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    PostPress

    Print Decorating, Binding and Finishing

    Company Profiles

    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.”

    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.

    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.”

    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.

    BJ Bindery: Taking a Risk, Reaping the Rewards

    by: Dianna Brodine

    In 1985, Naresh and Renu Arya purchased BJ Bindery, located in Santa Ana, Calif. Founded in 1970, BJ Bindery consisted of 5,500 square feet and six employees at the time of purchase. Since then, BJ Bindery has grown to over 50,000 square feet and more than 120 team members.

    What has made the difference? An owner unafraid to take risks on behalf of his customers, an aggressive growth strategy, and a determination to do what had to be done in order to succeed.

    “I worried less about how much money I was making – and more about pleasing the customer.”

    Naresh Arya was in the printing business. He had used the services of BJ Bindery and watched the company slow down as the owners neared retirement age. When the bindery went on the market, Arya talked to the bank. “It was an opportunity,” he said. “I knew I might only break even in the beginning, but it was a growth opportunity.”

    Growth happened almost overnight. Within six months, Arya had doubled business at the bindery, and in the second six months, the work load doubled again. “The people who previously owned the bindery were running it more for something to do, rather than as a business,” explained Arya. “When I came in, I was hungry. When the customers called, we said we could take care of whatever they needed. I didn’t worry about overtime.”

    The phones kept ringing. The quick turnaround times and excellent service allowed printers to please their customers, and word started to spread. “I worried less about how much money I was making, and more about how much business I could bring in and pleasing the customer,” Arya said of the early days. “As the word got around, it had a snowball effect.”

    “My model was to be a one-stop shop for the printers.”

    BJ Bindery is a full service bindery shop, but the California company goes beyond the basic services of cutting, folding, stitching, and binding. Additional offerings include plastic coil, wire-o, thermal binding, side stitch, and tape binding. BJ Bindery also offers unique applications such as remoist glue, envelope conversions, tipping, double stick tape, index tab cutting with colored mylar, spine reinforcing, diecutting, P.U.R. perfect binding, kleen pack and shrink wrapping, counting, round cornering, wafer sealing, and drilling. Most binderies are not this diverse, and the wide range of offerings was a conscious business decision made by Arya.

    “Some companies go for vertical growth – they just go for saddlestitching or perfect binding and doing everything in that field. My model was to be a one-stop shop for printers and we went for horizontal growth,” stated Arya. “Anything that a printer could need, we went for all the machines and services. For a bindery, I think there are very few binders that do as much as we do.”

    At the time of purchase, BJ Bindery was using three or four old folders, a four pocket McCain stitcher, and a small perfect binder. The employees did a lot of hand work. Within the first year of Arya’s ownership, he started changing out the equipment. “The growth was way beyond my comprehension and the machines that we had were very slow. In spite of my accountant, I just kept going for it and kept taking my chances because I relied on the demand, rather than worrying about the cash flow,” laughed Arya.

    Today, the bindery’s equipment list demonstrates its commitment to horizontal growth. In two buildings, the business houses 14 Stahl folders in sizes up to 30×50″, two MBO folders, three Muller Martini stitching lines, three Horizon collators, two Horizon and one Kolbus perfect binders, five Polar programmable cutters, index tab cutting machines from Scott, several mechanical binding machines and several gluing lines, and a variety of other equipment. The sheer volume of equipment on site allows BJ Bindery to meet its customers’ needs quickly, without worrying about which jobs are scheduled first.

    However, Arya has found that purchasing equipment sometimes isn’t enough. Sometimes, you have to buy an entire company to show your customers that you will go above and beyond to earn their business. As of April 1st, BJ Bindery acquired a company with a 26-year history of producing index tabs. Arya acknowledges that index tabs are not directly a bindery business, but the jobs his company was producing in plastic coil and perfect binding required index tabs. Rather than letting someone else take that business and adding a second stop for his customers, Arya found another solution.

    General Manager Anthony Estrada quickly saw the benefits of the acquisition. “It was easier for our customers – they just drop the materials off here and we take care of the job from start to finish. It was a very good marriage of the two companies.”

    “It’s a matter of trusting your customers and your vendors.”

    BJ Bindery’s primary customers are commercial printers of all sizes. “We firmly believe that our success has been built largely by establishing close relationships with our customers, and this has enabled us to become the largest bindery in Orange County,” stated Estrada. The bindery has expanded to service the surrounding areas as well, such as Los Angeles, Inland Empire, and San Diego. “One of our biggest claims to fame would have to be our fast turnaround times. We have the equipment, capacity, and capability to meet our customers’ deadlines. And our customers know that we are at their disposal no matter how large or small the job might be.”

