2006 Fall

Automating Your Bindery: What Equipment Do You Need to Drive Your 2007 Business Goals?

November 21, 2006

by: Nancy Lowther

“The first red flag in any manufacturing operation indicating there is a need to automate is when there is a domino effect occurring, where one operation is affecting another in a negative way – a bottleneck, a slow process that impedes the next” says Douglas Kelly, editor and chief of APICS magazine and director of industry content.

As well as identifying bottlenecks, there are questions to address that will help binderies when conducting resource planning.

What jobs are your sales personnel turning away or losing? Is it because production cannot meet the job deadline (your bindery productivity is too low)?
What jobs are you accepting and then farming out?
How have current customers’ needs and products changed? What new customers have located in your area?
What automation (new bindery equipment) has your competitors incorporated and do you have comparable equipment?

Kelly also suggests that “a good consultant can come in and scrutinize your process and workflow. They question such things as legacy actions – doing things a certain way because ‘Bob’ used to do it that way.”

Bindery Automation in Action

Anna Massey, sales and marketing manager at Plastikoil, says that plastic spiral mechanical binding has been construed as labor intensive for a long time. How the operator held the crimping pliers and the experience and speed of the operator affected the output. In the past, coil inserters had belt-driven inserters – dozens of these lined up and dozens of operators. Consequently, productivity suffered. “So for me, automation means hands-off and higher productivity. It provides consistency. Automating this process with the Plastikoil Interline system means the operator places pre-punched books in place and the machine does the rest. It forms the coil, cuts it to length, drives it through the punch holes, and simultaneously cuts and crimps both ends,” states Massey.

Other than consistency, “There’s a 50 percent savings in material costs,” continues Massey. With this system, users can purchase spools of raw material and produce the exact length of coil needed for each job, versus making-do with pre-formed lengths from an outside supplier. These spools are half the cost of the equivalent amount of pre-made coils and there also is less waste (from cutting down pre-made coil to the exact size needed). Additionally, this system reduces the number of operators required because of the automatic inserters. “Companies may suddenly have a huge job available to them and this is often the catalyst for automating.”

When considering automating Massey says, “companies really should do their homework and research what is available.” Ask manufacturers for references – but not just the standard prepared list of names. Ask for the customer who has most recently installed the equipment. Ask that customer what made them choose it. Go to trade shows and see equipment in operation. Meet the sales reps and the service staff and see if you feel comfortable with them, if you feel they are credible, and if they can help you with your decision-making process without skewing the facts. Do they truly understand your business and the industry?

Mark Rasch, vice president of marketing at Rasch Graphics, a trade bindery in Houston, Texas, says “technology has changed and we changed with it. Today we’re faster. One of the beliefs we have is if we can replace people with machines, we do because the machine is there every day, on time, and if well maintained, is never sick.” Rasch Graphics automated by purchasing a Polar guillotine cutter since its old machine “just cut paper.. Now the company only requires one operator versus three because the cutter output has doubled. A photoelectric eye automatically brings the pallet of stock up to feed the cutter. A scale keeps the lifts in specific sheet counts and also jogs them. After the stock is cut, it is automatically jogged and packed perfectly on a skid.

The company’s old plastic coil equipment with its cloth belts and manual insertion of the coil produced 80 books per hour. Over a six month period, Rasch did an in-depth investigation of all the plastic coil equipment that was available. Now its new Plastikoil Concept QS2 system spins the coil through the book, forms it in-line, and produces 1,000 to 1,200 books per hour. For this company, automation was driven by its reputation for high quality work. When Rasch bid on several large projects and won, it needed to automate the bindery in order to deliver on time. “Automation means quicker turnaround, a lower price for the customer, and not only keeping up with the competition, but being a leader.”

“Automation means different things to different people. It can be anything from a fully automated JDF workflow to the automation of a single piece of equipment, an island of automation,” says Mark Hunt, director of marketing at Standard Finishing Systems. “To us it’s not an ‘all or nothing’ proposition. There are steps depending on how deeply and quickly a company wants to go.” With the margin and pricing pressure in the printing industry, companies are looking for ways to drive the labor cost down and stay profitably engaged. With shorter runs and thus more job set-ups per day, this means automated equipment. Related to that is the need to not compromise the quality of the final product, to maintain reliability, and thus make customers happier.

