Articles

Perspectives: China’s Influence on the Loose Leaf Industry

by: Scott Caplain and Jeff Hunter

Goods produced in China have long had a significant effect on U.S. manufacturing, but for traditional binderies, the impact has been less noticeable due to tight turnaround times that cannot be matched by overseas competitors. The same is not always true for those in loose leaf. However, increased costs for freight and raw materials, a sluggish U.S. consumer market, and changes to China’s labor laws are redefining the way the American companies view goods produced in the Asian market. Further complicating the situation for companies who have typically relied on Chinese production for small, easily reproducible parts are the 2008 Olympics and the recent earthquakes. No longer the cheapest, fastest, or best way to fulfill an order in every situation, those marketing loose leaf products in the U.S. are finding ways to combat changes in Chinese production – often through custom work.

Scott J. Caplain is the executive vice president for Charles Leonard National, Inc., a manufacturer and distributor of loose leaf devices. Caplain explains how recent events in China will continue to have a significant impact on ring hardware prices. For his perspective, see “The Changing Cost Dynamics of Ring Hardware.”

Jeff Hunter is the owner of Federal Looseleaf, Inc., a custom loose leaf manufacturer located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. As a creator of custom product, Hunter believes his company is in an excellent position to out-sell competitors promoting product from China. For his perspective, see “Custom Loose Leaf Products Not in Competition.”

The Changing Cost Dynamics of Ring Hardware

It seems that ring mechanisms are finally receiving some respect, however, not for the reasons that I had hoped. With price increases coming unabated this year, the cost of ring elements has already reached unprecedented proportions – and the year is not over. Nevertheless, the landed cost of rings is still a bargain and lags far behind comparable products with moving parts, nickel plating, and precision engineering.

During the past decade, prices have remained fairly stable, incurring increases that have been announced two to three times per year at minimal levels. The selling prices in 2007 were actually comparable to numbers of product produced domestically in the 1970s and 1980s. Now we witness something that is unparalleled in my almost 40-year-history with ring metals.

Since virtually all three ring products are manufactured in China, distributors in the U.S. are now a function of the latest events in that country. When I first visited China in the early 1980s, I remember the dirt roads, the lack of good transportation, and a very modest infrastructure. Crossing the border today from Hong Kong into Shenzhen, one views the dramatic evolution and progress of this country with super highways, skyscrapers, new hotels, and abundant manufacturing. Clearly, China has become the world’s workshop. This trend toward modernization has “led the charge” in today’s scenario of rising prices, with demand for raw materials that outstrips the supply, growing labor shortages, currency fluctuations, and of course, the rising cost of petroleum that has precipitated hikes in ocean freight transport.

If that’s not enough, the earthquake in Sichuan province and the Olympics in Beijing have created a new set of circumstances. Rebuilding the infrastructure after the massive devastation that took the lives of approximately 20,000 Chinese citizens has required substantial steel capacity, and the Chinese government has mandated that steel production be used for rebuilding rather than as an exportable commodity. To control the country’s air pollution and minimize its effect on Olympic athletes and visitors, the government has ordered steel mills within a specified proximity to curtail production or fully suspend operations until after the games are completed. The largest and most effective producer, BaoSteel, falls within this region.

The aggregate impact of these circumstances could have far reaching effects, including issues with supply and the obvious string of price increases that are headed our way. The limited supply of steel has already produced a bidding process with some companies, resulting in the possibility of shortages. However, with an estimated 35 million units warehoused in the U.S. at any given time, shortfalls in product availability are still remote and may be confined to the specialty rings that are not part of a regular stocking regimen.

What happens from here is anyone’s guess. Continued price increases will almost assuredly occur on a monthly basis through mid-fall of this year. Clearly, price increases are a matter of concern and will have to be addressed in the short term by all manufacturers should we continue to see a protracted period of price increases. However, the slowing U.S. economy may result in some stabilization before year end due to reduced consumption. Needless to say, challenging times are ahead. In the meantime, our firm remains committed to working with our Chinese partners in exploring alternative manufacturing venues, particularly in India where we have already located capacity for distribution to the European market.

On the brighter side, product innovation has enjoyed a renaissance of sorts over the past several years. Mechanisms have been redesigned to open and close easier, lock more securely, mesh more evenly, and even appear differently. While these products have yet to reach the custom market, one trip to a super store will convince any doubters that these unconventional rings are selling well. Shelves are well stocked, favoring binder products that feature both the E-Z Touch and E-Z Comfort ring mechanisms over those that have lower cost hardware installed. It is really too early to establish any trend but suffice it to say, “new and better” are receiving a warm welcome in the office products network. The Chinese are highly responsive to innovation from both service and product standpoints, and seem to consistently deliver on these ideals. Despite the many issues currently being seen with overseas production, I am confident that more “new and better” designs will be a big part of our future.

Scott Caplain is executive vice president of Charles Leonard National of Hauppauge, N.Y., a manufacturer and distributor of loose leaf devices. Caplain has almost four decades of experience in both sales and ownership of the ring binder component industry, including 31 years with US Ring Binder Corp. Caplain can be reached by calling (508) 674-5009 or by e-mailing [email protected].

Custom Loose Leaf Products Not in Competition

There are two distinctive categories of loose leaf products and China’s influence is very different based on the category we’re discussing. When a customer is looking for a commodity product and has warehouse space available for storage, China is absolutely a consideration, often based on price alone. If a customer wants a custom-made product, I usually don’t need to worry about China.

Price

The primary reason for much of U.S. loose leaf production to go overseas has been price. But China is now dealing with new labor laws, eliminating the practice of employing young children and requiring employers to pay overtime. Western practices are taking hold in China and that, coupled with oil prices that are changing the whole face of freight, is limiting the cost-based appeal of China for many people. The U.S. still produces a large amount of “office supply binders” and I would suspect the production of those commodity products is increasing in the U.S. based on the upswing in freight costs.

As the economy sours and freight bills go up and recession looms, the business outlook is actually better for U.S. custom manufacturers because there will be a demand for smaller quantities of product, produced quickly and efficiently. The counterintuitive approach that I’m taking currently is that as the economy worsens worldwide and oil prices go up, affecting freight and oil-based materials like vinyl, customers will still need to order 3-ring binder products. Yes, everyone will be affected in the U.S., but these conditions also are limiting the opportunities China has to expand its loose leaf presence here. Loose leaf is a mature industry and now some of this business is finally coming back into local hands because it’s so expensive to do business overseas right now.

Quality and Turnaround Time

When I’m out selling binders directly to customers and I come across someone who is trying to sell a competing Chinese product, I sell against it by pointing out that the finish of my product is not in question because I can immediately show samples for approval and make sure I’m meeting customer expectations.

From a custom point of view, our turnaround goal has always been to produce a quality product in two to three weeks. Customers can’t get that from China without factoring in air freight, which is extremely expensive. China is great when ordering full container shipments, but that means large quantities, and most of the custom manufactured binders in this country are in smaller quantities – 1,000 pieces and under.

Difficulties of Custom Work

The other thing that makes competing with China easy is that the manufacturer in China usually has to see a finished prototype in order to accurately produce the product your customer wants. There is little room for the back and forth that often comprises the design process, so the burden of artistic creation and decisions about material are on the customer in China. Here in the U.S., we can sit down with the customer and make suggestions for ink, wrapping materials, and more. Customers sending business to China can specify a certain thickness or a certain type of material, but many times the Chinese manufacture their own materials so you’re not always getting what you expect. My selling proposition is simple:

We can offer infinite variety in custom applications. China can too, but you have to show them exactly what you want, which can be difficult.
Rising prices for materials and freight are increasing the cost of doing business in China (and really anywhere across the globe).

Having said all that, if you have an order with a customer who needs 100,000 binders and the order requires a lot of hand labor – sewing or eyeleting or attaching elastic barbs – you have to consider China if you expect to ship the order in a reasonable amount of time. The cost of fuels, higher emission levels, new labor laws, and the fact that they pretty much shut down in the month of February are making it harder to place an order with China, from the perspective of a custom manufacturer, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a place for it.

I look at China as a competitor and as a tool. It’s my challenge to be able to join them, rather than fight them. If I can use them, I will – and I’ve certainly used them before. Of course, this is a snapshot of the market today and all of this could change in a month. That’s part of the wonder of working in an international market!

Jeff Hunter is the owner of Federal Looseleaf, Inc., a custom manufacturer of creative turned edge, vinyl, and polyplastic presentation packaging. Hunter can be reached by calling (612) 781-9995 or through e-mail at [email protected].

Making the Decision: Is Adding Services Right for You?

by Dianna Brodine

You’ve heard it all before – either in this magazine, from another industry source, or on the financial newscasts. Money is tight, the value of the dollar is falling, and the economy is in a “slowdown.” As a wise business owner, you’ve evaluated your financial situation, taken a look at income vs. expenses, reviewed new equipment that might bring efficiencies, cut a few customers whose business wasn’t bringing in the expected return, but a wise business owner doesn’t stop there. A look to the future is the next step, and perhaps adding services is the right answer for growth. New services could bring new customers or, at the very least, add value to existing customers. And there are natural tie-ins with the bindery business that seem to make the decision a slam-dunk. But not all additions are wise, and not all change is good. How do you decide what is right for your business?