    Arya believes the relationships the company has built are at the heart of his success. “It’s a matter of trust between your customers and your vendors. I have gone to visit very few companies as the owner to ask for their business, but I know that if a customer comes here, he will leave with happy expectations.”

    One thing Arya has done to foster trust is to take on any special projects that a customer might have, even investing money in equipment that may not have other obvious current applications. Occasionally the customer’s contract has fallen through after the equipment purchase had been made, but BJ Bindery has simply gone out and found work for the new machine. Estrada knows that the company’s willingness to take a risk has made an impression. “We’ve earned a customer’s loyalty by being willing to invest in their needs.”

    The company’s customer service focus applies to the end of every production run, too. “I wouldn’t say that we don’t make any mistakes, but I think the key to any successful business is how you take care of the problem. I think that has earned us more customers than anything else,” said Arya. “They come to us for the peace of mind. If the project is tough, they will come to us because they know we will stand behind our work.”

    “They need us as a business, and we need them to run our business.”

    BJ Bindery boasts an open, family-like atmosphere that fosters a low employee turnover rate. Twenty percent of its employees have been with the company for over 15 years and 50 percent of the employees have more than ten years with the business. The bindery does its best to promote from within, and trains its employees one-on-one, carefully fitting each new employee into the area where he or she will have the best success.

    Estrada spoke about the challenges in hiring new staff. “It’s always easier to find somebody that has experience, but that person could have excellent habits or bad habits. It’s sometimes easier to train someone new to the business.” The most experienced operators teach newcomers the basic quality control systems, working with them until they are promoted to run their own machines. In fact, more than 75 percent of the bindery’s employees have been trained and promoted to positions as operators, lead persons, or supervisors.

    “In this market, nobody wants to lose a good person just because he’s not earning enough money,” said Arya. “If the person is a good worker with initiative, then we move them through the training process faster. It’s good for everyone. They need us as a business, and we need them to run our business.”

    “Now we have to grow vertically.”

    For BJ Bindery, the most prevalent industry trend is the increase in customer expectations in the areas of turnaround and impact to the bottom line. Arya believes the only way his company can continue to provide its customers with superior service and competitive pricing is to remain on the technological forefront. To that end, the company keeps an eye out for advancements in the industry and tries to stay one step ahead. “About a couple of years ago, I said ‘we’ve got most of the capabilities, so now we have to grow vertically’.”

    “We have gone through a horizontal growth, meaning that we have increased our capacity and the capabilities that we can offer to our customers,” explained Estrada. “Rather than looking at other binderies as our competition, we try to find ways that we can do things better and faster, to try and maximize profits, as well as save our customers money. Any potential growth is just keeping up with technological changes – faster machines with faster set-up, faster running speeds, and less human intervention needed.”

    Looking to the future, BJ Bindery will continue its phenomenal growth by working closely with its customers. With an excellent industry reputation, most of the business’s new customers are referred by existing customers. Arya has committed himself and his business to servicing the commercial printers in his area, taking some risks to cement the level of trust that has kept his business growing strong for twenty-two years. “I’m here to meet my customers’ needs,” he said. “Money is the byproduct.”

    Seidl’s Bindery: Where No Is Not an Option

    by: Dianna Brodine

    In Texas, everything is larger than life. Pecos Bill ropes the wind, the ghosts of the Alamo still echo, and the legends of the Old West stretch into stories that every child knows. In Houston, there’s a company that can tell a few tales of its own, with a determination to be the best and the confidence to back it up.

    Reacting to the Customer’s Needs

    Seidl’s Bindery is a full service bindery serving primarily the southeastern and southwestern United States. Purchased in 1986 by Bill and Jeannie Seidl, the bindery employed 24 staff members at that time. After facility expansions in 1992, 1997, and 2004, the company now operates with 125 employees over two full shifts, with the ability to work 24 hours a day.

    Seidl’s Bindery offers a wide array of post press services, including PUR adhesive binding, Wire-O binding, plastic coil and spiral wire binding, saddle stitching, cutting, folding, fugitive and remoistenable gluing, diecutting, index tabbing, and more. The main structure covers about 60,000 square feet. “We’ve grown into it,” said Bill Seidl. “We kept expanding and now we have the whole building.” The bindery also has another 20,000 square feet off-site that is used for storage and manufacturing jobs for assembly or pack out.

