Helpful Tips

December 2005:

Collating: Always in Order

Coyne’s collating capabilities let you easily include features such as index tabs into your mechanically-bound books – even if they’re oversized!

It may seem like an “in-between” step in the mechanical binding process, but collating is vital to the success of your finished products. The complexity of collating increases when a project has multiple versions, or if inserts such as specialty stocks, index tabs or foldouts enter the mix. Let’s take a look at a few details on collating:

Go Beyond the Numbers
Many customers will instruct finishers to follow page numbers or rely on them to determine collating order. This can become difficult however, if some text pages don’t have page numbers, or multiple versions of product are being produced. Establish the proper sequence with your finisher by providing a sample collated piece. It sounds elementary, but it’s a crucial planning step that could save time and aggravation.

Layout Tip: Use collating “step” marks - A decidedly low-tech yet effective way to check for proper collating, step marks – also known as step-down notches – are small grooves placed in the folds of signatures or on the untrimmed edges of sheets that form an angled line. If the “steps” aren’t straight, the project is improperly collated.

The Coyne Advantage
At Coyne Graphic Finishing, we specialize in collating oversized stocks for large-format products such as wall calendars and POP displays. Our automated equipment is capable of handling even the thickest stocks (up to 50 pt. chipboard!) prior to mechanical binding. With 12 continuous-feed pockets on our large-format equipment, we can collate high-volume projects very quickly. Give Coyne Graphic Finishing a call to discuss your next large-format collating or mechanical binding project.