Perfect Binding

Perfect binding for magazines, brochures and catalogues

Perfect binding is a popular and cost-effective method for creating professional-looking publications. The process involves binding groups of pages together with strong adhesive, resulting in a book-like finish with a square spine.

Although associated with larger print runs due to the set-up costs, technological advances mean that it’s now also an excellent choice for corporate reports, manuals, and other print products that require a professional finish, but not neccessarily a large print run.

It takes 1,920 hours for a member of the Bishops perfect binding team to gain the knowledge and skills needed to reach Bishops' quality standards for binding. Understanding in depth each of the 3 separate processes involved, considering adhesives, adjusting for different paper weights, and spot checking, are all part of their skillset.

Advanced perfect binding technology on-site

Our 85,000 square foot factory houses cutting edge bindery equipment that delivers the highest quality results. We have the versatile Horizon BQ-500 iCE for smaller, digital print runs (from just a single copy) and a 45-meter long, 16-station Kolbus KM 610.C perfect binder for large scale requirements.

Supported by a 7 Heidelberg litho presses, 2 HP Indigo digital printers, 15 folding machines and 4 guillotines, whether you’re producing high-volume perfect bound catalogues or small quanities of corporate reports  our technology gives you versatility, precision and efficiency, all at a great price.

Perfect bound books from as little as £2.89 each

Pricing example; 100 copies of an A5 portrait, 46 page perfect bound book printed on 100gsm Silk, with a 4 page cover printed on 170 gsm Silk and gloss laminated on 1 side, will cost just £289, including a single UK delivery.

Why choose Bishops’ Printers to perfect bind your programmes, prospectuses and reports?

We've built a strong reputation as perfect bound product specialists, producing 5.4 million perfect bound books annually. Our HP Indigo printers, equipped with HP’s ElectroInk technology, ensure exceptional colour quality for smaller, digital print runs, while our investment in Heidelberg’s Inpress Control guarantees precise colour accuracy on litho print runs.

Perfect bound spine widths and paper selection

For perfect bound magazines, brochures, or catalogues, we recommend a spine width of at least 3mm and cover stock of at least 200gsm. Large paginations or publications with premium positioning would require heavier covers, typically 300-350 gsm. Other than that, you have full flexibility when it comes to choosing paper stock and size. We do, however, recommend laminating covers to protect the spine and avoid cracking. This is where the paper fibres break through to the surface creating a worn look. If you're uncertain about the specifications, our team is available to help. We’ll calculate the ideal spine width and advise you on the best options to achieve your planned perfect bound product.

Your choice of cover stock