Another way a company can decide what equipment to automate is to analyze the lifecycle management (maintenance) reports for each piece of equipment. If it has been well maintained and has had few or no break-downs, then Hunt says to look at how much product is coming off it and check to see if this matches the specs in the manual. What is the actual spoilage, true productivity from that equipment versus any perceptions that exist? There was not a lot of measurement in the past. “The Horizon i2i bindery control system supplies visibility by capturing job statistics, actual productivity, and jams that occurred so these measurements can be compiled and then analyzed. And a CSR then can go into the system to see how much of the job is complete and if there are any problems in order to answer customer questions instantly. Binderies now need to automate just as prepress, press, and distribution have automated.”

Acculink Inc. is primarily a digital company with some offset, a bindery and a mail shop. President Tom O’Brien says that it is difficult finding skilled employees, so automating with devices that aid in set-up and changeover are necessary. “At Graph Expo, we plan to particularly spend a lot of time looking at all the bindery equipment.” Recently, the bindery purchased an M2 booklet maker and an Easy Crease machine from Standard Finishing in order to increase its productivity. “Productivity is one of the best indicators of how a company is doing and the sales per employee is how we measure that. In the last five years, there’s been little industry growth, resulting in fewer printing companies. But last year we grew 15 percent and are on track for seven more percent this year,” states O’Brien. Companies that want to survive will automate so they can deliver better than average quality and do it quickly.

As well as doing a ROI when planning on purchasing more automated equipment, the management at Acculink Inc. looks to see if there are specific customers with specific products, and if this is a sustainable market. The company checks to see if its operators have the skill set required and if the equipment can be serviced in-house and if not, what services are available outside. Acculink studies how to improve what it does so as to position itself as the vendor of choice.

At Globus Printing, the company has been actively automating its bindery. Globus added a STI hopper loader on its Kolbus perfect binder. This takes a lift from the press and places it on a conveyor, automatically feeding the perfect binder. Prior to this automation, the company had four to five people loading the pockets. Now only one person is required. Denny Schmiesing, president, says that “when this was done manually, it was easy to pick-up a signature and put it in the wrong pocket.”

Last year the company purchased a Baum folder and it has just added a Baum ifold, which is a set-up tool. The operator clicks on “fold” and a list of steps to set-up the machine appears on screen. “Recently an operator on night shift started running the folder that had been set-up on day shift but there was a problem. He checked on the ifold screen and found that the job hadn’t been set-up correctly and was then able to fix the problem and continue the job,” says Schmiesing.

By automating, the quality at Globus Printing has risen and the company better competes with other companies. Schmiesing summarizes by saying, “Automation is a necessity. If a company hasn’t automated, it probably isn’t there anymore.”

Nancy Lowther is owner of Lowther Training and Development and can be reached at (416) 282-1890.

Rickard Bindery: A Century of Folding Solutions

November 21, 2006

by: Dianna Brodine

“It can’t be done” isn’t a phrase heard very often at Rickard Bindery. The family-owned business, located in Chicago, Ill., has fostered a reputation for doing the difficult work, for finding creative solutions to problems that might normally require intensive labor by hand. And yet, the bindery also prides itself on helping its printing customers with overflow folding jobs, using more than 80 folding machines to take on the large jobs that would tie up a printer’s equipment.

Rickard Bindery has found a way to combine the mundane and the exotic, creating a solid business plan and over 100 years of success.

Putting His Stamp on the Family Business

The company began in 1900 when Rickard Circular Folding Company opened its doors. Fay Rickard was a printer’s apprentice at R.R. Donnelly in 1898. As the story goes, in addition to learning the craft of printing, he was required to hand fold the circulars the company was printing. After two years, he decided machine folding was the way to go and opened Rickard Circular Folding Company next door to Donnelly in the heart of Chicago’s famed Printers Row. Donnelly then became the company’s first customer.

Fay Rickard’s knowledge and experience led to advancements in the folding industry. In 1922, with Rickard’s guidance, the Faydon Sealing Machine Company developed and patented an automatic tabbing and sealing unit. In 1945, Fay Rickard developed what is believed to be the first mechanical gate fold attachment.

