by DPS Magazine Staff
The September issue of DPS Magazine focuses on book manufacturing. Several players in the book finishing space offer smart solutions for book manufacturing. Here are a few highlights.
For C.P. Bourg, book manufacturing is referred to as a “Book Factory.” This solution is a collection of automated tools that can be assembled to perfect bind, trim, and automatically convert two- or four-up incoming sheets into form-sized book blocks.
Tressler says the solution can manage “cover to content” as well as trim size format changes. It automatically adjusts for varying spine thicknesses without human intervention and is available is either PUR or EVA adhesives.
Duplo’s 700i Booklet System combines automation with efficient design, making it ideal for high-volume booklet production. Integrating the DBM-700 Bookletmaker and DBM-700T Trimmer, this system streamlines the entire process by combining the stitcher, folder, and face trimmer into one seamless workflow—eliminating the need to set up and fold signatures separately. With the introduction of the new DBM-700S Square Spine, this system excels in producing thicker booklets—up to 50 sheets—with a square spine finish.
Muller Martini’s flagship smart finishing solutions in book production include the SigmaLine or Hunkeler book block solutions integrated with its digital finishing binding solutions such as our Alegro Digital or Antaro Digital lines that are fully integrated with the Connex workflow system.
“These fully integrated end-to-end solutions automate everything from PDF file in from a customer MIS/ERP system to finished products out ‘File to Finish Workflow.’ The Connex workflow suite acts as the digital backbone, connecting prepress, press, and finishing, and enabling real-time tracking, job management, and automatic setup of finishing lines,” shares Carlos Martins, head of solution management, Muller Martini.
Tecnau solutions for book block preparation include glued and non-glued options. For glued books, Scott Peterson, product marketing manager, Tecnau, says Tecnau’s StreamFolder 5152 automates the positioning of plow-fold heads and perforation wheels, as well as gluing and jogging stations, allowing for quick and easy job changeovers. StreamFolder 5152 accepts a continuous web of paper, plow-folds it for two-, three-, or four-up impositions with Z-folds to accommodate inconsistent roll papers, then cuts, jogs, glues, stacks, and presses book blocks for reliable transportation to near-line binding.
For non-glued applications, the Tecnau Revolution 50 AutoSetup allows completely automated job changeovers. AutoSetup automatically adjusts side-trims, gutters, and cut lengths for one-, two-, three-, and four-up book block preparation, allowing varying impositions printed on a single roll to be finished with no operator intervention.
Additionally with the Tecnau BookReady users convert multi-up book impositions from Canon varioPRINT 6000 series TITAN monochrome cutsheet digital production printers into bookblocks without operator intervention. Tecnau’s BookReady reduces manual print handling and consolidates labor-intensive finishing operations in an inline automated process. At drupa last year, Tecnau and Canon joined together with Horizon to exhibit a Titan/BookReady line feeding book blocks to a Horizon binder, for book production from white sheets to finished, covered, bound, and trimmed books.
Also, the Tecnau Libra 800 is the a fully automated and integrated system designed to produce one unique book at a time, allowing variability from one book to the next in dimension, thickness, and cover types. “Libra is a unique inline or near line solution, with input from roll and/or from pre-assembled book blocks for fully automated book on demand production. With a productivity up to 800 books per hour, Libra provides complete flexibility and efficiency for short-run, personalized books and book-of-one production. Another Libra offering allows book production from stacks of pre-printed sheets,” says Scott Peterson, marketing manager, Tecnau.
Standard Horizon has a number of flagship smart finishing solutions for book finishing ranging from single-clamp perfect binders to seventeen-clamp binders to roll-fed, end-to-end solutions.
On the lower volume end, the Horizon BQ-300 is a single-clamp binder with integrated automation. The clamping section, milling section, gluing section, nipping table, and cover scoring rollers are automatically set up based on book block thickness, simplifying book-of-one changeovers. It can run at up to 500 cycles per hour, even during variable thickness production, and it can also be configured inline with a trimmer or robotic arm.
The Horizon BQ-500 is a four-clamp binder that features 21 automated sections, reaching production speeds of up to 800 books per hour even during variable thickness production. The BQ-500 can also be combined with various Horizon three-knife trimmers as well as the Horizon GF-500 Gauze Feeder and ESF-1000 End Sheet Feeder to prepare book blocks for case binding.
For high-production environments, the Standard Horizon CABS 6000 Perfect Binding System can produce up to 6,000 books/hour. It features an inline stacker for standalone gathering, twin milling stations, automated inline cover scoring, gauze feeding for hardcover book blocks, and advanced quality control features such as CCD cameras, digital caliper thickness detection, and weight checking.
Horizon’s latest book production solution is the BBS-56 Roll-fed Book Block Solution. The BBS-56 is a plowfold book block-making system designed for short- to medium-run production. It can be fully integrated into a comprehensive Smart Binding System with the BQ-500 Perfect Binder and HT-1000V or HT-300 Trimmer for a roll-to-book production line that excels at short- and medium-run jobs. The configuration can reach production speeds of up to 800 books per hour.
Sep2025, DPS Magazine
