Niche marketing is a reality of the modern age. And it used to be that targeted brochures and mailings were the only economical way to reach these valuable segments. But now on-demand books, rich in specific content are possible, thanks to digital printing and the BookMaster B360 Book-on-Demand (BOD) production line from Bielomatik, again represented exclusively in the UK and Ireland by Friedheim International. Up until recently, book-on-demand production was limited to soft cover brochures and paperback books.  But now hard cover books can be produced simply and economically with the BOD technology from Bielomatik.  This means that premium quality case bound books can now be published to order and bound with traditional, added value cloth covers and a high strength dispersion glue.  The finished books have the rounded back with headband valued by book owners, and the finished book block is inserted between the end papers and into the cover. With the new process, such valuable hard cover books can be produced in quantities as small as one. This technology allows publishers to commercially produce limited volumes of pre-production and post-production texts, as well as specialised and technical or special interest volumes, sample books and pilot copies.

High quality with compromise: hard cover binding with BookMaster

The combination of Bielomatik’s BookMaster B360 binding line and CutMaster B360 is a state-of-the-art solution for efficient hard cover book production.  Totally compatible with networked on-line operations and with all current digital printing systems, the BookMaster’s computer-based process control enables the user to produce medium and small runs without constantly re-calibrating the set up.

The flexible technology of the BookMaster system is such that it is equipped to bind a high quality hard cover book every ten seconds – in various spine sizes ranging from 6 to 60 mm, and in various cover sizes from 105 x 148 mm to 250 x 320 mm.  This therefore means that the entire process, from incoming order to finished book, attains a level of speed, flexibility, responsiveness and cost-effectiveness that makes book-on-demand manufacturing a reality – and unsold press runs a thing of the past!

In detail, benefits of the BookMaster B360 binding line include:

• No set-up times due to software-supported control elements
• No wasted set-up sheets
• Continuous workflow starting from order placement to delivery
• Fully automatic cutting and infeed of required material
• Fully variable application with specified sizes
• Economic production from print runs of 1 up to 1,000 units
• Easy to handle by barcode input
• Compatible with common digital printing systems
• Compatible with common database systems
• Easy maintenance and trouble-shooting via on-line analysis systems and easy exterior access to service areas
• Small footprint

With such flexibility of operation, the possible applications for the Bielomatik BookMaster B360 book-on-demand concept are wide ranging and cover numerous market sectors:

Publishing:

• Book content that must be frequently updated (eg. technical books in fast changing fields, medical books, law books, school books, tax codes, agendas, etc)
• Books in small initial quantities (eg. obscure titles to test the market if demand is not certain)
• Rare literary books, books with exotic or scientific subjects
• High volume books like paperbacks, technical and teaching books with volatile changes in demand for certain titles
• Reprints can now be made available without the need for a pre-determined quantity

Business and commerce:

• Catalogues and complex product information
• User and operator manuals
• Documentation, Company History, Chronicles, Finacial Reports, Annual Reports
• Printed materials for one-to-one Marketing and Promotional activities

Colleges and universities:

• College and university level theses, yearbooks, student and curriculum guides

Private sector:

• Customised, individually designed or personalised print material
• Family history or memories
• Individually prepared collections of pre-existing content on personal subjects, such as travel, cooking and other hobbies, stories and poems, etc