To keep up with the fast pace of the business world today you need to get online, be virtual, and always contactable. For the ever growing small to medium business sector, the virtual office is the perfect solution to assist business success and growth.

They are slowly catching on, but many people still haven't quite gotten the hang of them. Online or event calendars have been around for a while, but it is only just now that their potential for ...

Unibind binding is one of the easiest binding methods around. All you need to do is put your pages in your cover and put the cover on the machine. However, if you remember a few simple tips binding can be even easier. Here are five simple tips for binding documents with a Uni-Bind binding system. 1. Make sure that your pages are completely flush and square before putting them into the cover. If the book block of your document isn't completely flush before you put the pages into the cover you won't be happy with the results. For short run jobs it is easy to simply tap the pages of your presentations on a hard surface to square up the pages. However, for large jobs and high volume users it is definitely worthwhile to invest in a paper jogger. 2. Whenever possible, try to use the full capacity of your machine. Amazingly, most users that I see binding documents with Unibind are only binding one book at a time. One of the great things about this binding system is that you can bind multiple documents at a time up to the full capacity of your machine (36mm for a single heater unit). If you have a larger multiple heater unit, you can bind even more documents at one time. 3. Give your books lots of time to cool. Technically, you should be able to handle your documents and open them within about five minutes. However, it is advisable to wait at least 15 minutes before opening your newly bound books. In fact, you should take your freshly heated book and gently tap the spine of the book on a countertop or hard surface then place it in the cooling rack. The document doesn't need a full 15 minutes in the cooling rack (just enough time to set the glue). After a few minutes just take the documents out of the cooling rack and set them aside. They will be completely set and ready to use in about fifteen minutes. 4. Make sure that you pick the right size of spine for your documents. This is especially important since the spines are made of steel and are not pliable. If you choose too small a spine for your reports you will discover that you are unable to fit the pages into the cover. If you choose too large a spine, the bind can be sloppy and the pages can potentially work themselves loose. If in doubt, it is always better to use a slightly larger spine than you need. However, you never want to be off by more than a few millimeters or it will be noticeable to your end users. To help you choose the right size for your documents, you might want to consider investing in a Unibind Spine measurer. It makes the spine size selection process much easier. 5. Be careful not to touch the spines of your documents while they are hot. The steel spine used with your Unibind covers is an excellent conductor of heat. This is great for binding your documents. However, it means that the spines of your documents get very hot. It is important that you are very careful not to touch the spine of the documents when they are hot since it is easy to burn yourself.

If you are looking for a new binding style for your office, you may want to consider GBC Velobind. Velobind provides a highly professional look and feel to your presentations and proposals while minimizing the number of supplies that you need to keep on hand. It uses a thin strip along the bound edge of the document that is either riveted or is snapped in place. This strip includes a "Comb" that has a number of prongs and a "receiving strip" for the back of the document. If you are considering choosing Velobind for your documents here are a few things you might like to know. 1. There are actually several different types of Velobind binding systems. The two most common types of are Hot Knife Systems and Four Pin Recloseable Systems. Hot Knife systems use heat to permanently rivet the binding spine in place while the four pin Recloseable system simply has pins that snap into the receiving strip. Two other types include six-pin and one-eleven binding. However, although six pin and One Eleven strips are still available, binding equipment for these systems is no longer available. 2. Depending on the type of Velobind system that you have the number of pins on the "Comb" will vary. Hot Knife systems use 11 pin strips with smooth pins. The V50 and V110e use four pin strips. The One Eleven Binding Machine (now discontinued) uses eleven pin strips with serrated pins and the Personal Velobind System (now discontinued) uses six pin binding strips. 3. One of the greatest advantages of the Velobind binding system is that the number of supplies that you need to stock is smaller than with almost any other system. Binding systems for Combs , Coil and Wire require different sized supplies for different thicknesses in books. However, with Velobind you can buy one size binding strip and you can bind any document up to that thickness. Using the System Three you can use a 3" binding strip to bind any document from 2 pages up to 3". This greatly cuts down on the space required to store your binding supplies. 4. Velobind is one of the only binding style that offers the availability to handle documents that are larger than two inches. Plastic Combs, Spiral Coil and Thermal binding all offer the ability to finish documents up to 2" thick. However, with the System Three you can bind documents as thick as three inches. This added capacity is perfect for law offices, accountants and government agencies with extra large reports that need to be completed. 5. Depending on the system that you select, Velobind offers either the security of a permanent bind or the convenience of easy editing. Hot Knife systems permanently rivet the strips into place providing a secure tamper proof bind to your documents and proposals. Or, if you are looking for a binding style that allows for easy editing of documents on the fly, Four Pin Velobind allows for easy addition and removal of pages. The best thing is, if you have a Hot Knife System , the 11 hole pattern will work for use with four pin strips so you don't need two different machines. Although there are lots of other great things about this type of document finishing, hopefully this list of five things you might want to know about Velobind will help you in your quest to choose the right style for your office. Just remember, if you have a question, it never hurts to ask.