    The extensive range of service offerings demands a variety of on-site equipment. Seidl’s Bindery competes with two perfect binders – a Kolbus and Muller, both with PUR and Ota Binding. The facility also boasts two 42 inch high-speed diecutters with hot embossing, a Bobst Fuego 40 inch gluer with hot and cold glue and auto CD and DVD insertion, three Polar cutter systems, and a high-speed pick and place GaVehren tip-on machine, which is used for credit cards, magnets, overlays, signature tabbing, CDs, and more. The bindery also does in-house steel rule diemaking with a CAD/CAM system. “We put that in for response,” said Seidl. “When we got into the over 40 inch market, we had one press. We put in a second press, and then last year we put in another diecutter to relieve the pressure from the first two machines. We can react fast to the needs of our customers – the files come in, we open them up in the CAD system, check them and make adjustments, and don’t have to worry about driving a truck halfway across town to get another die.”

    Keeping a bindery full of equipment running at peak performance is a necessity in order to meet customer deadlines. “We have a whole team of maintenance people – a master electrician, a machinist – it’s a seven-person team. If anything happens, from air conditioning to motors to electronics on the machines themselves, they can pretty much get it up and running again immediately. We keep a big stock of replacement motors and that type of thing. The accounting department thinks it’s kind of scary, what we keep on stock, but if you look at the expense of going down for eight hours, it’s worth it.”

    Taking on the Tough Jobs

    When Bill Seidl says “No is not an option”, listeners will hear a combination of Texas-sized confidence and ride-the-wind exhilaration at achieving the impossible. To meet that bold directive, risk taking becomes part of the daily equation, the available equipment takes on new significance, and employees become the key. Seidl knows that his bindery has distinguished itself by taking on the challenging projects. “When you first start out, you’re competing against everyone with vanilla ice cream,” explained Bill. When a tougher job comes along, “that’s your chance. If you can do this project that everyone says can’t be done, they’ll give you some of the easier stuff and you’ll build your business.”

    When asked for an illustration, Seidl pointed to a job the bindery did in 2006 for a company in North Carolina. The company had been awarded a huge project, but was having trouble finding people to bind it. Seidl explained, “It took a little machine work. We had to reinvent some things in the machine shop, making the machine do something it wasn’t designed to do as far as size limitations, but we made it work.” The North Carolina company is now a valued customer.

    For Seidl, the most important thing is to provide service to his customers, who are primarily printers. That service philosophy has led to adding on to the Bobst to give it the ability to auto-insert DVDs and CDs. Machines have been added for better diecutting and embossing. The pick and place GaVehren was added specifically to meet the needs for one customer and one project. “We try to never say ‘no’ to a project, even if it means investment in equipment,” said Seidl. “If we have the opportunity to get into a project from a customer that we feel that we can trust, give me 30 days and I’ll be up and running.”

    A gift card for JC Penney is a prime example. “One of our customers called and said, “We have a project that’s over 50 million pieces.” I told them we knew how to do it and they said, “Good, because you’ve got the job.” We didn’t have the equipment at the time, but if we did not react to that opportunity, all our relationship-building over the last five years would have been gone. The Ga-Vehren machine hit the floor and two days after it hit, we were running at maximum speed. That was a good door opener for us – it got us into a completely new market.”

    If the choice is to win the business or let it pass by, the decision to move ahead has been an easy one for Seidl. “We take ‘no is not an option’ as, at the least, ‘it can always be done’. We might not have the equipment, but we won’t hesitate to invest in a new highly-productive machine. What it comes down to is, are you willing to step up to the plate and get to that level?”

    Pushing Employees to Achieve

    A never-say-no attitude from the leader of an operation means some interesting days on the job for company employees. Seidl knows his staff puts forth an enormous effort to meet the commitments he makes, and he shows his appreciation through a fair wage, a willingness to provide what is needed to complete a job, intensive training, and a unique recognition program.

    “I’ve never been known for underpaying,” Seidl laughed. With a schedule that sometimes pushes the envelope on production deadlines, Seidl depends on the ability of his employees to do what needs to be done. That appreciation can sometimes go beyond the industry wage standards. “When we’re doing evaluations, I want to know what that employee brings to the bottom line. The national pay averages don’t mean anything if I’ve got a guy doing 2 ½ times what someone else is doing and it’s always quality and there isn’t much spoilage. That’s gold.”

