Chicago, IL (June 23, 2008) – Rickard Bindery, an industry-leader in binding and finishing, emerged as one of the top winners at the recent 2008 Binding Industries of America Product of Excellence awards held at BIA’s national headquarters in Sewickley, PA.
 
Rickard Bindery secured two awards at the 34th annual event including a Product of Excellence (POE) award and Certificate of Merit award. This year, a total of 108 entries from around the world were received including submissions from Canada, China, England and Mexico, according to the BIA.
 
All winning pieces will be showcased at the 2009 BIA Mid Management conference May 4-6 in Las Vegas, NV; featured on BIA’s web site (www.bindingawards.com) and published in Binding Edge magazine.
 
Product of Excellence Award
Rickard Bindery won a prestigious Product of Excellence Award in the “They Said It Couldn’t Be Done” Division for its What We Do! brochure on the company’s capabilities. This is the highest award bestowed by the BIA and given only to entries that are technically flawless.
 
“This competition is fun because we are being judged by our peers against other top finishing companies,” says Jack Rickard, President of Rickard Bindery. “The fact that we were able to bring home two awards is a testament to the quality people we have running the machines.”
 
The brochure featured a unique two-sided step down accordion fold that was achieved in a fully automated fashion. Utilizing proprietary folding techniques, Rickard Bindery was able to make “folds behind folds” giving the brochure its stepped panels in two directions. The end result is a stepped progression from both the front and back.
 
“We have always been proud of the specialty niche we fill for the market, so to win the ‘They Said It Couldn’t Be Done Award’ holds extra meaning,” says Jack Rickard. “It signifies that we continue to grow and adapt our capabilities to products the market needs.”
 
Certificate of Merit
Rickard Bindery received a Certificate of Merit for an office furniture catalog for Haworth in the Stitching category that measured 2.125” by 2.375”.
 
Using its special miniature stitching heads, Rickard Bindery cut and folded a 12- and 16-page signature in a 3-up configuration for this project. They applied 1-sitch per book then the books were moved to flatbed cutters for the angle cut which gave the product a unique trapezoid final appearance.
                                                                                    
“The miniature stitch book was a challenge for a couple of reasons,” says Gary Junge, Estimating Manager for Rickard Bindery. “Not only did the small 2.375” spine require some advance planning, but the customer also wanted the head and food trims angled. We took the book offline and gave them exactly the look they wanted.”