houses everything from raw material storage to product conversion, packaging, and logistics, all under one roof. This structure allows for full control over manufacturing quality, cost, and speed, ensuring customers receive consistent, high-performance products without delays.

Buckeye serves more than 20,000 end-users across the United States, offering a diverse catalog that includes thermal transfer labels, direct thermal labels, color thermal labels, and thermal transfer ribbons. To meet evolving customer needs, the company maintains an expansive in-stock selection, including over 120 label sizes and 30 ribbon formats ready for same-day shipment. This operational agility is matched by a global sourcing strategy, with silicone and base materials sourced from around the world to support continuous production at scale.

With a workforce of more than 200 employees, Buckeye serves its customers through both traditional direct channels and a robust e-commerce platform, ensuring flexibility and responsiveness across a wide range of customer needs. Their ability to produce their own hot melt adhesives and apply both silicone and adhesive coatings in-house gives them a technical edge that few competitors can match.

The Challenge

As Buckeye scaled its operations, the company faced a critical challenge in ensuring consistent silicone curing for its release liners, an often overlooked but essential part of label performance. Variability in curing created risks for end-use performance — particularly in the demanding auto-apply label market — where even minor inconsistencies in release values can cause label jams and costly downtime for customers.

Buckeye Business Products manufactures its own hot-melt adhesive and coats it directly onto the liner.

“The release liner is the hardest part of what we do,” said Carl Kanner, vice president of Buckeye. “Nobody notices it, but it’s mission critical. If it fails, the customer’s entire production line can shut down.”

The IST Solution

To address these challenges, Buckeye turned to IST America, leveraging its expertise in UV curing technology. Over a two-year period, Buckeye replaced its entire curing infrastructure with the IST BLK water-cooled UV cassettes with nitrogen inertization. This multimillion-dollar project demonstrated the company’s commitment to quality and long-term reliability.

Silicone is UV-cured onto BBP's release liners, delivering faster curing and consistent, high-quality release.

Several factors influenced this decision. IST’s robust chamber design delivered superior curing performance by minimizing oxygen intrusion and providing higher-intensity UVC light for reliable curing. The technology also ensured consistent results, allowing Buckeye to achieve stable, low-release values that were critical to the auto-apply market.

Beyond the equipment itself, IST’s service and support proved invaluable. The company provides quarterly preventative maintenance to ensure uptime and reliability across Buckeye’s 20-plus systems. Buckeye also benefited from hands-on training, with maintenance and engineering staff spending a week at IST Metz headquarters in Germany to deepen their technical expertise.

The Results

The transition to IST America systems delivered significant improvements for Buckeye. The company achieved consistent product quality, with stable release values that eliminated variability and ensured labels perform reliably in high-speed auto-apply environments. The improved reliability also allowed Buckeye to expand confidently into the demanding auto-apply segment, opening new market opportunities and driving growth. Operationally, IST’s quarterly service and preventative maintenance provided additional confidence, ensuring equipment longevity and peace of mind.

Kanner summarized the value. “When you buy from IST, you’re buying a highly engineered machine,” he said. “It’s an investment, but if your application is mission critical, you can’t get better than IST.”

Looking Ahead

Buckeye continues to invest in IST America solutions, with additional systems being installed, featuring IST curing lamps. The partnership remains a cornerstone of Buckeye’s growth strategy, ensuring the company can meet customer demands with the highest levels of reliability and performance.