    However, a fair wage only goes so far if the equipment isn’t available to complete a project. Seidl backs his employees with a willingness to ‘ equipment or staff as needed, and the employees respond. “You can’t tie one hand behind their back and say ‘go make a miracle for me,'” explained Seidl. “Instead you make the expenditures, you give them the tools, and you push their envelope.” Seidl also acknowledges that pushing envelopes isn’’t always successful the first time out. His employees receive support then too. “Sometimes you have a guy who’s spent three days doing all this design work and it’s not working, and you throw it away and start again.” Seidl enjoys the satisfaction in his employees’ faces when a challenge has been met, and a project has run smoothly, almost a much as he enjoys knowing that he’s pushed the envelope once more and succeeded.

    New equipment means training, which is provided to all Seidl’s Bindery employees. The company does in-house training, sends employees to factory training events, and also brings team work training in-house. Training is especially important for new equipment purchases. “Normally when we do any type of expansion, we put together a team that will be involved in that expansion from preplanning (floor space, utilization, market analysis) to purchase. They go to the factories and they get pre-training,” said Seidl. After the equipment comes in, the bindery takes advantage of the post-purchase training. Then the operators are left alone for a month or two, allowing them to run several jobs. After that adjustment period, the factory training crews are brought back in so the operators can ask the questions that have come up. “You can’t run all the projects in training because you don’t know what’s coming,” clarified Seidl. Employees also are sent on a yearly basis to training seminars from Bobst, Heidelberg, and other manufacturers. Seidl finds that the operators always pick up one machine capability that hasn’t been utilized to its fullest extent.

    Like so many other things, employee recognition is done in a big way at Seidl’s Bindery. In 1995, Bill and his wife, Jeannie, realized that several of their employees had been contributing to the company’s growth for years and implemented a ring program in recognition of service. After three years, the employees receive a gold ring. After that, diamonds are added at each company Christmas party. Seidl admitted that at first, he winced at the potential cost but now he’s convinced. “It’s been so successful and it’s really a small reward for all the years of service. Some of these people have been with us 15 or 20 years – that’s a long time,” said Seidl. “They just won’t leave, so we must be doing something right!”

    The Perfect Project

    Seidl’s drive to achieve doesn’t allow for short cuts on the production line. “There’s almost always something that can be done better,” stated Seidl. Despite decades in the industry, Seidl only recalls one “perfect” project. The job was for a shirt and jacket maker. Seidl recalled, “It had short sheet foldouts, was stair stepped, and PUR-bound. And it had all this diecutting, oval tabs, and extended covers.” The bindery ran a few test books and Seidl called the customer to talk about the samples. “The next thing I knew, here comes six people walking in the front door. Their company takes up an entire block across the street from us and I didn’t know it!”

    Seidl continued the tale, “We go to the conference room and they’re all looking at the books. I looked at this piece and I kept looking at it and there was nothing we could have done to improve it. Every once in a while it falls together.” Seidl gave credit where credit was due and bought lunch for everyone in the bindery!

    Taking the Risk, Finding the Reward

    To continue growing, Seidl is willing to do what needs to be done to make his bindery, and his printing group customers, successful. “We’ve seen the turns getting faster, and the runs seem to be getting larger. Like in every business, response is everything. We adjust by purchasing the best equipment and providing different types of finishing services before the competition,” said Seidl. “It gives us more opportunity, when others are refusing to do specialty work and swearing that run lengths are shortening.”

    Bill Seidl also admits that his competitive spirit has something to do with his drive to be known as the bindery that continually exceeds expectations. “I personally enjoy the challenge of trying to do very difficult work. I know my people enjoy it too, because when we press them, they respond. And part of that is that I refuse to get beat by the competition. I don’t want to lose a job because I got beat on price or someone else’s relationship was better.”

    What it comes down to though, is a belief in himself, a belief in the forward direction of the bindery, and a belief in the capabilities of his employees. You can almost visualize the ten-gallon hat and the flinty stare into the Texas sunset when Seidl says, “If I wasn’t sure about expanding and reinvesting in my company and in my people, I wouldn’t do it.”

    Compton Presentation Systems: Linking the Traditions of the Past with the Opportunities of the Future

    by: Dianna Brodine

    Compton Presentation Systems has been a presence in the Chicago area since the 1930s, but it’s the more recent history that is making news these days. What was a struggling custom bindery has become a feel-good turnaround story for the entire industry.

    Rising From the Ashes

    “What we know about Compton’s early years is limited to the contents of a box marked ‘Compton Memorabilia’ sitting on top of our company safe.”

