From stationery packages to annual reports to large, multi-page booklets City Printing’s in-house bindery provides a variety of binding options to meet your needs. Our bindery operators take great pride in delivering quality work on time and on budget.
To follow is a listing of what City Printing can provide:
Cutting
This process involves precisely slicing printed sheets down to the exact size and shape required for the finished piece, which ensures consistency, clean edges, and professional presentation. Whether producing business cards, brochures, books, or packaging, accurate cutting is essential to achieve the final product’s intended look, functionality, and ease of use.Scoring
The process of making a light indentation or crease in paper to weaken the fibers along a specific line. This controlled impression ensures that the sheet folds smoothly and accurately, producing a crisp, professional edge without cracking or damaging the material. Scoring is especially important when working with heavy cardstock, textured papers, or designs with dense ink coverage, as these materials are more prone to splitting during folding. It is also essential when folds run against the paper grain. Depending on production needs, scoring can be performed inline during printing or offline as a separate finishing step.Folding
Folding is the process of bending printed sheets into specific configurations to achieve the desired format and functionality of the piece. Common fold styles include the bi-fold, tri-fold, half fold, letter fold, accordion fold, gate fold, and z-fold, each offering a unique way to organize and present information. Precision during folding is crucial for proper alignment, readability, and overall appearance. This finishing technique is widely used in creating brochures, pamphlets, newsletters, direct mail pieces, and product inserts, turning a flat sheet into a structured, easy-to-navigate communication tool.Collating
Collating is the process of organizing the pages of a multi-page document into the correct sequential order to create complete, properly assembled sets.Padding
Padding is a binding method in which adhesive is applied to one edge of a stack of sheets to create a temporary pad − such as a notepad or order pad − from which pages can be easily removed.Gluing
Gluing is the process of applying adhesive to bind or assemble printed materials. It’s an essential step used to turn flat printed sheets into finished products such as books, folders, and packaging.Perforating
Perforating involves making a series of small, evenly spaced holes or cuts in paper or other materials to enable easy and precise tearing. This creates a controlled separation line for items such as coupons, tickets, or detachable forms.Sequential Numbering
Numbering is the process of printing sequential, unique numbers (e.g., 001, 002, 003) on individual copies of a document or item. This provides distinct identification for each piece, aiding in organization, tracking, and record-keeping. It’s commonly used on forms such as invoices, receipts, contracts, and tickets.Hole Drilling
Hole drilling is an automated process that uses a specialized rotating drill bit to create clean, round holes through stacks of paper. Unlike a standard hole punch, drilling machines can handle hundreds of sheets at once, making them ideal for high-volume applications.Shrink Wrapping
Shrink wrapping is a packaging method where a clear plastic film is heated to tightly seal around a printed item, protecting it from dust, moisture, and damage while providing tamper-evident protection and branding opportunities.Wafer Sealing & Tabbing
Wafer sealing and tabbing involves applying small, self-adhesive seals, or tabs, to secure folded, non-enveloped mail pieces. This helps keep brochures, newsletters, and booklets closed, preventing damage and ensuring smooth processing through high-speed postal equipment.Stapling
Stapling, also referred to as stitching, is the process of binding multiple pages together using thin metal wire. It’s a common, cost-effective finishing method for assembling booklets, magazines, catalogs, and reports.Wire Stitching
Wire stitching is a binding method that secures printed pages using a thin, durable metal wire. Similar to stapling, it uses a continuous wire spool instead of individual staples, making it efficient for high-volume production.Saddle Stitching
Saddle stitching is a binding method where printed pages are folded in half and stitched through the fold, or spine. Commonly used for booklets and magazines with fewer than 100 pages, it allows the finished product to lie relatively flat.Perfect Binding
Perfect binding is a method for producing soft-cover books or booklets by gluing a cardstock cover to a block of pages, which are then trimmed on three sides for clean edges. This creates a square spine suitable for printing titles and is ideal for paperback books, magazines, and thick brochures with many pages.Spiral/Coil Binding
Spiral or coil binding uses a continuous plastic or metal coil to hold pages and covers together. Holes are punched along the document’s spine, the coil is threaded through, and the ends are crimped to make sure it is secure. This creates a durable, flexible document that lies flat when opened and is ideal for workbooks, cookbooks, and frequently used manuals.Rivet Binding
Rivet binding, or screw-post binding, involves fastening hole-punched pages and covers with metal posts and screws. It’s a durable, adjustable method ideal for portfolios, swatch books, and presentations.Wire-O Binding
Wire-O, or twin-loop binding, secures pages with a continuous wire threaded through pre-punched holes along the document’s edge. It allows the document to lie flat and fold back 360 degrees, making it a durable, convenient option for notebooks, calendars, and reports.Assembly by Hand
Hand assembly refers to completing the final stages of a project manually rather than by machine. It’s used for specialized, delicate, or complex tasks that require human precision, and remains an important step in many finishing and packaging processes despite widespread automation.