Industry Trends Tighten Profit Margin

Shorter runs, consolidation, and a reduction in the numbers of graphic arts firms all have an effect on the flow of business into binderies. Anna Massey, sales and marketing manager with Gateway Bookbinding Services, noted that, “Today’s trade bindery is very different than that of a decade ago. Printers have become far more efficient and the runs have become smaller so the days of doing 100,000+ books with 5 percent spoilage are long gone.”

Jack Rickard, president of Rickard Bindery, has noted a trend toward one-stop shopping. “People who do the purchasing really like to get the project off their back, so one-stop shopping is attractive. I happen to disagree with that mind-set because I think you want to go where core competencies are.”

Agree or disagree, the reality exists that customers looking for one partner to fulfill all of a project’s needs can apply pressure to printers, or in turn their bindery partners, to offer more services. This leads to another trend – the inclination of printers to add bindery services to the printing shop – but Rickard will point out that the trend is not a new one: “I can remember my grandfather ranting about printers putting in their own equipment back in 1945. But here we are, going right along, and the reason is that we’re good at what we do. We’re better at what we do than our printer customers, who dabble with what we do.”

In fact, Rickard explained that knowing and understanding core competencies can provide opportunities to work with other bindery service providers when trying to meet the needs of a customer: “There are things which we do that I know somebody else does better. When we get one of those jobs in, we will take it over to the guy who does it better. In Chicago, for years and years, we have dealt with each other’s core competencies. We work very hard with each other so that the printers don’t get the feeling that they’ve got to put the equipment in themselves.”

Know Your Business Model

Business models define the parameters in which your company operates, including what you do, why you do it, and what you hope the results are once you’ve added your fair share of hard work. Part of that process is determining core competencies – the things you and your staff do better than the competition. When evaluating the addition of services, one of the first questions you should ask is whether or not the new service can be done as well as your existing core competencies.

Rickard Bindery have explored a lot of avenues over its decades of existence and Jack Rickard is open about some of its mistakes. “We stuck our nose into a lot of places and found out that 90 percent of the time, we got our fingers slapped. In 1980, I brilliantly got some labeling machines and we jumped in. I found out in a matter of two months that one, the mail houses hired cheaper people than we had; and two, they knew what they were doing. I managed to get back out of the business in four months,” Rickard laughed.

That and other “missteps” have made Rickard a firm believer in knowing the business model in which your company operates. In the case of Rickard Bindery, the company could easily slip into mechanical binding, laminating, diecutting, or perfect binding. In order to succeed in the new ventures, the only thing Rickard employees would have to learn in those fields would be the technical expertise. The essential business model would not change.

“In binding, we take paper and we mechanically cut it, chop it, fold it – we physically alter the stock,” said Rickard, explaining that adding services that alter the stock in similar ways makes good business sense, while some things fall outside of the company’s core competencies. “Fulfillment is a computer game with inventory. You’ve got to have the computer horsepower and the inventory mind-set to manage inventories of various products in order to do fulfillment. And it, just like mailing, is a different mind-set business.”

Adding Services

So, with the cautionary tales and words of advice, why add services? The answer, in some cases, is increasing responsiveness to customer needs. “Today’s trade bindery needs to be poised and ready to respond to their customer’s needs,” said Massey. “They need to go beyond just being a final step for their customers. They need to become a partner with the printers to bring added value to the relationship.” Another answer is that the more services you provide, the more you “control” your customer accounts.

Once you’ve made the decision to expand your bindery’s services, there are many directions to go. Three are discussed here: string tying, mechanical binding, and mailing. Future issues of The Binding Edge will feature a series on fulfillment services.

– String Tying
Rickard Bindery added string tying to its services in 2006. According to Jack Rickard, it was a logical step for the trade bindery. “String tying is the same business, the same customers, the same quoting process, and the same schedules,” he said.

String tying is one of many ways to promote products at point of purchase. There are a variety of shelved products that have a physical shape that lends itself to having a string-tied piece attached. Well-conceived string-tied promotional pieces attract attention and provide useful information right at the point of purchase. If your customer’s product is a bottle, or has a button or a hook, then string-tied tags might be exactly what’s needed to boost unit sales. Products could include grocery items like liquor, hair care products, condiments, spices and flavorings (i.e., soy sauces or olive oils), or cosmetics.

String tying applications have size limitations and stock weight requirements. A hole must be punched in one corner. And the pieces must be stitched, glued, and folded in such a way to be attractive and functional. Further enhancements through foil stamping and diecutting are possible. Strings can range from plastic options to cotton in a variety of thicknesses and colors.

The work came about for Rickard Bindery because of an existing customer relationship. “We were doing a lot of string tying work and we really didn’t want to mess with their turf, but we were operating three shifts and they were operating one shift. We could bring something to the table that they couldn’t,” said Rickard. Despite the very real possibility of offending their string tying customers, the company is still doing work for the string tying companies, providing material and occasionally sending very difficult jobs to them. “We’ve drawn our market from areas our string tying customers weren’t drawing from.”

– Mechanical Binding
Mechanical binding is another service that makes sense as a vertical move in a bindery’s business plan. According to Massey, mechanical binding offers ease of use, quick start-up with minimal training time needed for operators, and affordability of implementation. “Most binderies will already have some sort of punching equipment so often all they require is a punch tool with the correct hole pattern for coil,” explained Massey. “Once they have their punching requirements figured out, they then need some type of coil inserting equipment.” Massey explained that there are a number of options, depending upon the volume of work the bindery foresees and the complexity of the projects. Possibilities include belt drive coil inserters, dual roller coil inserters, and automated coil inserters. Equipments investments can range from as little as $795 up to $20,000 for an automated machine.

The plastic spiral itself is readily available, but according to Massey, a lot of binderies take it one step further with in-house coil manufacturing. “By producing their own coil from spooled filament, the bindery not only positions itself to be able to respond much more quickly to its customers needs, but it also sees a 50 percent savings in material costs. Interline the coil forming process with automated coil insertion (with production speeds anywhere from 700 to 1,400 books per hour), and that bindery becomes not only fast but highly efficient.”

Adding to the appeal is the fact that plastic spiral binding is suitable for a variety of projects. With a variety of color options and lay flat capabilities, mechanical binding could provide flexibility not only to your bindery business but to the customers you serve.

– Mailing Services
According to John Gracey, co-owner of Mail Right, Inc., 65 percent of printed material ends up in the mail but only 10 percent of printers have an in-house mailing system. Gracey points out that the mailing business is a natural move for binders, since they’re already involved at the end of the process – right before mailing occurs.

Mail Right specializes in setting new companies up in the mailing business, offering the equipment, software, and resources needed to be successful. “We focus on the how-to,” said Gracey. “We’ve done it, so we can teach exactly how to do it. We can walk new mailing organizations through pricing mailing jobs, getting your salespeople to sell mailing jobs, teaching the production people how to produce jobs, all the way to taking them to the post office to teach them how to introduce jobs into the system.”

Continued compliance and changes in the mailing standards and prices are a concern. Mail Right holds advertised phone seminars and schedules phone calls to discuss compliance issues. One change coming up in November is NCOA (National Change of Address). At this time, when an automated mailing is done, mailers have to verify that the address and zip code are valid. NCOA goes a step further to require that mailers verify that the person the mailing is directed to actually lives at that address. “Mailers are going to have to access the USPS change of address database to verify that the person actually lives there,” said Gracey. “It’s always been required for first class mail, but now it’s going to transfer to standard mail, which is the majority of the stuff in the system. All of the lists are going to have to be run through a list verification service.” Another change in the works is a new barcode system that allows more information to be imprinted, offering increased ability to track your mail through the system.

Getting into the mailing business from bindery is less of a vertical move and more of a horizontal change in business strategy. No longer are you physically altering the state of the paper stock. It can be, however, another way of securing your customer relationships.

Jack Rickard has a simple standard for evaluating expansion possibilities: “It’s looking at what’s going through your shop and saying ‘What else is being done with this, and how can I help out with what’s being done?’ If it’s really outside of your competency, I’d recommend you take a long, hard look before committing any resources.”

Special thanks to Jack Rickard of Rickard Bindery for his insights and experience. String tying information reprinted with permission from Rickard Bindery. Additional recognition to Anna Massey, Gateway Bookbinding Services, and John Gracey, Mail Right, Inc.

Bindagraphics: Aggressive Growth, Progressive Education

by: Dianna Brodine

An aggressive growth strategy, a commitment to educating the industry, and a willingness to provide a multitude of services to meet customer needs has proved successful for Bindagraphics, Inc. of Baltimore, Maryland.

Family Footprints

Marty Anson is the third generation of his family to be involved in the printing industry, following the footprints of both grandfathers and his father (a photoengraver). For Anson, working in his high school print shop and then proceeding to the Rochester Institute of Technology where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Print Management in 1965 seemed a natural progression.

