Stillwater, Oklahoma - Since the installation of a Muller Martini Tigra perfect binding system with an in-line Esprit three-knife trimmer, the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education has experienced a big leap in productivity. The speed of production has soared from "1,100 books per hour to 3,700 books per hour," says General Plant Manager Danny Darrow. The Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education is an in-house agency that publishes educational and informational materials for the state of Oklahoma and also for various non-profit organizations. The Tigra perfect binding line was installed as an upgrade to a Muller Martini Pony Binder which has delivered reliable service to the department since 1982. Choosing Muller technology again was an easy decision. "Muller Martini is very dependable," continues Mr. Darrow. "We're a satisfied customer; [Muller provides] excellent service and solid salesperson follow-up. Their equipment is built to last." The Muller Martini Tigra perfect binder is a compact and cost-effective solution for small- to medium-size operations that want to upgrade their existing binding capabilities or are looking to expand their sales potential by entering the perfect binding marketplace. The Tigra, which produces books, magazines, catalogs and other products with the highest binding quality, is designed for use with the Muller Martini model 1571 in-line gathering machine. Tigra runs at up to 3,600 cycles per hour and features menu-guided controls for fast make-readies and changeovers as well as easy and efficient operation. Self-diagnostic capability is engineered into the Tigra and the control system displays production data and faults. Excellent binding quality on the Tigra is achieved through a series of production steps that include: combination of milling/roughing of the spine, cam-controlled spine and side gluing, and accurate cover infeed and positioning. Hand-feeding at the infeed enables pregathered thread-sewn book blocks to be processed as very short runs or for use as samples. Furthermore, the straight-line infeed into the Tigra perfect binder has a built-in jogger. Muller Martini's Esprit three-knife trimmer is the ideal complement for perfect binding systems. The cost-effective and versatile Esprit trimmer can handle an array of trimming needs, ensuring superior quality even with thick and stack-trimmed products. An automatic, motorized make-ready system reduces changeover times while touchscreen controls provide convenient operation as well as rapid fault diagnosis. Esprit's control system can store up to 50 orders for instant call-up, minimizing set-up times for repeat jobs. Other advantages include motorized infeed from the left or right, spines-first book infeed to prevent the lifting up of endsheets and covers, and quick change knife cassettes in the most varied formats.