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| Your Commitments.
Delivered! | |
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We're going to be experimenting
with a new format newsletter starting hopefully later
this month.
We're going to be co-authoring
a newsletter in large postcard format with some bindery
friends across the country. We will have useful
binding information as always, and also include what is
happening here at Seaboard Bindery.
We are happy to
be including print as part of our program, after
all, we need to support print as much as possible.
This email format will be continuing on an every
other month basis for as long as our readership stays
strong.
We will be interested in
your feedback. As always, anyone who contributes
feedback gets a loaded Dunkin Donuts card.
So, keep reading, and most important, send us your
bindery work!
Frank
Shear | |
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THE IMPORTANCE OF A
FACTORY EDUCATION
Even bindery has
joined the 21st century, and we were fortunate recently
to have the opportunity to test a new PUR glue.
This one is made by Forbo, formerly Swift Adhesives, and
features a new low viscosity blend that sets up very
quickly. Low viscosity means that the glue will flow
smoothly to all parts of the book, form a quick bond and
absorb moisture for curing. But the story here is
that the factory research people came out to assist us
with the smooth running of the glue, even though we
thought we didn't need them.
Even though we
have been using PUR for many years, the visit proved to
be very worthwhile. One thing we learned is that
more glue is not better - the right amount is better.
Too much glue can cause the freshly applied glue to
cause the pages to slide within the book, creating
unsightly gaps. And, too little glue can
result in - well, you know.
We also
discussed the fine balance of having the right glue
application for the type of stock for the thickness of
the book. There are no absolutes here. The
operator has to make a judgment about what combinations
will yield the best results. We have a
better sense as to how to adjust the temperature for
best performance.
Lesson: Any
time one of your factory reps wants to come teach you
something, take them up on it! Don't think
you know it all!
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BINDING TABS INTO
BOOKS
We get a lot of requests for tabs to be
included in perfect bound books, and several of these
requests are for covers and tabs that
extend beyond the text.
This style is
not ideal because there is no support for the trimming
on overhanging pieces at the head and foot. Three
side trimming leads to tearing of the cover and tabs
where they overhang.
Here is the best way
(but not the only way - see Rescue Mission below):
When we produce the tab, we will score and fold the tab
so that it is recessed from the front. Design the
cover to be flush with the text. When the user
receives the book the tabs will be folded in their
proper position for the user to unfold as
necessary.
When we fold tabs, we
stagger the positions of the folds from one tab to the
next. This is done to avoid a hump in the middle
of the book. We minimize the hump by folding one
tab Œ" from the front, the next tab œ" from the front,
etc. These distances vary according to the weight
of the stock and how many tabs go into the
book.
With mechanical binding styles
(wire-o, plastic spiral) it is easier to bind oversized
tabs and covers. Most times the tabs and covers
are inserted by hand, eliminating the trimming
problem. We also single sheet collate books when
appropriate.
At Seaboard Bindery we pack
these projects very carefully. To protect tabs
from damage in transit we can insert slipsheets
strategically to support the tabs. Shrink wrapping
in quantities is recommended to minimize shifting of the
books during
shipment.
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RESCUE
MISSION
Just a week ago or so we
received a challenge from a nearby high quality
commercial printer to produce a saddlestitch book where
nearly every page contained a die cut tab. Our job
was to make all the tabs line up so that they were on an
even plane. There was substantial creep from the outer
to the inner signatures. (Creep refers to the effect of
the accumulation of the stock thickness pushing out
toward the center spread)
Given that the
job was planned without regard to creep, we had to find
a way to make all the tabs line up. Our customer
service leader Phil Rutzick, with many years experience
in printing and binding, came up with the idea of
perfect binding the book. Since there was no creep
to begin with, the perfect bind style where the sheets
simply stack on top of each other allowed the tabs to
line up just right.
This job required some
expert cutting, which was done perfectly. Because
the cover and tabs were oversize, we had to "fit" the
cover on precisely. We are very proud of the job
and proud of our staff who were involved in
it.
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SPOTLIGHT
ON: PLASTIC SPIRAL
BINDING
Plastic spiral binding is
one of the most exciting "newer" binding styles to come
along in years. Although it is not brand new, it
is the most recent of the major binding styles, and is
enjoying a revolution in inserting
technology.
The old style, manual coil
spinners are well known and can be useful for small jobs
or oversized jobs. With a manual coil spinner, the
final crimping takes place off line either with hand
crimpers or a machine with snipping knives that cut and
crimp at the same time. Easy to use with good
quality but slow speeds are the result.
As
time went along, various machines were developed to
speed up the process and increase productivity.
Most of the early ones were problematic and were not
able to deal with the resistance between the coil and
the paper. Because the coil spins continuously
there can be no positive grip as it winds its way
through the book.
The latest
generation of machines is very good at decreasing the
resistance of the coil by actually conforming the spine
of the book to the shape of the coil. We
have one of the recent model Gateway machines. It has
perhaps the broadest range of coil capability of all the
inserters as it will bind up to a Ÿ inch book and as
small as 1/8". Crimping is in-line and automatic,
saving labor.
Many machines now come with
coil formers. The user can buy raw material and
create any dimension, any size, any pitch of coil.
It makes keeping inventory a lot easier and decreases
the cost of the coil, assuming enough use is made of the
machine.
Plastic coil binding has reached
young adulthood. Let's hope that more progress is
made in the near future. The end product is very
much worth the
development.
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