    Binding is an old trade, with its roots in glue pots, hand-cut papers, and rough spines. Many of the binderies in this industry are old family businesses, passed down from one generation to the next. In the case of Compton, the name and the industry survive but the early connections have faded.

    “From some early brochures we have, we know that Clarence H. Compton initially had a storefront on Chicago’s Northside as a dealer of sample cases, loose leaf binders, report covers, index tabs, sheet protectors, and advertising specialties,” explained Adam Sciortino, the current executive manager of Compton Presentation Systems. “This was back in the late 1930s and it appears that the company initially did no manufacturing, except for possibly adding personalization.”

    The 1990s were a decade of rapid growth for the company. In 1995, Compton moved into its current 24,000 square foot facility, which was specifically built for the business. By this time, the company had fully transformed from a dealer of pre-fabricated products into a custom manufacturer, producing nearly all of the products it sold. Heavy investments were made in the plant and equipment, as well as in new products that had no proven market. Unfortunately the company over-extended itself and did not have sufficient resources to weather the business downturn of the early 2000s. Many binderies faced similar industry challenges after September 11th. Consequently, the company declared bankruptcy.

    But forces were in play that conspired to bring Compton back from financial distress, like a phoenix rising from the ashes. A local businessman named Peter Fritzsche made the decision to pursue Compton, believing it had the potential to turn around. He made a commitment to bring the decades-old business back to what it had been before its overextension. EAC Industries purchased the assets of Compton from the bankruptcy trustee in May of 2002. EAC is a holding company that, under Fritzsche’s leadership as CEO, had bought and sold several businesses in graphics and other industries since the late 1970s. Sciortino, who is Fritzsche’s son-in-law, weighed in with insight into the results of that decision: “He may have underestimated the extent of the effort needed to turn the company around. It was a more challenging time in the industry than anticipated, and the business was more management-intensive than expected.” As a result, the turn around of Compton has been a gradual, steady process. Each year since the bankruptcy, the company has built on its base with organic growth and, in February 2006, the purchase of Midland Communications, based in Louisville, Ky. Fritzsche passed away in July 2006, but his vision for Compton’s revitalization lives on. Sciortino acts as the executive manager of Compton, and is joined by Peter’s son, Bartley Fritzsche, who became president of EAC after Peter’s unexpected passing.

    The Outlandish, Unusual, and Interesting

    “We have a reputation for the outlandish, unusual, and interesting; but there’s not enough business in the country to make a living out of it.”

    Sciortino believes that Compton Presentation Systems is probably best known for high-quality and high-end packaging:  items that use expensive materials, fancy decoration (including screen printing; foil stamping; deboss and emboss; offset printing on vinyl, paper, or poly; vinyl appliqué; vinyl flow mold; and other special techniques), slick design, special closure features, etc.  The creative and unusual projects have paid off in gold… and silvers. “Over the past 15 years, we’ve showcased these capabilities in dozens of industry award competitions,” said Sciortino. “We have walls covered with awards from the PIA, BIA, SGIA, and other industry groups.” Compton is obviously proud of these capabilities and achievements, and the recognition has undoubtedly resulted in new business for the company.

    Sciortino acknowledged that the custom side of the business, in addition to bringing the company recognition for its speciality work, is also a chance for its creativity and customer service to shine. “The nature of our custom, make-to-order business is a mixture of creative effort on the pre-order side (when we generate ideas with clients and make samples), a good amount of education with clients to help them achieve their vision with something that can be produced within a budget, and attention to detail on the execution side of production. This all gets blended together on a daily basis.”

    As appealing as the awards for specialty work are, the custom jobs are often short-run orders. “Work of this sort is not enough to keep the business humming,” explained Sciortino. “We live off a mixture of things, most of them more common. We are very competitive at short, medium, and long-run lengths of more common bread and butter binders, totes, and specialty boxes.”

    The company manufactures turned edge products, heat-sealed vinyl products, paperboard products, rigid poly products, and the occasional acrylic or aluminum item. The items made using these methods include binders, menu and report covers, notepads, tote boxes, sales kits, product sample cases, educational tools, index tabs, and the occasional POP display.

    For turned-edge work, Compton employs two automatic casemaking machines. Both casemakers handle typical binder sizes, but one also can handle smaller sizes, down to about 5″x 5″, and the other, which was added in late 2005, can process oversize boards. Compton also has a semi-automatic wrapping machine that is well suited for medium runs and multi-panel items. The handwork portions of jobs are completed by employees that Sciortino called, “an excellent crew of experienced crafts people.”

