How to Label Flight Cases and Road Cases

A road case that nobody can identify costs time at every load-in and load-out. A good marking system has three layers: something permanent that names the case, something you can rewrite for each job, and tape for anything temporary. This guide covers how crews use stencils, PAL flight case labels and gaffer tape together, and how to choose between blank and custom labels.

The three layers of case marking

• Permanent ID: a company name or case number sprayed straight onto the case. The road case stencil kit (42 letters, numbers and symbols, each 10 x 7.6cm) lets you build any name or number.
• Job details that change: a write-on, wipe-off flight case label for the production name, dates, destination and contents.
• Temporary marks: a strip of gaffer tape you can write on and peel off, for a one-off job or a quick colour code.

What is a PAL flight case label?

PAL labels are foam-backed, self-adhesive labels designed by Le Mark for road and flight cases. The surface takes marker pen, and the ink wipes off with PAL label cleaner, so the same label can be reused from tour to tour. The standard blank label is 178mm x 127mm, pre-printed with Production, Date Out, Date In, Job No. and Contents boxes. You can buy one at a time as the PAL flight case label.

What to write on a case label

• Case number: the reference your load-out list uses.
• Department: audio, lighting, video, backline, wardrobe or catering.
• Contents: short and legible from a few metres away.
• Job or tour name and dates: the boxes you wipe and rewrite.
• Return contact: for cases that travel without you.

Keep the wording consistent across the fleet. If every case has the department in the same box, the loaders do not have to read each label to find it.

Blank or custom labels?

Use blank labels when you are marking a handful of cases or want to start straight away. Choose custom labels when you own a fleet, hire out kit, or want every case to carry the same layout and branding.

• Blank: 178mm x 127mm, generic boxes, sold individually from stock.
• Custom: 210mm x 150mm, printed with your tour or production name, logo, colours and the case fields you choose, in packs of 50, 100, 150 or 200.

How custom flight case labels are ordered

1. Open the custom flight case label designer, pick a pack size and build your label, or upload finished artwork.
2. We send a mock-up. Nothing is printed until you approve it.
3. Your labels are printed and delivered, about 10 to 15 working days from artwork approval.

A one-off artwork setup fee is added for each new design. If you reorder a design you have bought before, its reorder code skips the fee.

Fitting a PAL label

1. Clean the area so it is dry and free from dust, oil and grease. PAL labels stick best to clean, dry, non-porous surfaces.
2. Line the label up before you press it down. The foam adhesive is made to stay on.
3. Press firmly over the whole label.
4. Write on it with a marker. Wipe the ink off with PAL label cleaner at the end of the job.

PAL labels are made as long-term labels and are not designed for easy removal. If you need to lift old self-adhesive labels or stickers, a label remover spray softens the adhesive so they peel off.

Stencil tips

Mask the area around each stencil and build the spray paint up in light coats to keep the edges clean. The stencils are black plastic, so you can wipe them clean after spraying and reuse them on the next batch of cases.

A simple case-marking checklist

• Permanent ID: stencil the company, rig or case name and number on the outside, where it can be read from a distance.
• Job details: use a write-on PAL label for the tour or show name, destination, contents and contact, so it can be wiped and rewritten between jobs.
• Quick reference: use gaffer tape for temporary marks such as department colours or load order.
• Consistency: put the label in the same place on every case, so crew can find it without searching.
• Branding: if the same layout is needed across a whole fleet, a custom printed label saves writing the fixed details by hand.

Where to start

Browse the full range of flight case labels, or see cases if you are replacing the case itself.