If your business is one that uses carbonless business forms – custom work order forms, invoice forms, and custom receipt books, to name a few – you may notice that in time, the forms don’t work as well as when first printed. That’s because carbonless forms (aka NCR forms) have a shelf life that is affected by a number of different factors. For example, when exposed to extremely high temperatures, you may notice your carbonless form undergoes what we refer to as “bluing.” That’s when the microscopic dye capsules used to create the forms leak causing the paper to turn blue.
NCR Forms – Printing and Storage How-To
When it comes to carbonless forms, custom printing is done on paper that is coated with capsules that contain dye. When you apply pressure to the top page, the capsules are crushed releasing the dye onto the layer beneath it. The dyes and chemicals used in the NCR forms printing process are sensitive to environmental conditions, like moisture and temperature. The effectiveness of the forms can also be hindered by exposure to things like vinyl, solvents, hand creams and skin oils.
When stored properly, the shelf life of an unused carbonless form is about 2 years while the retention of an image on a used form should remain legible for about 15-25 years. Ideally, forms (used and unused) should be stored in a controlled environment with temperatures below 77-degrees and a relative humidity of 40-45%. In fact, one of the best ways to store unused forms is to keep them in the shrink-wrapping they were packaged in when you received them from Mail Box & Pack.
Need Custom Carbonless Business Forms?
Located in Hendersonville, NC, Mail Box and Pack has the ability to print all your custom carbonless business forms. We can custom-design and print NCR forms that are capable of creating up to 7 copies per form. For a custom quote on your next custom carbonless business forms printing project, please contact us or drop by our store.