Upon graduating from college, Anson went to work for a commercial printer in the estimating department until drafted into the United States Army in 1967. After his tour of service, Anson landed a job with a book printer as a controller. “Part of my job was to formalize production standards in an effort to increase efficiencies,” explained Anson. “I spent a lot of time in the bindery and became very interested in this area of the business. Anson founded Bindagraphics in 1974.”

Located in downtown Baltimore, the fledgling company went into operation with two employees, Anson and a partner (a machine operator), in 10,000 square feet of rented space on the eleventh floor. Starting with cutting, folding, and stitching – “the basics for any bindery” – Bindagraphics’ services were limited to binding soft cover books and pamphlets. “As you can imagine, moving materials and product up and down 11 floors via an elevator became very difficult and time-consuming,” stated Anson. So when the company’s lease was up, it relocated to the Lansdowne section of Baltimore where it doubled its space. Bindagraphics continued to flourish and in just over five years, added an additional 30,000 square feet of space and established two additional divisions under the same roof.

Through steady growth and the continual addition of new capabilities, Bindagraphics once again relocated in January of 1992 to its current facility located in the Crossroads Industrial Center in southwest Baltimore. In 2002, a 55,000 square foot climate-controlled addition was completed. Today, Bindagraphics’ Baltimore location boasts 175,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing and office space, and over $15 million in annual sales. Anson also has brought two of his sons – Todd and Matt – into the fold, to help carry the torch into the modern era. Matt acts as COO of the Baltimore operation and Todd is president of the company’s Buffalo, N.Y. division.

Aggressive Growth Meets Customer Needs

The key to Bindagraphics’ success, according to Anson, has been its continual re-investment in the latest equipment and technology, as part of its drive to expand its capabilities to better meet the diverse needs of its customer base. In connection with some of these acquisitions and expansions, Anson set up separate divisions within the organization to better allocate expenses and profits, and to help identify different product lines and customer needs.

Quality Information Packaging division (QIP) was launched in 1982, specializing in custom packaging and design services, ring binders, slipcases, portfolios, index tabs, spot and raised UV coating, litho mounting, and fulfillment services. In the mid 1980s, Bindagraphics made the decision to diversify into the finishing arena, offering foil stamping, embossing, diecutting and ultimately, film laminating, UV coating, in-line folding/gluing, and hi-die capabilities. “We kept getting calls from our print customers to provide various finishing services,” stated Anson. Adding finishing capabilities allowed the company to capture a bigger piece of the pie, reduce delivery times, and better control the quality of its end product.

A satellite facility in High Point, North Carolina, services bindery customers in the southeastern areas of the East Coast. According to Anson, “The facility, which opened in the spring of 1999, enables customers to get many of their jobs done locally and more efficiently.” The binding arena primarily services a regional market, mainly due to the expense of moving materials back and forth across the country. Consequently, opening satellite facilities makes good economic sense. The facility has grown significantly since its inception, and recently expanded into a 40,000 square foot building. Anson plans to add finishing services over the next year, which will help the North Carolina operation be more of a one-stop shop. “Our business model in Baltimore is to be a warehouse full of options for printers,” explained Anson. “We’re very diversified, and we want to keep that same footprint in North Carolina.”

In August of 2005, Marty Anson bought a high-end ring binder and packaging operation in Buffalo, New York. The packaging operation, which primarily services colleges and universities, allows Bindagraphics additional diversification and the facilities are able to exchange work, utilizing specialty equipment when needed for specific jobs.

The most recent acquisition came nine months ago, when Anson found an established finisher in Atlanta, known as Art Laminating Finishing, that had been in business since 1947. Anson currently spends three days a week in the Atlanta facility, getting it up to speed and introducing the Bindagraphics capabilities to a new market. “We have a lot of specialized equipment in Baltimore, but this helps us give a presence in the southeast, said Anson.”

Facility acquisitions aren’t the only investment Anson has made. The Bindagraphics facility in Baltimore has added a 12,000/hr Kolbus perfect binder and a mechanical binding machine from Kugler-Womako for coil binding. “That’s over $3 million in new equipment right there,” explained Anson. “We had some 15-year-old equipment and we decided it was time to upgrade. It sure is nice to have a new piece of equipment for makeready and quality control. The new perfect binder increased throughput significantly.”

Educating the Industry, Present and Future

A key philosophy to the successful growth of Bindagraphics over the decades has been to become a source of information and knowledge, for its customers and the industry at large. Bindagraphics’ web site houses one of the best reference libraries of industry-related articles written by Marty Anson on topics ranging from binding basics and finishing to bindery management/quality control and multimedia packaging. By contributing helpful information on a variety of topics, Bindagraphics has secured a reputation in the industry as being a leading source for education.

Bindagraphics University, or more popularly known as Binda U, is a training seminar conducted at the Bindagraphics facility for customers, potential customers, or for those just wishing to enhance their knowledge of the industry. Established over 20 years ago, Binda U continues to attract a wide range of attendees. Attracting technicians to designers to those in upper management, the one-day seminar remains popular today with its focus on education rather than “selling” the bindery. Anson, however, will admit that education does sell, “We make people aware of what we’re doing and what we can offer. Hopefully, they’ll think of us down the road when they have a project because of the positive experience they had at our facility.” The sessions are offered once in the fall and again in the spring. “We provide an overview of different binding and finishing techniques, provide hints and tips to help printers avoid the typical pitfalls and then conclude with a tour of our facility,” said Chris Martin, director of marketing. “Additionally, we also provide that education to a local university located in the D.C. area. The students have been in twice over the last six months, which allows us to show graphic designers how the bindery side works. That, in turn, helps us when these students find jobs and are producing projects that we have to make work.”

Bindagraphics also does an online newsletter and e-mail blasts that talk about the industry and general bindery tips. “We also have ‘e-infos’ that focus around a specific product,” said Martin. “Projects that we think would be interesting are featured for printers, which both shows off our techniques and shows them the possibilities for future projects.”

Internally, the importance of education has filtered throughout the organization in a variety of programs. Bindagraphics became the first bindery in the U.S. to achieve ISO 9001: 2000 certification for its quality management system. Approximately 10 years ago, Anson evaluated the company’s current quality management system and found that it was not very effective. Upon examining the positive results that ISO certification can produce for an organization (utilizing a business acquaintance as a model), the decision was made to undergo the process. “It has definitely helped us to control our processes better,” stated Anson. He also pointed out that the ISO process does not mean much to the smaller printer but to larger ones, the certification process can be a key selling point.

Internal education in the areas of cross-training and safety procedures also are key within the organization. Because the company runs a large amount of specialized equipment to accommodate custom jobs, Bindagraphics employees need to learn how to run various pieces of machinery. “The specialized machinery doesn’t run all of the time, so cross-training is extremely important in our company,” stated Anson.

Looking to the Horizon

For now, the latest acquisition in Atlanta will keep Marty Anson busy. “It’s going to take a couple of years to get that facility operating the way we want it, so I’m all set for right now,” Anson laughed. “I’ll be 66 on May 1 and I haven’t got too many more acquisitions under my belt.” Anson will keep his eye on the industry, however, knowing that he has to be sharp to stay on top. He’s seen his printing customers adding more binding and finishing equipment. He’s also noticed the Internet absorbing traditional print work. “It’s a tough environment,” concluded Anson. “The printers are having a tough time and it gets passed down to the bindery level. Hopefully it will all settle down and everyone can make a living.”

Using the Right Glue for the Right Application

by: B&R Moll, Inc.

Today, trade finishers face the challenge of having to select the most effective gluing product for a myriad of specific applications. This results in a constant balancing of pricing and the wide range of product effectiveness. Binderies must select the right glue after considering such factors as the intended end use of the product, the specified coatings or finishes, different types of paper stock, and storage conditions. Given these factors, binders also must weigh the cost savings of using a lower-priced glue against the possibility of performance failure in a specific application.

Adherence

Glues must be carefully selected to adhere to whatever coatings or finishes have been required by the bindery’s customers. To complicate that selection, the coatings and paper stock that have been used successfully with certain glues frequently change in composition, causing the glues to lose their effectiveness. A plethora of coatings – such as UV, aqueous, and standard varnishes – are constantly changing in composition due to the varying availability of certain chemicals. Some chemicals can no longer be used because of raw material availability, a situation that is out of the binder’s control. The use of different paper stocks, too, changes regularly. Paper stocks range from recyclable paper that is widely used in the printing and carton industries, to standard offset, cover weight stocks, and fluted carton material that are finding wide acceptance in direct mailers, brochures, and information packets. As a result, binderies must deal with a wide range of adhesion issues. For example, flood coating of paper is commonly used in applying certain coatings. This sometimes creates a problem for gluing because these coatings have high resistance to adhesion.

There are several effective ways to combat loss of adhesion. One is to block out the glueable area on the paper. This will create an opportunity for the glue to bypass the coating and adhere directly to the substrates below the coating. If using a block out is not an option, binders can add a glue assist to their existing dies or new dies at the time of die-making.