To get the most out of your Unibind system it is important to understand the different types of supplies that are available from Unibind. Here is a quick overview of the types of Unibind Binding supplies that you can use with your machine: *Perhaps the most unique product offered by Unibind is the Steelback Spine. Steelback spines are designed to give your presentation and reports a professional look while still allowing you to use your own covers. They include a colored spine with a removable paper liner. Once your document is bound, the paper liner can be torn off. The end result is a custom bound document, with your own cover set. This means that unlike thermal binding you are not required to buy a single piece cover for your reports and presentations. * Unibind also offers a huge selection of hard covers which they call Steelbooks. Steelbook Hard Covers are a one piece hard-cover-case with thermally activated steel spine. You simply insert your pages into the spine of the hard cover book, drop it into your Unibind system and in approximately a minute you have a finished hard cover book. Steelbook Hard Covers are available in letter size, half letter size and there is a new line of photobooks that are bound on the 8.5" side. * Unibind SteelCrystal covers have a clear PVC front and back cover with an attractive colored steel spine. Steel Crystal covers are a one piece cover, meaning that your cover and binding spine are integrated into on piece. This makes these supplies exceptionally easy to use, simply place your document into a cover and place one or more covers in the UniBind system and the rest is automatic! * SteelMat covers are similar to the SteelCrystal line of covers but have a frosted front and back cover (as opposed to the clear front cover on Steel Crystal covers). Steel Mat covers are a unique thermal binding cover that has a Matte (frost) front and back cover with an attractive colored steel spine. The "frosted" front cover is transparent so your image will show through, and offers a scratch resistant finish for longer life. They have a thermally activated adhesive in the spine that securely binds most paper stocks securely. * Finally, Unibind offers a really unique line of portfolios and DuoBinders that are incredibly unique. The portfolios offer a Velcro secured front flap in front of a box that is 15mm, 30mm or 45mm thick. DuoBinders are an adaptation of the portfolio in that they have the same box type storage with a ring binder mechanism in front. DuoBinders are perfect for packaging demo materials, samples, catalogs and more... This is a quick summary of the different types of Unibind supplies that are available on the market. Of course, there are numerous sizes and colors available to suit almost any presentation that you want to bind. Check it out for yourself and see just how great your reports and presentations can look.

The distinctive look of GBC / Ibico Strip Binding has made it one of the most sought after binding methods. This unique method of securing loose pages enables the user to present a prestigious image with either elegant soft covers or boardroom quality hard covers. The temper resistant "hot knife" process heat seals and rivets the binding comb and receiving strip together, increasing the security of confidential documents so no unauthorized additions or deletions can be made. This binding method portrays an image of importance, which assures it will be read and acted upon. In addition, it provides the maximum in versatility in that only three different sized combs allow for binding documents from as few as two sheets to up to 3" of material. This reduces inventory requirements. The cover supplies for GBC / Ibico strip binding systems range from economical "smooth" paper stock to high image, coated "regency" paper stock and boardroom quality Velobind / SureBind Hardcases. Pick up a Velobind comb (that's the one with the pins). Notice the comb has ten pins and the Velobind has eleven pins. These pins are fed through holes in the document to be bound and into the receiving strip where the unused portion of the comb is severed and the heating mechanism heat seals it to form a rivet. The comb also has a pin that is longer than the others. This will be discussed in the equipment operating section. Pick up both styles of receiving strips, and look at the grainy (textured) side of the strip. This side should always be placed so that it will appear on the outside of the back cover of the document. This gives the document a finished appearance. Turn the perforated strip over, and look at the inside. Notice the Velobind strip has thirteen holes. The two small holes at either end are "locator" holes, which are used to align the strip on the VeloBind unit during binding. The other eleven holes match the pins of the comb strip. The strip has one locator pin and ten comb pin holes. Place the comb strip and receiving strip together to see how they fit. Strip Binding is available in comb thicknesses for documents 1", 2" and 3" thick. They are available in stock lengths to fit documents with binding edges of 8-1/2", 11" and 14". SureBind strips are manufactured on GBC / Ibico 19 ring Plastic Binding centers, which means that a document that has been punched with 19-holes can be bound using a strip.

