A Guide to Choosing a Badge Printer

The decision has been made to purchase an ID badge system for your organization. Time needs to be taken to research the products available and the benefits that each can provide to your group. You may have specific requirements for your custom printed cards that may require a specific printer capability or software function to ensure that the cards will provide the benefits that you expect out of your printer. Some ID card printer systems are turnkey and include the badge printer plus everything needed to print a small number of basic pvc cards.

Other systems are custom designed by ID card integrators and include specific printer features, software and supplies for the volume of cards printed for a specific function. These systems may include additional warranty and support benefits that are useful for after purchase support.

An important part of the system is the id badge printer. There are a number of printer manufactures that produce high quality entry level badge printers and printers that provide high volume and or high security printing. You may not need a professional, high volume printer, but you do want to ensure that your purchase a printer that has the capabilities to meet your current and future card printing needs. Some current printers come in a basic version, but allow you to all features in the future to provide capabilities to the printer for advanced card production. These printers are worth considering if you plan to expand your organization in the future and will need a more complex card for future use.

ID badge design software is included in basic turnkey packages. The software that comes with these packages is often basic design software that allows you to design a badge and print it. If you have a high volume of cards or wish to keep a card record of cards printed for reporting purposes or reprint capabilities, you may wish to upgrade this basic software or explore a custom package option. Many software manufacturer provide advanced software that will work in a network and will import and export specific databases for use with other business programs.

The camera in the package is always the variable as it seems that cameras are available for about six months and then a new model replaces the old. To import pictures into the software, the camera needs to have a twain driver. There are cameras that advertise a twain driver function that do not work with the software. It is important to work with an ID card integrator to make sure the selected camera will work appropriately with the software selected. Other options are web cameras and taking pictures with a regular digital camera. By using your standard digital camera, you would need to download the pictures into the computer into a file. The pictures can be selected as needed from the file for importing into the software.

Consumables are an important part of the system. Standard PVC 30 ml cards are commonly used for ID card production. Specialized cards may be needed for access control, payroll, or rough environments. Print ribbons will also be needed. They are specific to the printer model selected and should be purchased from a photo id card supplier that sells genuine manufacturer produced ribbons for best quality and warranty reasons.

If the card will be worn, you may consider a slot punch to allow the badge to be attached to a badge holder or clip. Numerous badge holders and attachments are available for a secure method of displaying the identification when at work.