Fay Rickard passed his love of the bindery business to the second generation through his son, Les. Les Rickard worked with his father and initiated a lifelong friendship with advertising agency giant Leo Burnett, who is still a client. Les son Jack, the current president of Rickard Bindery, started working for the family business in high school and college. In 1966, after a four year stint in the military, Jack Rickard began working full time in production operations, running the business with his dad. In 1973, Jack was promoted in a rather unexpected way. “We were in the middle of a party with clients and he stopped the party and announced that I was the new president. It was a total shock.” Jack Rickard was 33 when he took over the presidency. His father stayed involved with the bindery until he passed away in 1997, working with job estimating and talking with the customers.

Although he continued to run the business in conjunction with his dad, Jack Rickard placed his stamp on the bindery early on by planning and executing the move to a new facility. In the mid-1970s, the bindery encompassed 40,000 square feet and the operation was quickly running out of space. Jack Rickard found a warehouse about six blocks away and went to work converting the building to a manufacturing operation. That first big change after assuming the presidency was a success – Rickard still occupies the 80,000 square foot facility today. “This location has given us flexibility to do a lot of things and room to grow,” says Rickard.

Two Distinct Service Offerings

Rickard Bindery still focuses on the folding work that it began more than a century ago. The company serves two basic functions with volume split almost equally between them – overflow work for printing partners and specialty work. Sales Manager Jim Egan explains, “Assisting print shops in getting their projects produced fast and returned to the client is an important role. We do this through our army of folding machines, some 80 in total. Often, for the overflow work, we will devote four, five, and even six folders to a single job and then run it around the clock. When there are tight turn times, sometimes it actually pays to have a trade bindery tackle the entire project.”

The volume folding work is critical to the company’s business plan, but the other half of the business is a little more fun and challenging. “We thrive on being able to do projects that others can’t produce by machine,” states Egan. “We have worked hard to cultivate the reputation of being the ‘experts’, the ones willing to tackle the most difficult postpress projects. When people say ‘If Rickard can’t do it, it can’t be done’, we feel a great sense of pride that the printing community believes we will seek out all possible solutions to get a project done.”

With two very different service offerings, marketing could offer a challenge but Rickard has success through a combination of methods. Jim Egan acts as salesperson for the Midwestern states, but Jack Rickard believes word of mouth is what gains the company the majority of its clients. We do a good job for somebody and people remember. When they change jobs and go to another printer, we pick up where we left off with that relationship explains Rickard. The company also maintains a professional Internet presence, but Rickard believes it’s the bindery’s approach to customer service that allows it to gain clients from across the country. “Customers come to us with all kinds of problems and we try to help solve the problem, or direct them to where they can find the service.”

Close Oversight, Decisions for Growth

Jack Rickard remembers 2001 as a turning point in the binding industry, beginning in February and March and compounded by the tragedy of September 11. “From a customer standpoint, I’d guess that about 125 customers bit the dust, through mergers, acquisitions, or just going broke.” When asked for an opinion regarding the cause of the downswing, Rickard is confident in his answer. “The dot.com bubble burst. There was this basic euphoria that everything was going great and would stay that way. I was always of the opinion that it was going to bust – the whole dot.com thing was not based on a solid business plan.”

Rickard Bindery survived the 2001 downswing by closely watching the financials of the company and making hard decisions quickly. It’s a policy they still follow. “We carry a very conservative balance sheet and we literally watch every single job from a financial standpoint,” says Rickard. “Every week, I get an abbreviated balance sheet and that allows me to recognize trends within two weeks. We need to know specifically what’s going on.”

In 2001, the trends were apparent quickly, but it took the company a few months to react. Rickard still feels some regret, “The hardest thing to do is to adjust indirect labor and office staff to meet reality. It took about five months for us to adjust and see what the reality really was.”

Jim Egan also can see the impact, and the opportunities, created by the industry shake-up in 2001. “The past five years have really set the tone for the future. Between bankruptcies and mergers and acquisitions, the entire landscape has changed. As companies grow, they shed equipment and skillsets in order to streamline their operations. This creates a gap in what kinds of products they can produce. As a trade bindery specializing in challenging postpress services, we can fill the void created.”

However, emerging from the fray intact isn’t enough to ensure success. “There have been such huge advances in the pre-press and printing equipment, the next evolution of the printing plant is focusing on increased production from the bindery. For Rickard Bindery to stay competitive we have to do two things – maintain our competitive advantage in the specialty arena and continue to upgrade our machinery,” explains Egan.

