3. Forwarding

Folded signatures, sheets, or inserts are jointed by bonding means (e.g., glued) or loosely

inserted in the folded sheet. The forwarding process is generally followed by gathering into blocks partial products.

One possibility to minimize the forwarding process is the integration into earlier (folding) or later (e.g., gathering) processes. This is often the case when pasting cards to magazine sheets and when gluing on end papers for book blocks.

Endpapers are vital construction elements for hard covers since the pasting of the book block to the book cover takes place through the endpapers on the first and last signature. Endpapers are folded sheets (in industrial bookbinderies usually quarter sheet) made from particularly bend-resistant papers that are glued with an adhesive strip to the back edge in front of the first text sheet and behind the last text sheet. When connecting block and cover, in each case the outer endpaper is glued across the whole surface onto the case of the book cover. The connection between book block and cover can break easily when no endpapers are used and when the first and last sheet of the book block are glued to the cover.

4. Assembling into books

Assembling is the production of a specific sequence of folded sheets, leafs, or webs into a loosely jointed block.

Gathering or inserting into blocks is an assembly process with the transition into a different processing dimension (folded sheets into one book block). This results in organizational, planning, and intermediate storage problems with a varying number of signatures in consecutive jobs.

5. Blocks binding

Blocks binding is the production of a temporary or permanent connection of the collated

book block by positive, non-positive, or bond jointing processes (held together by force, fixing elements or adhesives).

Materials and partial products to be processed are:

• collated multi-layer blocks and loose-leaf blocks,

• inserted single-layer blocks,

• folded sheets.

Different methods of binding exist. They are:

• thread-stitching;

•perfect binding;

•thread-sealing;

•wire-stitching.

6. Trimming

Blocks for hardcovers and brochures are cut on one, three (or four) sides to the final format, whereby the closed fold edges on the head, foot, and front side of the block are eliminated, if this is intended for the product. Materials and partial products to be processed are:

• bound book blocks;

• multi-layer brochures;

• back-stitched brochures;

• leaf assemblies.

7. Edge treatments on books and brochures

The term “edge treatment” summarizes operations carried out on trimmed book blocks or brochures that improve the functionality of the product. In the first place they serve to improve the aesthetic appearance of the overall product. The edge treatment processes are:

•Edge staining/coloring (the application of a colorant or a metal foil on one or three cutting surfaces of the book block to improve the aesthetic appearance and/or to protect the block).

•Attaching a bookmark (one or more fabric ribbons are glued to the block spine and inserted between the leaves of the blocks).

•Rounding spine (bringing the bound sheets or leaves in a position so that the block spine becomes a part of a cylindrical shape).

•Adding headbands (adding a thin strip of cotton or silk to top and bottom of the block spine is referred to as headbanding).