The case study below describes a particularly challenging Seattle Bindery project. We hope you find it interesting and instructive. If you have questions about the equipment, techniques, or other details of the project, feel free to call us at 425-656-8210.

It was lunchtime on Thursday when we got the phone call. There were 5,000 gift certificate carriers that needed to be folded, glued, and delivered to her client the next day. Prior plans hadn't worked out, so our customer turned to us. We really wanted to help her out, so we suggested freeing up our second-shift operator for the night. We knew this was a test run and that a much larger job would likely follow . . . if we could get the job done in time.

There were four variations of these cool card carriers, each was designed to run on a different colored stock and each had its own message, such as "Thank You" and "Happy Birthday." The green birthday carrier was the only one that had been printed. Before the job came to us, the pieces had been foil-stamped and the stock had been embossed with a different design for each. After five hours of trying everything we could think of, we concluded that the existing configuration of the glue flaps simply made automation impossible.

There was only one course of action: get an army of workers in all day Friday to apply the glue by hand. The client approved a partial to be delivered on the Friday deadline, with the remainder to be delivered the following Tuesday.

Once the job was in, our production team met to brainstorm a solution for the larger job. We committed to the customer that, if the client would make three minor changes to the piece, gluing could be automated, which would significantly reduce costs. After seeing the dummy we constructed, the client happily approved and awarded us the rest of the job.

The material arrived-25,000 each of the four cards-for us to provide the foil stamping, embossing, diecutting, and glue folding. The suggested changes worked out and the job ran on schedule and looked great.

That early test run really paid off. Working together, we were able to implement a few minor design changes, which didn't alter the integrity of the pieces, but made a big difference in the cost. We're always happy to be involved in the planning stage of projects. In this case, we made a significant contribution by shifting production from a hand process to an automated process, which made everyone happy. To see the job in action, click here.

Seattle  Bindery
6540 South Glacier Street, Suite 120
Seattle, WA 98188

Phone: 425-656-8210
Fax: 425-656-4400
miltvine@seattlebindery.com
www.seattlebindery.com

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