Doing What Others Can’t

“My grandfather used to say there was only one reason God put binders on this earth and that was to make machinery manufacturers rich.” Jack Rickard

The company makes sure its machinery is on par with that owned by its printing customers, meaning it has a wide variety of equipment within its facility that mimics what its customers have in-house. Equipment from MBO, H & H, Stahl, Vijuk, and Muller Martini populate the production floor. “We have equipment just like theirs that can be dedicated to their job for a week, two weeks or a month, whereas they can-t do that. We never have one of anything – we usually have two or three of each piece of equipment. With the miniature work, we have twenty-three. We can service a lot of customers and still run big jobs while keeping everything on schedule,” clarifies Rickard. 75 employees operate the folders during three shifts each day, creating pharmaceutical inserts and instruction sheets; coupons and product insets, with Rickard’s miniature folding department producing millions of coupons a year for the liquor and personal care markets; and direct to market products, such as maps using synthetic stocks like Yupo, Poly Art, or Tyvek.

Growth is approached cautiously at Rickard Bindery. “I don’t view growth as an absolute requirement to be healthy. I think profit is a better indicator,” states Rickard. Evaluating new business opportunities is done with a careful look at how the new production method would fit in with Rickard’s customer base and operating philosophy. Jack Rickard defines that philosophy: “We want to operate with the same business model. We are a sub-contractor in the graphic arts business so printers are our primary customers. We want to do the things they either can’t or shouldn’t do internally.” The bindery focuses primarily on folding paper. It has no mechanical binding, perfect binding, or case binding capabilities. The company does no diecutting. That doesn’t mean, however, that Rickard Bindery sends its customers away without providing appropriate resources. “We have a database of numbers to direct customers to for other services,” explains Rickard.

String tying is one area of growth for Rickard Bindery that fits both the customers’ needs and is a natural extension of the work the bindery is already doing. The bindery does a lot of miniature work – miniature folding and stitching of advertising booklets that are then attached to strings and tied to bottles and other packaging. Rather than send that work out, Rickard has invested in the capabilities and now provides string tying as a service to its customers. “It’s unique enough that the printer will not need to install and learn to run his own machines,” says Rickard.

Sharing Industry Knowledge, Reaping Rewards

As part of its philosophy of serving customers, Rickard Bindery has built an extensive library of educational topics and shares them through its web site (www.rickardbindery.com) and monthly e-mails, called Helpful Hints, to current clients. Topics include folding synthetic stocks, gaining consumer attention through string tying, and the versatility of accordion folding.

“An issue in this industry is that companies will hire young people with no experience. Rather than grumble, we decided to help them,” states Rickard. He further explains, “Later down the line, people will remember that you helped them. Our focus has always been on helping customers.”

Jim Egan believes there are additional benefits to customer education, “We feel that our bindery expertise can impact the final product in a significant way. Redesigning a layout for better machinability or driving home the importance of proper panel sizing, it all has an impact on production. If we are doing our job, we can help increase production, while lowering costs.”

Moving Forward

Jack Rickard is confident in Rickard Bindery’s ability to serve its customers well. His family has been assisting customers across the country for more than a century, and his son Kevin is poised to take the reigns when Jack is ready to retire. For now, Jack Rickard is happy knowing that his customers trust Rickard Bindery to be there when needed. “When we’re doing work for the customers, we want them to have a good night’s sleep, knowing their job is being done right and will be done on time. Someone else is laying awake worrying.”

Evaluating Cover Material Options

November 21, 2006

by: Ivana Bevacqua

Cover materials are fundamental to the design of any project. They dictate the look, the durability, and even the feel of your finished product. The importance of choosing the right cover material simply cannot be understated. But with all of the different materials from which there are to choose, how do you determine which form best meets your function?

What are the Most Commonly Used Cover Materials?

There are thousands of cover materials available and designing with them is limited only by your imagination and your budget. But in order to discuss them in this venue, I will start out by classifying the materials most commonly used in Cut Flush, Turned Edge, and Dielectrically Sealed (Tear Seal) applications.

Cut Flush Application

Linear Polyethylene: A modified polyolefin material. Linear Polyethylene is an incredibly durable material which comes in a variety of colors. Polyethylene (poly) will wipe clean of grease or oil and will not crack when exposed to extreme cold. It comes in many gauges and of course, as the gauge increases, so does the price. This is the most popular cover material used in this application and can be hot stamped, silk screened, or embossed.