Multipurpose Adhesives

Binders clearly need to use glues that are highly versatile, can be counted on to perform effectively under a wide range of conditions, and work well with other technologies and diverse materials. Are there glues that can be considered to be multipurpose, reliable adhesives?

The major trend toward the use of multipurpose glues has been the increasing acceptance of hot melt adhesives. In this connection, hot melt glues have been replacing liquid “cold” glues, when a ready-to-use glue and quick set-up times are required. Hot melts are considered the glues of choice in a broad range of end products, such as void fillers in some heavy carton applications, short-run applications such as packaging, and fulfillment items. Here, a glue must not only provide adherence to the product, but also to fulfillment information in cartons, pocket folders, and shelf talkers. Hot melts work well with diverse paper stocks, but are the best glues for any stocks that are flood coated or laminated.

For use with UV, aqueous, and varnish coatings, hot melts are the most effective glues on the market. Hot melt adhesives break through these coatings and secure a good bond for the coating and the paper substrate. Also, hot melts provide excellent adhesion in box applications, brochures, pharmaceutical inserts, direct mailers, and pocket folders. Typically, hot melts are used in the preparation of presentation folders, which requires a high concentration of ink coverage, because they provide excellent adhesion to folder pockets and coatings. In addition, hot melts provide high performance in short-run carton and sleeve applications because they have an instant adhesion to both substrates.

Hot Melt Glue Versatility and Cold Glue Advantages

Hot melt glues demonstrate their versatility by performing well in applications that have a wide range of temperatures. They provide excellent adhesion in situations where temperatures reach well over 100 degrees in shipping trailers, and where temperatures are below freezing in food packaging.

Hot melts work well on coated and uncoated paper stocks, but liquid glues also have performed satisfactorily on uncoated stocks. However, cold glues have not performed satisfactorily on some coated stocks because of their inability to adequately penetrate these stocks. However, there are some cold glues that work on these stocks. Testing is important to determine what works best.

Hot melts not only offer excellent adhesion to numerous substrates, but also meet “machinability” requirements. They can be applied with little or no stringing and with a clean cut off. Hot melts are recognized as having superior “machinability”, reflecting their wide acceptance in high-speed carton and box gluing applications. Where dealing with difficult coatings is an issue, hot melt glues are preferred.

Despite the predominance of hot melts in the market today, there are a number of important applications where cold glues are as effective in breaking through coatings and creating an excellent bond with the two substrates. These are applications in which longer drying times are required, such as cartons and pocket folders. What’s more, in these applications cold glues are more forgiving in the bonding process due to their ability to allow both boxes and sleeves to find their natural configurations. Because liquid glues are thinner in viscosity than hot melts, they are able to be applied more quickly. For this reason, cold glues get the nod over hot melts for use in long-run carton and box applications found in the printing and binding industries.

The “storageability” of cold glues is on par with that of hot melts. Depending on the application, the coating, and the paper, cold glues are generally as effective as hot melts in temperature extremes that range from below freezing to 100 degrees plus.

There are several specialty hot melt adhesives that are finding important niches in the marketplace. One is a repositionable hot melt that is used in self-mailing applications where the end user can receive information and re-secure the product for other mailings.

Hot melt and liquid cold glues can form another effective type of gluing product for binder managers to have at their disposal. These are known as “fugitive” glues. Fugitive glues can be applied to a substrate – such as a folder, pockets, and standard bond paper – to which a binder can secure products such as credit cards, pharmaceutical inserts, and information cards. At the same time, these glues allow removal of these products relatively smoothly, with no tearing, and without defacing the information found underneath the fugitive glue.

Cold glues used to be the recommended glue for fugitive applications. Now hot melts are regarded as the better choice because they are more durable during the handling and mailing processes.

Another form of specialty glue has been designed for remoistable applications: remoistable hot melts. These hot melts are used for straight-line envelopes that function as self-mailers. Frequently used in fulfillment programs, remoistables start out as hot melt glues, then change in composition after application to the paper. After the paper is dry, these glues become remoistable to secure the information inside the envelope.

Cost savings should not be the major consideration when deciding on glues for specific applications. Lower-priced glues may not perform well for a broad range of applications. At this time, trade finishers should ask their glue suppliers for recommendations on the use of a type of glue that will provide the required adherence.

Today, trade binders must meet the demanding, constantly changing, and time-sensitive requirements of their customers. To successfully and economically meet these customer needs, binders must rely on the expertise of their glue suppliers to provide the right glue for a host of applications. Binders must pick their glue suppliers carefully, seeking the guidance of only performance-proven glue experts, if they are to grow their businesses by maintaining current customers and adding new accounts. For astute trade binders, choosing a qualified glue expert is simply a matter of dollars and sense.

Headquartered in Ivyland, Penn., B&R Moll, Inc. is an international manufacturing company with over 60 years of experience providing innovatively-designed folding and gluing equipment, accessories, replacement parts, other technical expertise, and service for the printing, diecutting, and finishing industries. For more information, contact Lorenzo Boscaino and Rick Moll at B&R Moll, Inc. at (866) 438-4583 or visit www.mollbrothers.com.

Saddlestitching Technologies Save Time and Money

by: Renée Varella

Binderies look to reduce production costs through automation and other innovations that offer quick set-ups and changeovers. Here’s an overview of saddlestitching technologies and equipment upgrades from five companies, all designed to enhance efficiencies – and profits.

Automation Options

Automation and other technologies in the saddlestitching process can save set-up time, help binderies use materials more efficiently, and reduce the number of operators required to do a job. For example, Standard Horizon’s automated StitchLiner 5500 gathers flat 4-page signatures, scores, plow-folds, and then drops the sheets onto a saddle for stitching. A single operator can run the machine, which features large, icon-based color touchscreens, prompting the operator through all set-up steps. The operator selects the graphically-represented finishing style, inputs sheet dimensions and other parameters, and then stepper-motors drive all of the substations to the correct settings. The commercial-duty system can handle up to 50 physical sheets (200-page booklets); job changeovers can be completed in three minutes or less.

“The process has another advantage, too,” said Mark Hunt, director of marketing for Standard Finishing Systems. “With conventional saddlestitching, parent sheets are printed 8- or 16-up and then signature-folded, but booklet production cannot start until all of the signatures have been prepared. With the StitchLiner, production can start immediately after printing, allowing partial deliveries or a jump-start on the next downstream process, such as mailing and inserting.”

Heidelberg’s Stitchmaster ST 450, for mostly short-run jobs, offers advanced automation features, quick make-ready, and fast changeover. A touchscreen controls automatic synchronization of machine aggregates and automatic format presetting for feeders, trimmer, and compensating stacker. The ST 450 runs at speeds up to 14,000 cycles per hour.

With the Stitchmaster ST 450, an operator can configure as many as 32 pockets to the specific requirements of any job. Pockets can be moved easily and placed anywhere on either side of the saddle chain, automatically synchronizing to the chain based on the format and the cycle speed. When coupled with the independent servo-motor drive, which helps send electronic job tickets for automatic presetting, these features create flexibility and automation for any type of stitching job. Servo-motors and stepping-motors eliminate the need for moving of guides by hand – creating a faster, synchronized makeready time.

Heidelberg’s ST 350, which runs at 12,000 cycles per hour, offers a semi-automated solution for work that tends to keep the stitching line in continuous from small- to high-volume operation. The central graphical touchscreen and controls on every unit enable automatic synchronization of the saddle chain with feeders and the stitcher. Heidelberg’s ST 90 and ST 100 models, for small- to medium-volume production, run up to 9,000 cycles per hour, with easy changeover and operation. Both models allow a printer to keep jobs in-house for complete finishing.

Vijuk Equipment’s 321-T saddlestitcher automatically feeds and gathers signatures through its independently-driven horizontal feeders. The in-line cover feeder/folder offers regulated air blasts for dependable feeding, and on-the-fly adjustment for cover alignment and scoring. The 321-T also offers high-quality control with missing- , double- , and dropped-signature detection in each feeder, in addition to an oblique monitor for signature registration, an over/under caliper, and missing-stitch detection.

“The 321-T stitcher offers an optional programmable, in-line, digital, variable-data ink-jetting system with dual print heads that simultaneously ink-jets the outside and inside of booklets,” said Kevin Boivin, sales coordinator for Vijuk Equipment. “An in-line multi-purpose trimmer that performs perimeter diecutting, interior diecutting, hole punching, perforating, and trimming of booklets in 1- to 3-up formats can be attached.” The CE-certified machine is rated at 10,000 cycles per hour, and 2-up production is available.

Other Innovations

New stitching technology can be found in the MBM Corporation’s StitchFold bookletmaker, an ISP wire-fed stitching system that offers lower operating costs than systems using pre-formed staples. The StitchFold can produce booklets up to 100 pages, and jogs, stitches, and folds up to 65,000 booklets without the need to replace the wire spools. Magnetic stitching heads feature one-step threading for quick and easy set-up, and the knife fold with dual-fold rollers provides crisp, consistent folds.

