What's new with glue? - gluing systems - Product Announcement
American Printer

Know your product mix when evaluating glue systems

Gluing systems have come a long way since the days when a hypodermic veterinary needle was the main conduit for applying glue to paper. The systems of yore could be a real pain: They typically demanded extensive setup and cleaning, and required skilled operators. At high speeds, glue application was unreliable and maddeningly imprecise. Glue systems mounted on folders ultimately handicapped the folding equipment, so commercial printers and trade binders would farm gluing work out to specialists.

But during the past 10 years, gluing systems have evolved significantly. Like other bindery and pressroom equipment, they have been outfitted with automated features and other improvements that have enabled faster job production, simplified operation and better accuracy. Glue and adhesive offerings have also been expanded and improved.

Gluing systems can be configured for numerous applications. There are inline systems on web presses for gluing catalogs, magazines and other web applications. Glue systems on perfect binders are essential for binding magazines, phone books and similar applications. When attached to folders, they apply adhesive to mailings, brochures, multiple-page pasted booklets and a variety of other commercial projects. They can be custom-configured to meet the requirements of most jobs. Determining the product mix to produce with the glue system should be the first step when considering a purchase.

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