Finishing - Conventional

BY MARK SMITH When business conditions get tight, it's natural to think about just hunkering down and waiting for the market to turn around. It may hardly seem like the right time to make a significant investment in new equipment. However, doing just that can provide short- and long-term benefits. Postpress operations are prime targets for performance improvement, since they traditionally have been labor-intensive and highly mechanical. Folding definitely falls into that category, so anteing up for a new floor-model folder with automation features can provide a big payoff, manufacturers say. Potential benefits include lower operating costs, by enabling the use of less-skilled

BY MARK SMITH Cut, knife, blade, guillotine—the terminology alone explains why safety is a must when it comes to paper cutters. Two-handed cut activation, non-repeat knife cycles and auto-stop infrared light curtains are just some of the safety features that have been mandated by law or become standard due to market demand. Neither the equipment manufacturers nor buyers are willing to compromise much in this area. While safety still is an important factor in the decision to buy a new cutter, it is an advantage more or less shared by all state-of-the-art models compared to older machines. It is in the area of productivity

BY GEORGE J. WHALEN Process Graphic Services (PGS) of Grand Prairie, TX, is a finisher whose full-service capabilities and large facilities rank it as a truly "Texas-size" business. Family owned through three generations and now solidly established as the finisher of choice for many printers, packaging-makers and publishers, PGS takes pride in being able to handle virtually any kind of finishing work that its customers demand. Whether the printed sheets coming through its doors are to be converted into folding cartons, setup boxes, books, slip cases, sports trading cards, greeting cards, game boards, point-of-purchase displays or other printed merchandise, PGS has what it

BY CHRIS BAUER The threat of roving power outages throughout the state? Not a problem. Fears of an economic slowdown or even a recession? Not a worry for George Jackson, president, and Horst Doerzapf, CEO, of Santa Fe Springs, CA-based Ross Bindery. While many in the printing industry may shy away from making purchases during these trying economic times, Ross Bindery is forging ahead with some big moves. That fact is verified by Jackson, as he announces Ross Bindery's recent purchase of four new Itoh paper cutting machines, supplied by LDR International. "The need for four new cutters came from our company's desire to keep

BY ERIK CAGLE Accessories are to folding machines what cherries are to cheesecake—sweet. Then there's chocolate cheesecake, strawberry cheesecake, blueberry cheesecake. On the folder side, there's the need for product/card tipping, product sampling with peelable gluing, plow folding and the like, not to mention old standbys like scoring, slitting and perforating. Make no mistake about it, printers and trade finishers still seek units that are easy to operate, with short setup times, quick makereadies and capable of outstanding production levels. But auxiliary equipment can greatly augment the humble folder. The aforementioned features are among the most requested by customers, according to Wayne Pagel, president

Once part of a merger-induced consolidated firm, Specialties Bindery has broken out of that industry stronghold and is out on its own. Business is now booming and the future looks bright. BY T.J. TEDESCO Specialties Bindery has a history of bucking business fads. The suburban Washington, DC-based company was acquisition prey in 1988, long before merger mania swept through the printing industry. Then, after nine years of being a cog in the Quebecor empire, three former owners bought the company back in mid-1997. Now the company is looking to the future. In 1971, Ron Ridgeway and Bill Schroder founded Specialties Bindery to provide postpress

BY ERIK CAGLE Quad/Graphics has installed the latest design in Ferag gathering/stitching/ trimming systems at its plant in Lomira, WI, marking the third such system installation for Quad. The new system includes six log-fed feeders, which transport signatures to a rotary gathering drum, then to a shear-cut trimmer. According to Frank Arndorfer, Quad/Graphics' vice president of finishing operations, adding the third Ferag unit bolsters the company in a number of ways. The Ferags are the workhorses on the shop floor. "We lean toward Ferag because we have an application for production that requires more of a Gatlin gun approach—high volume and relative ease of use," Arndorfer says.

BY ERIK CAGLE Is it possible for a gluing system to be all things to all printers and finishers? The answer to that question is a wholehearted yes. Let's be honest, the days of "Type A personality" gluing systems are long gone. Competition on the manufacturer level has prevented one-dimensional systems from becoming prevalent. Gluing systems must play nice with the presses, or they'll find themselves taking an extended time out on a dusty shelf in a second-hand shop. Not only must they be easy to use, setup and maintain, but application must be uniform. By the same token, not every system will be

Turnaround times are collapsing. Customers demand the hottest new printing techniques. Technology changes daily. Electronic information, files and disks come at you from every direction. And, amid the whirlwind, you need to maintain the quality standards that differentiate your company. What's a printer to do? George Rice & Sons, a Quebecor World company, tackles the challenges by utilizing the latest technology. "To compete in this industry today and tomorrow," confides Randy Ginsberg, president of George Rice & Sons, "you must have the latest technology and you must also have the people who understand it." George Rice & Sons was started in 1879

Finishing gear filled a few halls at DRUPA, with computerized integration more prevalent than ever before. BY BOB NEUBAUER Computers have integrated themselves into the postpress world more than ever. From monitoring machine functions to linking with digital workflows, the latest bindery equipment is smarter than ever. Take Heidelberg's Stitchmaster ST 400, shown in its immense finishing area at DRUPA. Data generated at the impositioning stage of the prepress process can be loaded into the ST 400's press-setting program. Also, feeding, gathering, stitching and cutting are all monitored to prevent time-consuming jams. Here are some of the highlights from the show. MBO demonstrated the new Navigator Control-Touch and