    For vinyl products, Compton utilizes heatsealing turntables and a flow molding machine, which allow for highly unique vinyl designs to be molded into expanded vinyl. Other equipment includes diecutting, foil stamping, screen printing, sheeting, and riveting machines. Compton Presentation Systems currently has twenty-eight regular employees, and supplements the workforce with part time employees as needed.

    New Sales Team Member: The Internet

    “It’s become a helpful catalyst for conversation, generating more inbound phone calls.”

    The services offered by Compton Presentation Systems are not necessarily unique in the industry, but Sciotino believes the company, “makes-to-order a wider range of information packaging and specialty packaging than most other firms that are in the make-to-order binder business. We’ve built up expertise in a fairly broad range of materials and production processes.”

    For Compton (and many other companies), the challenge is not to create fine products, but to market those products effectively. The company is moving in new directions, using the Internet to expand its sales team. “We serve the commercial printing market, the graphic design/agency market, and the corporate market, in about equal measure,” explained Sciortino. “We sell throughout the U.S., but there is a concentration in Illinois and, since the acquisition of Midland, Kentucky and the surrounding states.” Compton sells to these markets with three dedicated sales people, and more recently with its Internet presence.

    In the last quarter of 2006, Compton began experimenting with Internet advertising. The advertising is placed through various ad networks that target buyers in the company’s three core markets and Sciortino believes it’s paying off by generating phone calls from potential customers. Sciortino also admitted, however, that Internet advertising isn’t an instant sales solution. “There’s a learning curve when dealing with callers who don’t know anything about our company.”

    The Internet advertising also is driving more traffic to the company’s web site. An extensive web site makeover has recently been completed. “We redesigned it to bring the look up to date and to make it a selling tool,” explained Sciortino. The “Product Portfolio” page contains extensive photos of samples to help potential customers see what can be possible and how it is accomplished. The “Case Studies” section is intended to showcase an interesting product and to help prospective clients better understand how Compton can help them solve their presentation challenges. More changes may be on the horizon, but the company will evaluate the present successes first. “We will be learning what the existing effort is doing for us and what the deficiencies are before making further changes,” said Sciortino.

    Challenges in the Loose Leaf Market

    “We need to grow by pursuing new markets and by capturing a larger share of the existing market.”

    Compton’s roots may be in the loose leaf industry, but the company is keeping its options open for future growth. According to Sciortino, the loose-leaf industry is in the mature stage of the business life cycle and shrinking. “It’s a combination of things, but principally the computer and the Internet have supplanted the traditional styles of holding information. In addition, there are more economical means of binding so loose-leaf isn’t necessarily the cheaper option these days; binding is more efficient than it was twenty years ago.”

    So if the loose leaf market is shrinking, where are the opportunities for Compton? Sciortino thinks the company is already moving in the right direction. “We have a variety of other forms of packaging that we do here – specialty heat-sealed items, turned edge packaging, and specialty rigid box and folding carton items, for example. We produce a fair amount of product that will ultimately be sold at retail, such as for the cosmetic industry and the educational market.”

    As Sciortino correctly pointed out, the budget is often the determining factor in deciding which presentation material to use. “Certain industries are better able (and willing) to spend the money for an impressive piece. Medical devices, financial, pharmaceutical – those industries have the marketing budgets to support high-end specialty packaging,” said Sciortino.

    Building on Excellence

    “We have been on a four-year growth trend. We intend to continue to grow organically and perhaps by additional acquisition.”

    Adam Sciortino is continuing the turnaround of Compton Presentation Systems begun by his father-in-law. Organic growth will be supported by exceptional products, skilled staff, and an eye on the prospects for the industry. What is it about this company that promises so much for the future? Sciortino put it simply: “To boil it down to a few words, we offer superior quality, flexibility, and selection. The reason we are often thought of as ‘the place to go’ when a customer is looking for something special, or high-end, or hard for others to produce is that we are pretty good at combining several skills.” Those skills include working with clients in the concept phase to translate initial ideas into something that can realistically be manufactured within the client’s cost expectations; very high quality workmanship; and skill with a broad range of materials, common and uncommon decorating techniques, and a wide array of form factors.

    Compton Presentation Systems has been successful in linking the great traditions of binding’s past with the techniques, equipment, and customer service required to take bold steps into the future of loose leaf.

    Rickard Bindery: A Century of Folding Solutions

    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.”