The Deluxe Stitcher Company manufactures a range of freestanding machines, stitcher heads, and replacement component parts for nearly all makes and models of stitcher machines and heads. Multiple-head machines include the pamphlet-making M17 Stitcher, the versatile M27 pad stitcher, and the Behemoth 18AW that takes up to 10 heads. Deluxe multi-head stitchers are designed to increase productivity with the ability to put in as many as 10 stitches in one cycle.

Cost Savings for Customers

In addition to wanting features that simplify production, binderies aim to reduce customers’ costs. Heidelberg’s Stitchmaster equipment can save time and effort in the final phase of a job, where delays in prepress and printing often have to be made up. Digital controls and sophisticated technology help Stitchmaster operators avoid post press “bottlenecks” and higher productivity in the bindery means high-quality jobs are finished in less time.

“Customers using Standard Horizon’s automated saddlestitching systems can efficiently process short-run jobs with lower set-up labor costs v. conventional saddlebinding lines, Hunt said. Operators input job parameters on the color touchscreen, then precision stepper-motors drive all sub-systems – such as side guides, end stops, stitching heads, and trimming knives – to the correct position in minutes. “Automated systems also have a great deal of the set-up intelligence ‘built-in,’ so customers can rely less on specialized operator skill,” he said.

“One trade binder decided to put our ‘easy-to-operate’ claims to the test, and pulled an employee from shipping and receiving to run our system,” Hunt added. “That employee was subsequently promoted and is still running the StitchLiner, overseeing several million booklets through the system. Trade binders with the right automated equipment now can compete effectively and make money on short-run work that they used to turn away.”

Boivin notes that Vijuk’s 321-T offers many of the top mechanical features of comparable computerized saddlestitchers, including a flying stitching-head system and Hohner stitching heads, allowing operations of any size to upgrade their binding capabilities. “The 321-T is designed and priced for printers who cannot justify computerized automation and highly skilled labor,” he said. “Our customers cite labor savings because of how quickly employees can be trained to operate the system. With the 321-T’s comprehensive quality-control features, customers realize material savings almost immediately.”

Competition is fierce. and profit margins are tight. The efficiencies gained with the latest technologies in saddlestitching equipment can make the difference for binders looking for an edge.

Our thanks to the following companies for contributing information to this article: Deluxe Stitcher Company, (800) 634-0810, www.deluxebostitch.com; Heidelberg, (888) 472-9655, www.us.heidelberg.com,; MBM Corporation, (800) 223-2508, www.mbmcorp.com; Standard Horizon, (877) 404-4460, www.sdmc.com; and Vijuk Equipment, (630) 530-2203, www.vijukequip.com.

The BIA: Rebuilding a Trade Association

by: BIA Board of Directors

“When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water.”
– Ben Franklin

To say that the 53-year-old trade association known as the Binding Industries Association (BIA) has, in the past several years, lost some steam is obvious by the apparent lack of significance it holds in the minds of a once very involved membership. The reasons for this rollercoaster-sized dip in interest is complicated, but the BIA Board of Directors, in cooperation with dedicated staff members at the BIA office, has already begun a mission to rebuild the association into a vibrant, involved, and meaningful organization.

The Challenge

With few exceptions, the BIA has been made up of three primary groups: trade binderies, loose leaf manufacturers, and the “Associate Members” who support them, including equipment dealers, and industry material and service supply providers.

As the bindery and loose leaf industries have matured, so have the members who once owned and managed them. This maturing has been a natural process, but has been influenced by competing binderies conducting mergers and acquisitions, and their traditional customers – printing houses – bringing bindery production in-house. The loose leaf segment of the BIA has fought big box retailers, offshore competition, and ever-shifting product markets. Naturally, the Associate Member segment of the BIA was caught in the middle – still dedicated to serving its bindery and loose leaf customers, but discouraged as the members from which they could build business dwindled.

Finally, and not to be minimized in this discussion, are the young people stepping into the management breach in each of the BIA membership segments. They’ve grown up in a digital world of electronic communication, powered by immediate online information available in the privacy of their offices, but they work in a mature industry… an industry where product samples are required, and where a production plan can be put together on a cocktail napkin and faxed back and forth a few times until everyone agrees – all on the power of a handshake. Many in this young pride of lions have not experienced the benefit of meeting, working, and sharing professional opinions within a group of industry peers.

Simply put, the younger managers and operators may not know what a rich and viable trade association like the BIA can do for them. Associate Member Mike Teske, general manager of Book Covers Incorporated, explained the dilemma: “It is often said that the benefits received from a trade organization are tied to the amount of participation one puts into it. In order to continue to reap the benefits of a trade organization, we need to continue to draw those that are new to the industry. Expanding the BIA brings new contacts and new benefits to all members.”

The History

Unconnected bindery and loose leaf owners from such disparate locations as New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles founded the BIA in 1955. The new association affiliated itself with the Printing Industry of Illinois (the local affiliate of the PIA) and created the mission that still stands in the organization today – to foster, educate, and encourage its members’ and Associates’ businesses by offering a non-competitive, neutral, and common ground for them to come together. The BIA offered members the opportunity to share production problems, attend seminars and roundtable discussions, discuss emerging technologies and challenges, recognize fellow members for a job well done, and award the best work of its members for excellence. In modern parlance – they formed a support group, but a support group populated by their competition.

Bob Windler, president of Diecrafters and the current president of the BIA, believes in the benefits of peer support. “It’s been so nice to meet people who, without the BIA, I would have just written off as “the competition”. They’ve really become great friends who I respect and admire, and will let me call any time of the day to solve a bindery problem I’m having.

One of the most popular annual events hosted by the BIA was the Mid Management Conference, which provided an action-packed two days where busy mid-level managers and owners could gather, share, catch up, learn something valuable, and get back to their jobs. The conference included an evening of tabletop displays and a cocktail reception sponsored by the Associate Members. Round-table discussions broken out by industry and topic were presented the next day, and a display of the many Product of Excellence Awards was available for members to review. For many, this display of product alone was worth the trip. There was an additional annual event – The Presidents Conference – a golf resort-type conference in an exotic locale where attendees and their spouses could mingle and vacation at the same time.

Over time, the Mid Management Conference disappeared and The Presidents Conference was merged with print professionals. As part of the association’s rebuilding efforts, the Mid Management Conference has been reinstated and will be held April 28-29, 2008, in Schaumberg, Ill.

Back to the Future

The BIA is determined to grow, determined to bring back what was best of the old, and accommodate the best of today so that it’s relevant in the future. It begins with a membership that wants a trade association. That is – young members, older members, experienced members, and those still learning the ropes. The BIA will become strong if its members want it to be strong.

When a trade association is operating well, individual members become better as managers of people and managers of their business. There is an intangible quality that greater and broader networking provides. Active members of the BIA deliver unparalleled opportunities for peer alliances, while BIA Associate Members deliver a wealth of information on products, equipment, and the latest advances in their fields.

Of course the BIA offers tangible benefits to members as well, including the following:

The Binding Edge magazine: The magazine provides an outstanding communication vehicle with lots of insightful industry information delivered right to a members desk.
The Mid Management Conference: Just like before, this popular event will allow members and associates to join together for two short days and return with many new ideas and possibilities to share with co-workers.
List-Serv: The list-serv is a 24/7 e-mail resource designed to address members’ needs and share online information quickly.
Credit collection services
Research and testing in the PIA/GATF laboratories
Political policy flow-thru by active Washington, D.C. lobbyists on behalf of the industry
PIA/GATF education program opportunities in areas like lean manufacturing, sales, and marketing
Regional trends in loose leaf and trade binderies: Unbiased surveys result in unbiased assessments of where the industries are and what to look for.

The BIA is a trade association in transition, but it is nonetheless dedicated to growth and expansion of its membership rolls. The BIA Board of Directors and BIA staff have worked hard to determine what important features were most valued by older members and finding ways in which to refresh the association for the all-important generations to come.

Please call Justin Goldstein of the BIA at (412) 259-1806 to learn more about the Binding Industries Association.

Duraweld: A View Across the Pond

by: Staff

Although this magazine’s focus is usually U.S. binderies, the appointment of Richard Senior of Duraweld Ltd. as incoming president of the BIA provides an opportunity to take a look at operations across the pond. Located in Scarborough, England, Duraweld is making exciting strides in mass customization of loose leaf products, primarily in polypropylene.

Fifty Years of Growth

Duraweld was started in 1959 in Scarborough, in the Northeast corner of England with a specialization in making book jackets and gramophone disc sleeves, together with wallets and pockets for the northern mortgage lenders and the government’s stationery office. In 1971, Duraweld was sold to London-based Mac Plastics, run by Richard Senior and two partners. The amalgamation of the two companies gave it a broader customer base and, with the increased sales, the opportunity to enhance automation. Mac Plastics also was dedicated to making ring binders and deed wallets for mortgage lenders, and it was only a short period before all of the company’s production was centered in Scarborough.