Lexide: High quality cover stock, non-woven material made of pure rag fibers mixed with latex. The material is then acrylic coated. This coating gives lexide its sturdy yet bendable finish, and also makes it washable and moisture proof. Lexide materials are measured in thousandths and are available in thicknesses of .017, .025, and .030. Pajco® is a “name brand” example of lexide which comes in a variety of colors, prints, and embossings. Lexide can be hot stamped, silk screened, embossed, or debossed.

Boxboard: Boxboard coated on one side (C1S) is measured in thousandths and is often laminated to .003 Mylar or Acetate. Another option that is similar to this is graphic white cover stock which does not require lamination such as Kivar 3-17 and Kivar 3-22. These materials are offset printable, can be hot stamped, foil stamped, embossed, and debossed.

Turned Edge Application

Canvas: According to Richard D. Simmons in his book, “Custom Loose Leaf – A Dynamic Industry,” canvas was actually the first material used in this type of application.

Paper: Coated papers, impregnated papers, and latex saturated papers. An endless variety of graphic white cover stock ready to be printed and wrapped, or colored papers which can be hot stamped, silk screened, letter press printed, embossed, or debossed. Decorative techniques vary between the many different coated paper products available, as do the limitless number of colors, textures, grains, and embossings.

Supported Vinyl: PVC supported by a 100 percent cotton or synthetic woven or paper base. Can be foil stamped, hot stamped, and silk screened.

Book Cloth: Aqueous acrylic impregnated cloth. Woven substrates are visible through the color of the material, giving it a unique look associated with books. Book cloth can be stamped with inks, foils, silk screened, or letter press printed.

Buckram: Combination of poly/cotton woven base fabric with an aqueous color coating. Durable material with many color choices which can be hot stamped, silk screened, embossed, or debossed.

Cloth: Pyroxylin coated woven cotton base materials such as imitation leather. These materials come in a variety of colors and textures. Other non-coated cloth materials such as Brillante and Cialux offer many unique visuals. Decorating techniques include hot stamping, silk screening, embossing, and debossing.

Leather: As the name implies, it’s genuine leather, and it’s the Cadillac of cover materials. Cowhide, pigskins, and sheepskin are the animal skins available. Pricey, but, it’s the real deal. Leather is most often hot stamped or blind embossed.

Dielectrically Sealed Application

Vinyl: The vinyl used for this application is PVC combined with stabilizers, plasticizers, and color pigments in order to give it the look, feel, pliability, and durability required. Clear vinyl is often used for pockets and entrapments. Supported vinyl can be used in dielectrically sealed applications if a secondary, diecut operation is employed. Vinyl comes in many colors and prints. There are various decorative techniques you can employ with vinyl, including silk screening, hot stamping, appliqué, dielectric debossing, and offset printing.

What Are You Making?

Knowing what you are making along with its end use will help dictate which cover materials to use, and which to rule out. For example, if a customer comes to you and says he wants a sturdy cut flush binder, where durability above all else is needed, polyethylene is an incredibly rugged material which, as stated, will not easily crack when exposed to the elements. Or perhaps you are making a case bound binder with an accompanying slip case. The customer ordering these slip cases and binders will be using them for presentation purposes, as well as shipping them to various tradeshows throughout the year. Therefore, the finished product should be durable, but also have an upscale look and feel. In this instance, imitation leather would hold up to the wear and tear of usage, but also satisfy the look of the piece. Or lets say a customer wants an attractive binder, and wants to be able to switch out the artwork on the cover every few months. A dielectrically heat sealed vinyl binder with a clear overlay would provide the the flexibility the customer needs for the artwork. So again, knowing the finished product and even more importantly, asking your customer about the end use of the product, will give you insight as to what the customer really wants, performance-wise, out of the piece. This will not only help guide you in choosing the right material, but will hopefully keep your customers happy and coming back with more orders.

What is Your Budget?

Here again, communication with your customer is key. You can build the customer a Rolls Royce, or you can build a Honda Civic. Either one is going to get them customer from Point A to Point B, but the monthly payment will be a bit different, right? So, if the customer, (like myself) has champagne taste but a budget for beer, you may want to suggest a cut flush binder and use a heavy weight lexide for the cover. You are saving on the construction of the piece, but spending more on the material, hence, giving the binder a more expensive look and feel. Skys the limit? How about a beautiful, hand boarded, pigment finished Genuine Cowhide cover material in red with a logo embossed on the front and fleur de lie design foil stamped on the rounded corners. Again, does the customer want the Rolls, the Civic, or something in between?

