Plastic Materials for Packaging and Label (PVC, PP, PET, PE, BOPP, PS)

Many types of plastic materials are available to produce packaging. When you need to create a design to package your products, you may soon discover that two plastic materials are commonly used: PET and PVC. At Plastic Ingenuity, we have clients ask us which plastic materials prove to be most advantageous for their thermoformed packaging designs. Here, we’ve outlined explanations for these two plastics, as well as which proves to be the most beneficial to help you determine which to use.

PET (Polyester)
is the most expensive, basically weatherproof. Mostly used for outdoor applications, can handle rain or shine.
If you need UV and heat resistance type durability, PET is your choice. Most expensive generally easiest to print on.
PET, or polyethylene terephthalate plastics is one the most widely used plastics for thermoforming. The material is molded into the designated shape, and then dried for increased resistance. The plastic is used to produce food containers, beverage bottles, synthetic fibers and more. PET is the most common plastic for thermoforming packaging designs because of its high-strength barrier that can resist outside tampering or other elements.
The following are the biggest benefits that PET plastic provides:

More versatility—PET plastic can be thermoformed for a variety of applications. Although the material is lightweight, it is still strong enough to withstand outside elements for many applications.
Safer for storing materials, especially food—PET plastic is highly suitable for packaging food items, as well as retail, electronic and other products.
Increased durability —PVC is a rigid plastic that has some durability. Over time, though, the material may break down from exposure to UV rays—something that is not ideal for packaging materials, especially for food or retail designs. PET plastic, however, is designed to withstand UV rays, making it a suitable choice for almost all thermoformed packaging designs.

PVC (Poly Vinyl Chloride / Vinyl)
is mostly used for wall and floor graphics with an indoor application. Cheaper than polyester.
Used for outdoor and signage applications. Bumper stickers and grommetted signs. Mostly "bumper-sticker" type applications for labels. More $$ than BOPPs.
PVC plastic, or polyvinyl chloride, is a rigid plastic designed to withstand harsh impacts and extreme temperatures. The material is most commonly used when creating cables, roofing materials, commercial signage, flooring, faux leather clothing, pipes, hoses and more. PVC plastic is created through suspension polymerization to produce a hard, rigid structure.

PP (Polypropylene)
is a cheaper form of polyester, also mostly used for indoor application

BOPP (Biaxially Oriented Polypropylene)
means the film is stretched to increase tensile strength, etc.
Subset of Polypropylene(PP) - Cheap film. You use this when you need a film (i.e. label may get wet), but you don't need outdoor durability. Cheapest MSI.

PS (Pressure Sensitive)
Any paper or film with adhesive 

PE (Poly Ethylene)
is used a lot of in mold labeling, along with PP. MDO and things like Primax (Brand name of MDO) are good for squeezable or conformable labels (for being placed on a curvy surface or squeeze bottle). 

Source: https://printplanet.com/forum/label-packaging-forum/label-discussion/260221-what-do-the-different-types-of-plastic-based-labels-mean-pvc-pp-pet-etc

Raster Images vs Vector Graphics

Computer graphics can be created as either raster or vector images. Raster graphics are bitmaps. A bitmap is a grid of individual pixels that collectively compose an image. Raster graphics render images as a collection of countless tiny squares. Each square, or pixel, is coded in a specific hue or shade. Individually, these pixels are worthless. Together, they’re worth a thousand words.

Raster graphics are best used for non-line art images; specifically digitized photographs, scanned artwork or detailed graphics. Non-line art images are best represented in raster form because these typically include subtle chromatic gradations, undefined lines and shapes, and complex composition.

However, because raster images are pixel-based, they suffer a malady called image degradation. Just like photographic images that get blurry and imprecise when blown up, a raster image gets jagged and rough. Why? Ultimately, when you look close enough, you can begin to see the individual pixels that comprise the image. Hence, your raster-based logo, magnified to 1000, becomes bitmapped before you know it. Although raster images can be scaled down more easily, smaller versions often appear less crisp or “softer” than the original.

To maximize the quality of a raster image, you must keep in mind that the raster format is resolution-specific — meaning that raster images are defined and displayed at one specific resolution. Resolution in raster graphics is measured in dpi, or dots per inch. The higher the dpi, the better the resolution. Remember also that the resolution you actually observe on any output device is not a function of the file’s own internal specifications, but the output capacity of the device itself. Thus, high resolution images should only be used if your equipment has the capability to display them at high resolution.

Better resolution, however, comes at a price. Just as raster files are significantly larger than comparable vector files, high resolution raster files are significantly larger than low resolution raster files. Overall, as compared to vector graphics, raster graphics are less economical, slower to display and print, less versatile and more unwieldy to work with. Remember though that some images, like photographs, are still best displayed in raster format. Common raster formats include TIFF, JPEG, GIF, PCX and BMP files. Despite its shortcomings, raster format is still the Web standard — within a few years, however, vector graphics will likely surpass raster graphics in both prevalence and popularity.

Unlike pixel-based raster images, vector graphics are based on mathematical formulas that define geometric primitives such as polygons, lines, curves, circles and rectangles. Because vector graphics are composed of true geometric primitives, they are best used to represent more structured images, like line art graphics with flat, uniform colors. Most created images (as opposed to natural images) meet these specifications, including logos, letterhead, and fonts.

Inherently, vector-based graphics are more malleable than raster images — thus, they are much more versatile, flexible and easy to use. The most obvious advantage of vector images over raster graphics is that vector images are quickly and perfectly scalable. There is no upper or lower limit for sizing vector images. Just as the rules of mathematics apply identically to computations involving two-digit numbers or two-hundred-digit numbers, the formulas that govern the rendering of vector images apply identically to graphics of any size.

Further, unlike raster graphics, vector images are not resolution-dependent. Vector images have no fixed intrinsic resolution, rather they display at the resolution capability of whatever output device (monitor, printer) is rendering them. Also, because vector graphics need not memorize the contents of millions of tiny pixels, these files tend to be considerably smaller than their raster counterparts. Overall, vector graphics are more efficient and versatile. Common vector formats include AI, EPS, SVG, and sometimes PDF.

Source: https://www.printcnx.com/resources-and-support/addiational-resources/raster-images-vs-vector-graphics/