Using the Duraweld name, the company progressed steadily throughout the 1970s, both by acquiring and absorbing companies in London and the Midlands, and by purchasing its first Fiab in-line automatic machine capable of foil stamping, welding, and hot knifing. The in-line was soon in continual use making deed wallets and, with the increased throughput in the Scarborough factory, the lack of space became an ever-increasing problem. A plot of land was purchased and the first stage of a new factory was built in 1980 with 10,000 square feet of production space. Within two years of moving, two more Fiab triple-head in-lines were added and the first of the robotized English-made HFW rotary machines was introduced. In 1985, a new warehouse was built onto the factory and the silk screen printing division was moved into another new factory nearby. Four years later, an additional 15,000 square feet had to be added for further machine space and for the constantly-growing stock.

Today Duraweld uses simple hand-fed platen presses, primarily Crossland equipment, for its polypropylene production, but the company is in the process of building robotics to feed, take out, and strip in small runs. Branson ultrasonics are used to apply pockets, or in assembly processes. The screening division uses Svecia equipment with UV drying tunnels, and the newly-installed digital press is an Arizona 250, which prints on any untreated vinyl, poly, or polypropylene.

Changing Directions

By the end of the 1980s, Duraweld had become one of the largest heat sealers operating in the banking, mortgage, and government sectors. However, one piece of work made the company stop, think, and change its entire working practices.

In 1989, the postal service decided to give a plastic wallet to everyone who regularly used the postal offices to collect government pensions, savings, or welfare benefits. Since the order was so large, five United Kingdom companies were given orders, which amounted to millions of wallets. “We didn’t realize until later that the U.K. companies only had half the order – the other half was produced in China,” said Richard Senior, president of Duraweld. “Unfortunately, the China-produced product was good, half the price of the wallets created in the U.K., and delivered on time.”

The realization that China could successfully compete with Duraweld for large orders, and that the market was going to drastically change, triggered a radical change in company philosophy. Duraweld chose to focus on small- to medium-sized companies with orders that were too small to be produced cost-effectively in China. This thinking meant that the company had to completely revamp its office operations; instead of undertaking one or two quotes per week, Duraweld would have to be capable of handling hundreds. Similarly, instead of having a forward order book spanning months, production planning and the forward order book would be days or weeks. One of the solutions was software-based. “We realized that this would need some fairly sophisticated computerization,” explained Senior, “and being unable to buy off-the-shelf packages we began writing our own program, which finally went live in October 1992.”

The move from mass production to an influx of small orders also meant that Duraweld had to reassess its production process. The concept of Mass Customization was launched. “Ring binders became the first product where standardization of size and the way that we set the machines allowed us to produce a good, reasonably-priced product very efficiently,” stated Senior. The move to Mass Customization involved standardizing the sizes of binders, pockets, wallets, and folders. Then when a customer requested a product that was not one of Duraweld’s new ‘standard’ sizes, a small discount was offered to move customers from their existing sizes to the new Euro sizes (as Duraweld christened them). This enabled the company to gradually build up longer runs of its standard sizes, where a production run of 10,000 binders could involve seven or eight different orders with different colors and different print. “Since we were using the same equipment, there was little training required,” said Senior, “and our customers liked the better prices with faster service.”

The concept flourished and Duraweld’s binders, under the brand name of Binderfast, were followed by Easitabs. After two years of planning, the company created a new brand called Polyproportunities, producing binders, files, folders, and wallets in polypropylene, a softer version of the polyethylene that is commonly used in the United States. Today, Duraweld’s 35,000 square foot plant runs 24 hours a day, Monday through Friday, with 100 staff members and no salesmen on the road.

Keeping Ahead of the Pack

The concept of a quality, well-serviced, middle-of-the-road product has served Duraweld well, but a new challenge is on the horizon. With its early software running out of support, the company has begun to install a new software package, which will take six months for full introduction. Duraweld previously used software that was essentially a blank canvas, which enabled the company to program the calculations required to do estimating, creating text around each of the calculations to produce a description and quotation from the input of basic data. The same calculations were used to process the work orders. “We were able to integrate accounts, stock, and CRM; and whilst it was a non-Windows-based product, it was remarkably fast,” Senior said. “Its main drawback was that any additions to the system were fairly longwinded because the programmers had to go back to the beginning and flow all the way through the system.” The new software, based on an American program called WinMan, was chosen because of its ability through the configurator to do the calculations and descriptions, while still offering Duraweld the opportunity to customize it according to the company’s needs.

Duraweld also has decided to broaden the base of fully-automatic quotations and work order production to include pockets, wallets, files, and folders. “This has forced us to re-examine our production techniques,” explained Senior. “Much to our surprise we found that, for example, with a little lateral thinking we can auto-quote and manufacture pockets any size between 26″x18″ and 1½”x1″, open long or short, and in 1/8″ increments using only 166 non-modifiable tools.”

Duraweld understands that in the current competitive climate, a company won’t be successful by simply adding new software – it must keep ahead on multiple fronts. Two years ago Duraweld pioneered the recycling of all its own polypropylene waste back into sheet form. Duraweld collects, sorts, and granulates in-house and then sends 20 tons at a time to processors who convert the granulate into sheet. At the moment, the process is exclusive to Duraweld. Although recycling post-industrial waste is not yet mandated in Europe, the political and commercial pressures are growing and disposal costs of waste are doubling every year.

In addition, Duraweld recently introduced Japanese manufacturing processes, incorporating Kanbans and 5S. The 5S process requires the following: Clear Out (Seiri), Organize (Seiton), Clean (Seiso), Standardize (Seiketsu), and Discipline (Shitsuke). This has led to a cleaner factory, less waste, and greater production efficiencies, and also has enabled Duraweld to speed production and delivery times with fewer staff members.

Gaining Perspective

Duraweld is one of the few European companies that is a member of the BIA, a membership spanning nearly 20 years. “We find one of the most interesting benefits of the BIA is the ability to talk openly and frankly with people who would ordinarily be competitors, but due to being on different continents are not,” said Senior. “Rather, we exchange useful information, learn, spot trends, and have the opportunities to visit factories – not the practice with normal competitors!”

Senior also acknowledged the benefits in gaining a new perspective on suppliers. Duraweld recently had a problem with one of its supply lines, and while talking over coffee at the BIA, Senior was advised of a subsidiary of an American company that he did not know existed.

Unfortunately, there is not an organization similar to the BIA in Europe. “Since Europe is made up of different countries, all speaking different languages, the communication in what is seen as a fairly parochial industry is almost non-existent,” explained Senior. “The only time we meet a continental competitor is at an exhibition – even suppliers’ product launches are based on individual country launches.”

The more cooperative environment in the U.S. can only lead to a stronger industry, especially as binderies struggle with competition from China. Duraweld believes it has implemented a solid strategy, choosing a specific concept to follow, while not forgetting the occasional niche market.

As Senior begins his role as president of the Binding Industries Association, he has issued an open invitation to those across the pond. “It goes without saying that if anyone reading this is planning to visit England, there is an open welcome to visit our plant.”

Family Binding Finds Opportunity in Changing Market

by: Dianna Brodine

The bindery landscape is changing. Small printers are being consolidated by larger entities. Printers are installing their own binding and finishing equipment, in hopes that bringing operations in-house will reduce overall expenses. These factors lead to a smaller customer base and fewer “bread and butter” jobs to keep a business going between larger or more difficult projects.

Jimmy Yeo, general manager of Family Binding in Norcross, Ga., understands the changing landscape and has embraced the opportunities it provides to his bindery. With the help of updated equipment and a willingness to seek out new business among larger printers, Yeo has positioned Family Binding as “the place” to send small booklet, perfect binding, and mechanical binding jobs.

For the Customer Who Wants It All

Family Binding launched its binding operation in 1995 as a small “mom-and-pop shop” creating booklets. Today, Family Binding partners with trade binderies to fulfill their small-run production needs. The company offers bookletmaking through perfect binding, saddlestitching, plastic coil binding, and wire-o binding; folding; collating; diecutting; lamination; pocket folders; and foil stamping and embossing. “We have everything under one roof and it provides a lot of convenience to printers,” explains Yeo.

Through the years, Family Binding has focused on the needs of small printers as its primary customer base. With more than 200 customers, Yeo explains, “Our biggest customers are only five percent of annual sales. We have a lot of small customers by choice.” The majority of those customers came to Family Binding through word of mouth, rather than through extensive advertising.

However, in the last five years, Yeo has observed the small printers going away, while the big printers continue to grow. This has actually turned into an advantage for Family Binding because of the economies of scale. “The big printers may have booklet-making equipment on site,” explains Yeo, “but they do not want to stop their large press runs to set up for a 500 book job. It’s easier and more convenient to send the project to Family Binding.”

With an eye on the needs of larger printers, last year Family Binding purchased a Standard Horizon StitchLiner saddlestitching system with four VAC collating towers and in-line ST-40 stacker. “The StitchLiner allows us to get into saddlestitching for larger booklets,” says Yeo. “We had been doing smaller booklets, but only up to 100 pages. The StitchLiner gives us capacity up to 160 pages.”