Is Durability a Factor?

Everyone wants their finished product to be durable, but when making a piece, we need to know how durable. This goes back to knowing the end use of your project. If a binder needs to stand up to being used in the field and then tossed into a car trunk, where it will probably be exposed to extreme cold or extreme heat, poly is probably the best to go. Poly provides that type of rugged durability. If however, by durability, the customer wants a case bound binder that will stand the test of time and show little sign of wear and tear, Group F Buckram would certainly be an option (along with high quality board, adhesives, and binding mechanisms).

How Will You be Decorating?

Appliqué and dielectric debossing are limited to vinyl and hence, tear seal construction. As previously discussed, many of the materials commonly used in loose leaf can be silk screened, hot stamped, foil stamped, embossed, and debossed. But often you will need to produce a piece that is entirely covered in printed artwork and needs a crisp, clear image. You can get very good results with latex saturated, acrylic coated white cover stock used as a wrap. Some of these stocks are designed to be very durable, as well as to really respond to offset lithography. And again, they do not require the extra step of lamination, because they already have been treated with a coating. That saves you drying and laminating time.

What’s New?

There are always new cover materials out there; new colors, new patterns, new textures, new technologies. Stay on top of what’s out there and share that information with your customers. Customers will look to you as a source for “what’s new” and that’s very valuable.

To sum up, there are obviously many different cover materials that can be used in our industry – too many, in fact, to name them all here. But in choosing the best material for the project at hand, it is important to consult with your customer and know exactly what the customer wants and how the finished product will be used. The choice of cover material, along with all the other components, hinges (pardon the pun) on that information. If that objective is met, then you should hopefully always have a happy customer. And a happy customer is a repeat customer.

Ivana Bevacqua is in the Marketing Department at Gane Brothers & Lane, Inc. Gane Brothers & Lane has been supplying cover materials since 1846. Today the company sells over 2,000 products to the book, loose leaf, packaging, and allied graphics industries. Visit Gane Brothers & Lane online at www.ganebrothers.com or call (800) 323-0596.

Disasters: Be Prepared

November 21, 2006

by Richard Ensman

Natural and man-made disasters can strike businesses of any size, anyplace, anytime. These disasters are not limited to earthquakes, floods, and tornadoes. Fire, blizzards, explosions, power outages, and even acts of vandalism or terrorism can strike at the health of businesses. Without adequate preparation for disasters, many businesses will find their operations seriously crippled; some will shut their doors forever.

While emergency planning precautions vary from business to business, every enterprise can guard against the effects of disasters through a five-step planning process. This process involves a clear assessment of potential emergencies; prevention; development of clear emergency procedures; development of safety precautions; and steps for continuation of the enterprise.

Assessing Emergencies: What Can Happen?

You can’t identify every possible disaster that might befall your enterprise, but you can identify some.

Visualize the worst scenarios other area firms have faced. Given your location, are you prone to flooding? Earthquakes? Acts of crime? Make a list of the three, five, or ten worst disasters you could face.

Check the durability of your building. If you lease your facilities, the landlord or building manager can help answer questions about the structural integrity of your building and mechanical systems. If you own your own building, ask a trusted contractor or engineer for assistance.

Assess the economic consequences of a sudden emergency. What costs would be involved in remedying damage to your building? Disruption of sales? Downed machinery? Identify the costs as closely as possible and decide what risks you can bear — and what risks you can’t afford. Then, consult your insurance carrier about coverage for at least the most serious risks. Keep detailed records about the condition of your facilities and equipment, and take photos if necessary.

An Ounce of Prevention

You can’t prevent catastrophes, but you can minimize their impact on your business operations.

Keep equipment out of harm’s way. What common sense steps can you take to prevent disaster loss? If you’re in heavy wind country, for instance, keep computers and other electronic equipment away from windows. If your facility is prone to flooding, keep inventory out of the basement. By all means, store combustible materials in a fireproof place.