Plastic Comb Binding is a versatile and easy method of securing loose pages into attractive, professionally bound documents. Its open-flat/lay-flat capabilities allow the user to work on financial documents with ease; and the structure of the element allows documents to be easily reopened and updated or copied, while remaining reusable, making it unique from all other binding elements. The extensive customization capabilities on the backbone of the binding element assure recognition while on the reader's shelf. The economical form of "advertising" also makes Plastic Comb Binding unique from all other binding elements available. GBC / Ibico's Plastic Comb Binding elements are made from rigid Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) sheeting. The individual rings are spaced 9/16" center-to-center, and the elements are available in lengths up to 28 rings. GBC / Ibico controls the manufacturer of comb binding elements from raw material to the finished product. Special processes and manufacturing techniques are used to produce high quality PVC sheeting to meet rigid specifications. Other ingredients are added to raw PVC resins to improve the color, elasticity, impact strength, stress-crack resistance and tensile strength. To manufacture comb binding supplies, the PVC resins and other ingredients are mixed in a "blender". From the blender, this compound is fed into an extruder, which produces mother rolls of plastic. The gauge tolerance of the extruded sheeting is controlled to within one-thousandth of an inch. These mother rolls are slit to the various widths needed for each diameter. The slit rolls are fed into the blanking equipment which produces flat combs or blanks, and the blanks are automatically rolled by rolling machines The cover supplies for Comb binding range from economical sturdy grain paper covers to boardroom quality Regency covers, as well as unlimited non-standard stocks for custom covers. Hardcases and Vinyl and Poly covers are also available for use with Plastic Comb Binding when ultra image or extra-heavy durability is required. Comb binding supplies are available in two primary styles: round combs which are sometimes referred to as wideback combs or cerlox and oval combs which are sometimes referred to as surelox. Round Combs or widback combs are the most popular comb binding element. They are particularly suited for use with two piece covers because the wide backbone extends the full length of the book and protects the edges of the pages. Imprinting on the backbone may be used for identification of the contents, or for advertising of a company name or slogan. These combs are available in twelve diameters from 3/16" to 1-1/8". Oval Combs or surelox elements provide the strength and dependability necessary to successfully bind thick documents. This element has two unique locks, designed by GBC / Ibico, which prevent documents from opening up. Plastic Binding is oval in shape with a broad strong backbone ideally suited for imprinting. Oval combs are available in four sizes including: 1-1/4", 1-1/2", 1-3/4" and 2" To lock oval plastic combs, grasp the comb binding element so that the backbone is facing upward and the "T" shaped hole in the corner of the backbone is facing you. Squeeze the backbone, compressing it into a "U" shape. Place the tip of the end ring into the outer side of the "T" shaped hole. Release the backbone of the element and the ring will lock into place within the hole. Practice this procedure several times with an empty comb binding spine to get the hang of it. Simply reverse the procedure to unlock.

Thermal binding can offer one of the most professional finished products of any binding system available on the market. However, many users seem to have difficulties getting there thermal bound documents to turn out. The most common complaint is that pages fall out of the documents or that the first and last pages are not bound into the spine. These are problems that can easily be fixed with a few simple steps during the binding process. Here is how... 1. The first thing that you can do in order to make sure that your thermal bound documents turn out better is to ensure that you are properly fanning and jogging the pages before you bind them. As pages are run through photocopiers, laser printers and inkjet printers, they build up static that causes them to stick together. In order to get a superior bind you are going to want to fan the pages out and jog them so that the book block is completely flush. 2. When setting the pages into a thermal binding cover it is possible for static electricity to cause the front or back pages to stick to the cover. If this happens, the front and back pages may not come into contact with the glue in the bottom of the spine and will not stay bound into the book. Before inserting the cover into your binding machine make sure that the front and back page are not sticking up and that the pages are completely flush. 3. If you don't have the right size spine for your thermal bound document, you can sometimes get a poor quality bind. If you try to put too many pages into a thermal cover some of the pages may not come into contact with the glue. If you put too few pages into a cover there will be unnecessary space in the spine that can allow pages to eventually work out of the bind. For this reason it is always important to get as close as possible to the correct size of cover for your reports. However, if you have to err on one side of the other make sure that you go a little bit bigger. Things turn out better that way. 4. After your document has been removed from the binding machine you should always take the document while it is still hot and tap the spine of the book on a hard surface. This will help to ensure that all of the pages are completely settled into the glue and that the glue has had a chance to work itself into the base of the book block. 5. If you are binding hard covered documents with thermal hard cover cases it is important to remember that you will need to use a hard cover crimper. The hard cover crimper will take the spine of the book and form it properly for the binding process. It will also help to ensure that the glue in the spine is pushed up into the base of the book block so that all of the pages come into contact with enough glue to ensure a strong bind. 6. Sometimes having pages fall out of your documents is an indication that your machine is not getting hot enough to adequately melt the glue in the covers. This is common when binding hard covers and covers that are made of thicker paper stocks. If this is the case, sometimes it is necessary to run your documents through a second heating cycle to ensure that all of the glue is fully melted before allowing your document to cool. 7. Before documents are handled it is essential that they are allowed to fully cool. Most documents will be cool to the touch within just a few minutes. However, to increase binding strength they should not be handled or opened until they have been allowed to cool for at least fifteen minutes. This will help to ensure that the glue is fully set before finishing the binding process. 8. Unfortunately, no matter what type of glue based binding system that you use, some glossy heavy paper stocks will not adhere well. If you are finding that your pages fall out of your thermal bound books it is a good idea to check and see if you are using a coated stock. Coated stocks often do not bind well with the thermal glue. If you are using a coated stock and aren't willing to change you might try roughing up the edge of your document with a piece of sand paper or using flat staples very close to the binding edge to get your pages to stick. If you are having problems getting your documents to bind using your thermal binding machine, these simple tips may help. Try them out and see if you get better results.

