Looking to boost your shop’s efficiency and produce high-quality booklets with ease? The Duplo DBM-700 Bookletmaker is the game-changer you’ve been waiting for. Designed to streamline your booklet production process, this innovative machine combines speed, precision, and versatility to take your print jobs to the next level. In this blog, we’ll go over how the DBM-700 Bookletmaker can transform your operations and help you achieve consistent, professional results every time.
The Changing Landscape of Print
As more offset printers transition to digital print, many wonder if they can continue using their old bindery equipment for shorter-run books. Keep in mind, when print businesses bought traditional saddle stitchers or saddle binders, the print industry was quite different. Run lengths were long. Jobs were printed on large presses (26, 29, or 40 inches), and there were more employees on the payroll. Before moving the job to the saddle binder, highly skilled operators first had to set up and fold 8, 16, and 32-page signatures on a commercial signature folder. Folded signatures would be fed into the 4-6 pockets of the saddle binder for stitching and three-knife trimming. This was a time-consuming process that was reasonable for the longer run lengths of the past.
The print industry has evolved. Customers now demand smaller quantities, variable data, and quicker turnarounds. Using a saddle binder for short runs is neither cost-efficient nor productive. With the competitive nature of the market, printers can no longer afford $25-$30 per hour employees to operate the equipment. Additionally, digital stock isn’t cheap, and the setup for 4-page signatures wastes both time and materials. If 50 books are wasted during setup for a 500 or 1,000-book run, that’s a lot of profit dollars out the door. A saddle binder simply isn’t the most efficient solution for digital jobs.
So, how can printers keep costs low and productivity high for small runs?
Automated Bookletmaking
In digital finishing, automation is key. Upgrading to or adding a fully automatic bookletmaker can immediately boost productivity while saving time and money. A fully automatic bookletmaker is a flat-sheet system designed for shorter job lengths, with fewer touchpoints (lower job costs), minimal waste (lower paper costs), and no need for highly skilled operators (lower labor costs). Modern technology simplifies job setup, with user-friendly interfaces that allow even inexperienced operators to create high-quality finished products efficiently.
Not all automatic bookletmakers are created equal, and many older models do not address today’s technology. Some are less automated and still require mechanical adjustments when changing over jobs. Double sheet detection systems can be inconsistent, especially when working with digitally printed materials. To read through paper stocks with heavy toner coverage, operators often have to disable the detection system, compromising the integrity of the book.
About the Duplo DBM-700 Bookletmaker
An excellent product to consider is the Duplo DBM-700 Bookletmaker. Featured in the 700i Booklet System, the fully automated collating and bookletmaking solution handles both offset and digital output. Perfect for 40-page offset books with runs up to tens of thousands, the 700i provides the capability to go from a very small booklet to a letter landscape catalog without even touching the machine. It also offers three-side trimming and square spine options with the capability to produce 50-sheet booklets. You can create 4-stitch booklets using 2 stitch heads and promotional calendars too.
Job setup is managed through a PC using the PC Controller software. With just a click of a mouse, the entire system automatically switches over to the next job. It handles size changeovers and adjusts the fold roller and belts on the face trimmer based on the book’s thickness. The exit rollers also adapt to the folded size of the application. No manual adjustments, no parts to remove, and no need for an experienced operator. Up to six collator towers can be linked for collating applications or continuous jobs. This level of flexibility is why Duplo is a favorite in the bookletmaker market.
Intelligent Feeding
Other productivity-boosting features include reliable feed and double sheet detection systems. The 700i excels in both, with the added benefit of on-the-fly rejection of faulty books in case of a feed error. Each collator bin has a 2.6-inch capacity, reducing the need for frequent reloading. For 100% integrity, optional ultrasonic sensors can detect air gaps between sheets. Even if one sheet has an image and the other has double toner, the sensors can identify when sheets stick together due to static.
The Intelligent Multi-Bin Feeding (IMBF) feature is another standout. For offset work, it functions as a traditional collator. For digital or variable data, the system can control the feed sequence to handle pre-collated books printed in reverse. The operator can even combine offset and variable work in a 10-page job, for example, by merging 5 pages of offset output with 5 pages of variable content.
The 700i PRO Digital Booklet System is another great product. This features a high speed sheet feeder instead of a collator for digitally printed output. With both systems, the operator goes from the press straight to the bookletmaker and gets the job to the loading dock faster.
Saddle binders were designed for traditional offset jobs and remain suitable for those high volume, folded signatures. As customers ask for smaller quantities, printers will keep job costs low with newer technology…and enjoy higher productivity.
ob Massa
Vice President of Sales
Duplo USA