Bridging the gap between conventional bookletmakers and saddlebinding lines, the StitchLiner allows sheets to go from press to cutter to binding machine, so booklets are completed without signature folding. Mark Hunt, director of marketing for Standard Finishing Systems, says, When you look at total job production costs – set-up and run-time, labor, etc. – you can turn jobs quickly with a very favorable ROI.” Another benefit for Family Binding is the automation available with the StitchLiner. The fully-automated set-ups increase short-run efficiency, providing the very benefit large printers are looking for and increasing profit margins.

Adding PUR Capabilities

Yeo recently has added a new service for those customers searching for PUR perfect binding, rather than the typical hot glue EVA application. Family Binding purchased a Standard Horizon SB-07 seven-clamp perfect binder in December of 2007, modified for PUR by local Standard dealer Paper Handling Solutions. “One of the reasons we got into PUR is that it allows us to get our foot in the door with larger binders. This gives us diversification,” Yeo says. “We’ve always done hot melt glue, but some customers were concerned that the hot-melt method wasn’t as effective for aqueous paper.”

“PUR adhesives (polyurethane reactive) have become very popular, especially for binding coated stocks,” explains Hunt. “It’s more aggressive than conventional hot-melt EVA, for stronger binds on digital color output. And PUR has a flexible, lay-flat quality that’s especially attractive for applications such as memory and photo books.”

Based on volume alone, the equipment is a success. The machine has been installed for approximately a month and already Family Binding has run more than 450,000 books. Yeo is excited by the possibilities the new equipment offers. “Just the volume we’ve done already proves that we could run larger jobs. We haven’t started advertising the new capability, but the machine is already running every day.”

Why did Family Binding choose Standard Horizon equipment? Yeo looked at other equipment at GraphExpo, evaluating the possibilities partially on price and footprint. “We only have 24,000 square feet,” says Yeo, “and the Horizon fits us perfectly. We also were able to customize the machine based on the space we had. Our Horizon is hand-fitting, with no gathering section. We already have a gathering machine and it didn’t make sense to duplicate equipment in limited space.”

With smaller runs of 50 to 5,000, Family Binding relies on the fast set-up time provided by the new Standard Horizon equipment. “These machines are “pick up and go” – very user-friendly,” explains Yeo. Hunt concurs: “As run lengths decline, trade binderies need quick set-ups to efficiently process more jobs through their shop. Long set-up times equate to high labor costs. The automated features provide the ability to memorize all set-up parameters, with instant recall to save time when running recurring jobs.”

At Family Binding, the company is still dedicated to the small printers it has served for more than a decade. However, a changing industry requires changes in the business plan. Family Binding is moving forward with new equipment and fresh capabilities to enhance its services to larger companies as consolidations occur within the printing industry. It’s a strategy that equals success for this Georgia bindery.

Making a Lasting Impression at Binderyonics

by: Dianna Brodine

Dan Griffin loves it when his company makes a good impression. From giving the customer a tour of his bright, modern facility to quality job samples prepared by hand to packing completed jobs with care, Binderyonics, Inc. of Elk Grove Village, Illinois aims to exceed customer expectations at every stage of a project.

Looking for a New Way to Excel

Griffin had 20 years of experience as a salesman for trade binderies in the Chicago area when the company he worked for went out of business. “I had a built-in customer base with no one to service them,” said Griffin. He jumped in, opening Binderyonics in 1993 with a skilled base of twenty employees, many of them operators from Griffin’s previous employer. He bought a few pieces of used equipment, purchased a couple of new MBO folders, and was up and running within a month. From the beginning, Griffin focused the company by specializing in high-volume cutting, folding, and saddlestitching at competitive prices, preferring very large production runs that allowed Binderyonics to offer economy of scale to large printers for their finishing work.

Binderyonics grew as its reputation extended beyond that initial book of business, but Griffin recognized trends in the industry that would require change. Consolidation had become the name of the game in the Chicago-area printing industry and large printing groups were buying smaller printing companies, reducing the number of potential customers for binders and finishers like Binderyonics.

“About three years ago, we were at a crossroads in our business with all the consolidation,” said Griffin. In the past, trade binders profited by taking advantage of the inefficiencies in the market. “Printers would be inefficient by accepting a product that they didn’t have the equipment or ability to finish, and then they would call us,” explained Griffin. “But consolidation pushed specialized services to certain printers and plants, eliminating the inefficiencies. We needed to grow a different way.” Binderyonics decided to get into the mailing and fulfillment business, allowing it to compete with the big consolidators by offering binding and mailing under one roof, thereby separating itself from the traditional trade bindery.

The first step was to purchase Videojet PrintPro ink jet imaging systems. Recognizing its inexperience in this new arena, Griffin acknowledged that the equipment purchasing decision was influenced by the location of the company representatives. “The reason we bought from them is because they were based in Chicago, so if we had any issues we could run over there for help,” laughed Griffin. Binderyonics started networking with its present base of customers, letting them know about the new capabilities. There was a learning curve, but from the beginning Griffin knew he’d hit upon a successful strategy. “We’ve been able to grow our business throughout the Midwest. People now will pay the freight to send their product to us from St. Louis or Milwaukee because there are so few binders that are able to complete the mailing and fulfillment.” A recent project demonstrated the full range of services offered by Binderyonics. Employees cut, folded, saddlestitched, ink jet labeled the inside and outside of the piece, affixed a label, shrink wrapped, and mailed the shipment.

Staying on Top of Equipment

In Binderyonics’ quest to be a premier one-stop shop for its customers, making trade binding and mailing one, the company is passionate about the need to reinvest in equipment to become more efficient with less labor. The pressure is on to produce products at what the market is willing to pay, and new machines are often the answer to creating efficiencies. Most machines are replaced after five years of use, and Griffin is a fan of technology that allows his employees to work smarter, not harder. “We’ve invested heavily with MBO because of its automatic bundling equipment – the palamides bundlers. Normally at the end of a folding machine, a person would pick the stack up, bundle it, and put it in the box, but with the bundlers the job runs twice as fast and we save on labor. Some of our competitors have been slow in going there because of the cost, but we’ve tried to be at the head of the pack.”

Binderyonics has twenty-two folders on site, along with six of the MBO Perfection series folders with the palamides automatic bundlers, four saddlestititchers with ink jet mailing capacity for imaging inside or outside, five Polar cutters with paper handling systems, and equipment for shrink wrapping and fulfillment, wafer sealing, and calendar drilling. Binderyonics uses a mix of saddlestitchers because each one has a different strength. “We have two McCane saddlestichers with the imaging equipment, then we have a Muller Martini and a Heidelberg. The variety gives us more flexibility because we can go really big or really small as far as sizes,” explained Griffin. The operation is housed in a facility that was built from the ground up and designed around the equipment for efficient workflow. The facility contains 75,000 square feet of manufacturing space with additional warehousing off-site and Griffin is proud of his modern, well-lit facility. “Sometimes binders have to deal with the myth of the dark, dingy building, so we tried to make that a big selling point for visitors.”

Binderyonics runs 24/7 based on work load. Since much of the company’s work is seasonal, Griffin has seen business return to the cycles of the 90s, where from July to December is very heavy and the rest of the year is steadier in terms of volume. The facility produces over 20,000,000 pieces per day and everything the company produces goes into the U.S. mail system in some capacity: newspaper inserts, catalogs for Macy’s, promotional pieces for AT&T, and much more. It’s high volume work and Binderyonics has chosen to embrace equipment that eliminates labor and makes its pricing and capabilities more competitive.

Equipment purchases aren’t the only investment Binderyonics has made to keep its business on top of a changing industry. It also purchased a customized computer system from Dienamic MIS Software. “About three years ago, we realized we couldn’t continue to do what we were doing,” said Griffin. “We looked at new markets, purchasing, processing – we looked at everything in every part of our business. That was when we decided a MIS system would give us the needed tools and targeted information to make the right decisions in a timely manner.” From the moment an order arrives at Binderyonics, its job ticket is entered into the computerized management information system. Work orders then are electronically sent to each department head and Quality Control. This department uses the software to oversee each stage of production. Griffin points out that the software also allows them to pick up pennies. “It makes us more efficient in how we purchase and produce in all of our cost structures.”

First Impressions Count

Fast, 100 percent accurate, on time, and on budget, those are the promises Binderyonics makes to its customers. Griffin admits that 99 percent of his competition makes the same promises, but Binderyonics goes further by paying attention to details that might not seem important, like packing. Binderyonics believes that when the packing looks good, the company looks good. “When we’ve had issues with customers, it seemed like it always started when they received the product, whether it was damaged in freight or we were sloppy with it,” said Griffin. On the other hand, if a customer receives a shipment and the packing looks good and the skids are neat, the customer is impressed with the “quality” of the job.”

