Our Focus is on printing books. And we are so confident your book project is a good candidate for Total Printing Systems, we’ve created an interactive pricing tool which challenges you to find an area where we may not be the ideal print partner for your current project. No gimmicks. No pushy salesperson. No tedious request for quotation submittal. Skip the ‘a representative will be with you in 24-48 hours’. Get your results in an INSTANT… introducing Instant Quote.
Book Interiors
TPS offers various trim sizes from very small to fairly large. Certain bind styles have some limitations on minimum and maximum sizes that can be produced efficiently, however, we are willing to go outside of our comfort zone and try to find a way to get you the final trim size you desire. If you can dream it, we can do it!
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The majority of the interiors printed at TPS will be done using the latest digital inkjet web presses which are considered text book quality. Our Screen TruePress Jet 520 EX Mono is used for single color black interiors. Unlike earlier digital presses which tended to produce gray-looking ink, the TruePress Jet520 EX Mono is widely considered the best digital press on the market and it produces deeper, richer blacks. The Screen TruePress Jet 520 4-C Digital Inkjet Web is employed to print 2 and 4 color interiors. This cutting-edge press offers colors that pop and smooth reproduction of gradients while printing 420 ft. per minute at maximum speed. For projects that require our very best quality, we print on either our Konica Minolta C1100 4-C Digital Sheetfed Press or Kodak Nexpress SX3300 5-C Digital Sheetfed Press. These presses produce coffee table quality with vibrant colors that are comparable to offset printing.
To insure the lowest price and highest quality, Total Printing Systems has a complete in-house bindery department that includes saddle stitch, perfect binding, case binding (adhesive and side sewn), mechanical binding (spiral/wire-o/comb), loose leaf, 3-hole drill, lay-flat, and PUR binding. Take your pick from the various bind styles we offer. If you don’t see what you’re looking for here, just ask.
Saddle Stitch
Saddle stitching, or “booklet-making”, is common for small booklets, calendars, catalogs and some magazines. Several sheets of paper are printed, folded (the fold becomes the spine of the booklet) and two or more staples are placed in the fold. This can be done as a self-cover using the same paper as the interior pages or a cover can be applied to the interior pages (the cover is typically a heavier grade of paper). We are able to saddle stitch up to 116 pages of 50lb paper + cover in a single pass.
Perfect Binding or Adhesive Binding
Perfect binding is commonly referred to as a paperback. Many magazines found on newspaper stands also use perfect binding. It usually consists of various sections or book blocks being assembled with a cover made from heavier paper. These book blocks are notched on the spines to allow adhesives to penetrate the pages and attach them to the covers. *** We also offer PUR binding for those customers that want their books to lay flatter when opened and when printing on a coated stock. The books are bound similarly to a normal perfect bound book but with a PUR (Poly Urethane) adhesive. In some cases PUR is used as a less expensive solution for Ota-bind and lay-flat binding. We are comfortable perfect binding from 1/8” to 2.50”, however, we have been known to bind smaller and larger when asked.
Mechanical Binding
Workbooks & notebooks use this method because they need to open flat. The sheets are punched with round, oval or slotted holes on the binding edge. Then wire or plastic coils or rings are inserted through the holes keeping the book together. Examples are plastic spiral coil binding, wire-o, and comb binding. We can also produce semi-concealed coil bound books that allow for a printed spine for being displayed on bookshelves. We are able to mechanically bind up to 3/4” automatically and up to 3” manually.
Adhesive Case Binding
Adhesives have come a long way and work great for binding hardcover books for normal use. Adhesive case is a style of hardcover binding where the signatures or book blocks are glued instead of sewn. Covers can be printed on coated stock or different materials can be used including Rainbow and Ecological Fibers’ materials. These materials can be foil stamped, embossed, etc. The book blocks are notched and roughed for glue penetration into the paper and reinforcement cloth is applied to add strength to the bind. This bound book block then has head and tail bands applied, if desired. It is then married together with the case, or hard cover, that has been made separately. This type of case binding works well and is great for a lower cost alternative to Smyth sewing. PUR Adhesive can also be used to create an even greater flexibility to the spine. We can easily produce up to a 2.25” thickness for adhesive case bound products. If your book will be larger than this, that’s okay; we’ll do our best to find a way to produce it as well.
Dust Jackets
Dust jackets are typically used in conjunction with case binding. They are usually printed and laminated or UV coated and applied loosely over the case bound book. This prevents the book from being scuffed and gives the author space for a bio or advertising on the back or inside flaps.