Consult with outside agencies. Make a list of agencies that can help treat injuries, disseminate information, and protect property. It should include the names and telephone numbers of law enforcement and fire protection contacts, hospitals and clinics, local media, and private companies – such as transportation companies, temporary help agencies, and contractors – that could help you maintain operations after a disaster.

Identify and safeguard critical records. These might include accounts receivable data, telephone lists, insurance policies, key contracts and agreements, building and mechanical system plans, and the like. Store them in a fire-proof vault or a secure location off-site.

Develop a computer backup system. Back up your system regularly – weekly or daily depending on transaction volume. Transport all backup disks and tapes to a location miles away. Or contract with a commercial data storage center. Be prepared to run your business with backup “paper procedures” if electronic systems go down.

When Disaster Strikes

The real test of your ability to respond to an emergency often lies in the procedures you develop. At minimum, here’s what those procedures should help you do:

React to weather predictions. Information about severe storms is available from the National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center. These agencies issue “advisories” when potentially harmful weather is possible, and upgrade these notices as the danger becomes more acute. As official warnings are upgraded, employees should be sent home, your property secured, and your emergency staff mobilized.

Designate emergency leaders. One person should have overall responsibility for crisis management. As part of this individual’s team, one person should be responsible for communications and another for building security. Be sure alternate leaders are designated as well; a sudden emergency could leave key personnel absent or even injured.

Prepare an emergency telephone directory. This should contain both office and home telephone numbers of all employees, as well as key customers and vendors. Key people should keep this directory at home, in the car or in some other highly accessible place.

Develop a plan to secure facilities. If your business location is damaged, you’ll need to know how to secure it quickly against theft or further deterioration. Designate an individual to be responsible for inspecting the facility, boarding up doors and windows, turning utilities off, and arranging guard service.

Prepare emergency communication procedures. Identify an off-premises source of communication: a friend’s office across town, a cellular telephone network, even your home telephone. Next, build a “telephone tree” that can systematically bring information to employees and others. Use it when an emergency hits.

Write it all down. Develop a simple, but thorough, emergency procedure plan. A things-to-do list is fine as long it spells out the specific steps you must take to deal with the problem. Be sure you – and key people around you – keep the plan handy at home and at the office.

Although you should be vitally concerned about the health and survival of your business after a disaster, you also must be concerned about the well-being of your employees and their families. Employees may need assistance getting home or, if the emergency is critical, may need to safely remain at your facility until the danger subsides. Some tips:

Designate an inside “safe zone.” The safest part of your building might be a sturdy rear wing or the basement. Employees should gather in the designated safe zone if they’re present when disaster strikes.

Provide emergency directions. The first set of directions should be internal, and should guide employees to your safe zone. The second set of directions should designate emergency fire exits. And the third set should spell out the safest escape roads from the area. Keep in mind that natural disasters can wash out roads, damage bridges, and block intersections, so be sure to identify several routes out.

Prepare to provide emergency health care. Your safe zone should contain a fully stocked first aid kit, which you can use to treat minor injuries. Know the procedure to get people to nearby hospitals in the event of serious injuries.

Maintain a well-stocked emergency kit. Besides first aid supplies, your kit should contain things like battery-operated radios, flashlights, non-perishable foods, water, blankets, and small utensils and tools. Keep the kit in your safe zone.

Up and Running Again

Once the disaster is over, the real work begins: getting the business up and running as quickly as possible.

Identify an “operations center” and begin working from there. This center might be your building’s safe zone, at your home, or at some other location. Here, you should have access to your communication system, basic supplies and equipment, telephone directories, customer and vendor lists, and critical records.

Make plans for reopening your building. If your building has been damaged, call on your emergency contractor, utility companies, and other suppliers to help you make the building useable as soon as possible.

Restore your computer systems. Now is the time to pull out your backup disks or tapes, or contact your commercial data center to help you get your computer system up and running again. Replace hardware as needed.

Obtain emergency supplies and inventory. Your emergency records package should serve as a quick guide to suppliers, ordering and delivery requirements, and terms.

Make financial projections. Pull out your financial records and develop a series of projections for the year ahead – a “best case” and “worst case” scenario at least. These financial projections may be helpful if you must apply for loans to replace inventory or repair damage.

Any number of disasters can strike your business – anytime. You can’t prevent them, but with careful preparation, you can minimize the losses should you suffer a tragedy and get back on your feet as soon as possible.