‘We assume that if the customer wants us to do the work, the customer assumes the quality of product will be there,” explains Griffin. ” we go beyond the product. We pack carefully, we deliver on time, our paperwork is computer-generated, and we create good samples. In the day-to-day operation, one of those things is typically somebody’s bugaboo.”

Binderyonics has a full-time sample department that creates all samples by hand and promptly delivers the samples to customers. It also has added a Quality Control department. Griffin made the change because of adjustments in the level of expectations of his customers. “With all of the quality control programs that have been marketed like ISO9000 – our customers demanded more, so for us to stay in the mix we had to upgrade those departments.” Griffin further explained the move, “Now we have full-time people that keep us in check. Before, you depended on the guy running the machine to check the quality, but now it’s just a different animal.”

Griffin is fond of saying, “First impressions are lasting impressions.” The product is only one piece of the presentation for Binderyonics. The packing, the packing slips, the skids’ all lead to the customer’s sense that Binderyonics cares about quality from beginning to end of each project.

By diversifying its base from trade bindery only to a complete fulfillment center, Binderyonics has grown to employ 150 people and expanded its customer-base throughout the Midwest. By providing first-class service at every stage of every job, the company makes a lasting impression that is sure to keep its customers in the printing and publishing industries coming back for more.

Investing in Equipment: Look Before You Leap

by: Brian J. Marder

It’s time to invest in machinery!

There are a multitude of scenarios that have driven you to this conclusion. Perhaps this is something you have thought about in the past, but now the decision has become unavoidable. But where do you start? And what should you look for?

Upgrade or Stagnate For whatever reason, you have concluded that there is no looking back. You must invest in upgraded machinery. All of the reasons in the list below are good indicators that it’s time for a change.

Your competition is upgrading – you should too.
Your customers have been requesting a service or product from you that you cannot currently provide – so they go elsewhere.
Your customers are installing machinery that is competing with yours and you must get something better, faster, or more versatile – or your customers will no longer need you.
It is taking too long to makeready your equipment, slowing production time for your customers’ work.
You have been spending too much on maintenance and repair – or worse, you can no longer get parts for your machinery.

It is amazing to me how this exercise has become an anomaly or a special event for many companies in our industry, especially for smaller or privately-owned companies. The fact is you have chosen and continue to choose to be in a machinery intensive enterprise. You cannot exist without bookbinding machinery in your plant. Upgrading your machinery should be an ongoing process and standard operating procedure for your business.

How do you begin the process of exploring the addition of new machinery? Do your homework. Talk to your customers, talk to your employees and talk to your competitors. This is a time for due diligence on your part.

I strongly recommend that your machine operators be included in the process and that their valuable input is considered. They will take a certain amount of ownership in the process that will be invaluable. When the machine hits the floor, your operators will have pride in their decision, confidence in the operation of the equipment, and a unique increase in morale that is priceless.

New or Used: That is the Question During this exploratory process, you need to decide whether to buy new or used. The biggest difference in buying a used machine compared to new is time. Used machines are unique and are subject to sale at anytime. Once sold they’re gone. New machines, on the other hand, are available at your convenience. There may be some improvements or enhancements available over a short time, and the price will most certainly be higher the longer you wait, but the machine that you had originally planned to purchase will still be available. So if you have determined it’s best for your business to purchase a used machine, there is no need to call on a dealer until you are ready to “pull the trigger”.

The second, and most obvious, difference in buying a used machine compared to new is price. A substantial savings can be had if you do your homework. Recognize that with used machines – there are no bargains! A machine that on paper seems to meet your requirements and is being sold for a very low price will almost always require additional expense on your part. The price of used machines is based on current market value, and because of the internet, this is a very accessible bit of information. As for new machines, prices from the major manufacturers have never been higher. Most machinery today is manufactured in Europe. As of this writing, the exchange rate of the Euro against the U.S. Dollar has never been stronger.

But the most significant difference in buying a used machine compared to new is technology. All the major manufacturers are designing machinery to minimize the reliance of an experienced operator. The number of people with experience and skills to operate bindery machinery is diminishing in this country, and the wages of experienced operators are too costly in Europe. It makes sense to design machinery that is “user-friendly”, requires less experience to operate, and sets up quickly. Add to that the capability of machinery to communicate with each other, and you can take advantage of the latest technology in bindery machinery. Or you may choose not to embrace the new technology. Reliance on software upgrades, electronics, and machines that utilize more cost effective composite material instead of metal may not be for you. If so, you have to buy a used machine. Generally speaking, a used machine will be classified as “As Is, Where Is,” “Reconditioned,” “Refurbished” or “Rebuilt.” “As Is, Where Is” simply means what you see is what you get. No party has made any effort to modify the condition of the machine in any way. Do not expect it to be cleaned up or have any normal wear parts replaced. “As Is, Where Is” implies that the burden of the condition of the machine is entirely your responsibility. “Reconditioned” or “Refurbished” implies that the machine has undergone a thorough inspection, normal wear parts have been replaced, and parts necessary for the correct operation of the machine that were damaged have been repaired or replaced as needed. “Rebuilt” is one of those terms that is easily abused. To “rebuild” a machine implies that it has been taken apart down to its castings. All parts have been inspected, and if they show any wear are usually replaced with new ones. If the part is no longer available and cannot be manufactured, those parts are repaired. To actually “rebuild” a machine may require more effort than it took to manufacture the machine originally. There are only a few people who can truly rebuild a machine, and that short list includes the original manufacturer. So be careful about this classification.

If purchasing a used machine, don’t forget that you also will have to dismantle, remove, and transport that machine. Make sure that the person who dismantles the machine is the very same person who installs it. He knows what wires need to be attached to the correct terminals and where all the small, but important, parts are packed. To ensure that your machine will operate as you expect, hire an experienced professional to handle this part of your investment.

Inspections and Demonstrations

Of all the classifications of machinery, “As Is, Where Is” implies the very lowest price possible. This is a great opportunity to get a valuable machine for an excellent price. But I strongly encourage you to have someone knowledgeable inspect the machine before you purchase it, so that you can make a well-informed purchasing decision. Make sure there is a sufficient loading dock, adequate equipment available to move the machinery, and note the utility requirements. If you do not have anyone in your employ who can inspect the machine, make the investment to hire a professional consultant.

If the machinery you plan to purchase is a substantial investment or highly sophisticated, your contract should include a clause that the deal is subject to machinery inspection, and allow for a refund if the inspection is not positive. That inspection also should inform you of the correct application of the machine – what are its capabilities and what is it specifically designed to produce. Again, you should employ a professional to inspect the machine.

Purchasing a new machine requires a more straightforward strategy than buying a used one. Call in several of the representatives from the major machinery manufacturers and they will make a presentation to you on what they believe will best meet your needs. Best of all, you are assured of the latest technology and the support of a large organization.

Ask for a demonstration of the machine you are considering. You may request to see one in a “real operation”, but that may not always be the best environment for the demonstration. Visiting the manufacturer’s demo facility is the best way to go. Yes, it is a controlled environment, but you will have the opportunity to see the machine perform exactly as it was designed to perform. You will meet and speak with technical and support personnel from the manufacturer who can answer your questions better than anyone. Most importantly, you will begin to develop a valuable relationship with these knowledgeable people.

Here’s a secret! Machines being demonstrated at trade shows provide an excellent opportunity to purchase a new machine. They have been finely tuned, usually include some important options, and are the very latest version. The manufacturer has a tremendous incentive to sell it so the machine does not have to be shipped back to a warehouse. You also have a special opportunity for publicity as the manufacturer will place a sign on the machine naming your company as the “Sold To.” And perhaps the best part, for at least a few hours, is that you will be treated as a VIP. Make sure your machinery salesman takes you out for a nice dinner. (I would recommend Smith & Wollensky.)

If you have met with more than one vendor, and find yourself confused, call in a consultant as a third party to explain what the new machinery vendors are trying to sell to you and explain the benefits of that machinery for your application requirements. One of my cardinal rules is to establish a plan and stick with it. When you determine what you need, don’t be influenced by forces to change the course of your strategy. I recently worked with someone and we both determined the specifications and specific model of the machinery he required. We even considered new machinery. However, in the end a financial package offered by one of the vendors persuaded him to go with their machine instead of what was objectively determined from research. Did he make a bad decision? Time will tell.

Investing in a new machine sends a positive message to your customers and employees that you are investing in your business! Many of your customers are quite knowledgeable about the machinery that is available. Informing them that you have purchased a particular saddlestitcher or perfect binder – new or used – may be enough information to reconfirm their choice of business partner. Making a capital investment in your own company will enhance the level of confidence your customers will have in entrusting their business to your company.

Brian Marder is president of Marder Machinery, specializing in the marketing of used bindery machinery. Marder also is the president of Bindery Consultants, providing advisory and consulting services for the bindery and finishing industries. Marder has spent almost 30 years representing two of the foremost manufacturers of bookbinding machinery in the world. He also is a graduate of Rochester Institute of Technology, School of Printing. For further information, e-mail [email protected], call (732) 972-8500, or visit www.mardermachinery.com or www.binderyconsultants.com.

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