There was a time when the only place you would see thermal paper being used was in fax machines, though this is well and truly a thing of the past. Thermal paper is now used in many places throughout our society, from hospitals to grocery stores, making it one of the most significant recent developments in the world of paper. The following are some of the people and places that use thermal paper these days.
ATMs
The receipts that you receive anytime you use an automatic teller machine are printed out on thermal paper rolls. This is a great example of a time that you want a printed copy of something that is clear and printed quickly, so using thermal printing makes its case as a great option. However if you are someone who likes to keep the receipt from every bank transaction, be sure to keep your ATM receipts in a cool, dry and sunlight free environment so that they will last longer.
POS / EFTPOS
Point Of Sale machines are those great little portable debit machines that you will find in pretty much every restaurant, retail store or anywhere else that you want to buy something. Similar to ATM receipts, receipts printed out from a POS device won’t last forever, so keep them carefully stored if they are important receipts.
Fax Machines
Thermal paper first became known as that waxy paper that is used in fax machines, with this becoming the first purpose for which thermal rolls received widespread use. Up until recently, thermal paper was regularly referred to as fax paper, though now days people know thermal paper from way more than just its use in the fax machine.
Concert, Movie and Lottery Tickets
Anytime you buy a ticket to a concert or a lottery ticket, it is almost always printed on thermal paper. These tickets are a great example of a printed document that doesn’t need to last for years; so using thermal paper makes a lot more sense than the old school method of using ink and ribbon styles.
Grocery Stores
The receipts that you receive whenever you do your grocery shopping are almost always printed on thermal paper. This is the biggest use of thermal paper today.
Medical Records
Having a print out that is precise and accurate is crucial in the medical industry, making thermal paper a great advantage when dealing with medical records. However records printed out on thermal paper can deteriorate quickly if stored near plastic or vinyl materials, meaning medical institutions need to take extra care where they store their thermal paper.
Regular Businesses
There is quite a distinct difference between regular ink printers and thermal printers. Thermal printers are quieter, require less maintenance than regular printers and, because they have less moving parts, there is less that can and will go wrong with a thermal printer, meaning you have to fix and/or replace them far less frequently. Due to these great qualities, some businesses have started moving towards printing more and more of their documents using thermal printers as a way to save money and hassles in the office.