The restaurant marketing plan that you design will be a vital part of your business. This plan will be an outline of the steps you intend to use to make customers interested in your restaurant. The problems that most businesses encounter are normally the results of poor planning.

Before you start up a business in the restaurant industry you need a restaurant marketing plan. Having a marketing plan is one of the keys to owning a successful business. Of course, you will need to update and modify the marketing plan as circumstances surrounding your restaurant changes.

Most of the professionally bound books that are available on the market today are bound with a binding style called perfect binding. Perfect binding involves using hot glue and a wraparound cover to permanently bind books or documents without the need for hole punching. This binding style provides an extremely professional look and feel to reports and presentations. However, professional perfect binding machines start at five thousand dollars for a desktop unit and can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars for larger units. For this reason, perfect binding has traditionally been too costly for most individuals. However, using your thermal binding machine and following a few simple steps you can now create your own perfect bound documents in just minutes. Most people who use thermal binding machines use pre assembled covers with glue already in the spine. However, in order to use your thermal binding machine for short run perfect binding you will need to create your own cover. This involves printing a full wraparound cover for your document. If you are looking to bind a document that is 8.5" x 11" this means that you will need a printer capable of printing an 11" x 18" sheet (assuming a 1" or smaller spine). If you don't have a printer capable of printing a large format sheet such as this you might consider a half size book. Either way, printing your wraparound cover is the first step in the binding process. The second step in binding your own perfect bound documents using your thermal binding machine is to score your cover to create a spine for your document to sit in. The easiest way to score your cover and create your spine is to use a scoring device or scoring machine. For low budget, short run applications, a rotary blade trimmer with a scoring blade such as the GBC AccuCut A425pro will work fine. For higher volume applications, a professional scoring machine such as the DocuCrease series of scoring devices may be a better option. Whatever scoring device you might choose, you need to create two clean score lines to create a spine that is sized correctly for the number of pages you are planning on binding. The third step in creating your own perfect bound documents using your thermal binding system is to cut the glue strip to the correct size for your cover. Thermal binding glue strips are sold in 12" x 1" strips and need to be cut to the correct size for your cover. The strip should be cut to the correct width for the spine that you are binding and should be cut so that they are 1/8" short on each end to prevent glue from spilling out of the end of your document into your machine. After you have created your cover, created your spine and cut your glue strip all that is left to do is to put the glue strip in the spine of the cover, insert the pages and bind your document. When inserting the glue strip into the spine of the cover ensure that it is laying flat and that it fills the full width of the spine. Simply place it into the spine of the book, place your pages into the cover and insert the whole document into your thermal binding machine. When the binding cycle is finished, drop the spine of your book onto the counter to ensure that the pages are settled fully into the hot glue and then allow the document to cool. At this point, your document is fully bound. However, many individuals choose to face trim their books in order to make the binding process easier and ensure that the cover and the pages inside the book line up perfectly. This simply involves using a large paper cutter or a stack cutter (the Tamerica Guillomax is an excellent and affordable stack cutter) to cut off the ends and side of the book so that the edge of the book is flush.

If you are looking to bind your own hard bound books and presentations there are several options that are available to you. Specifically, you can bind your books using Unibind Steel Books, Thermal Binding Hard Cases or with Velobind Hard Cases. All three of these systems allow you to do your own hard case binding in your home or office. Here is a quick overview of the strengths and weaknesses of these three options. 1. Unibind SteelBooks: Unibind Steelbooks provide the easiest method of binding your own hard bound books. With these unique hard case covers you simply insert your pages into the spine put the book in your Unibind Machine and less than a minute later you have a finished book (just remember to let it cool first). Unibind Steelbook covers are available in sizes up to 36mm (about 1-1/2") and come in wide variety of colors and sizes. Of the three options for hard case binding this is the only option where the supplies are stocked and no production time is necessary (unless you required customization such as foil stamping or windows). Unibind Hard Cases can be customized by adding a window or with foil stamping. Fully customized four color Unibind Steelbooks are available in quantities greater than 500 (with a several month lead time). Thus, Unibind Steelbooks are ideal for short runs, presentation and proposals but are not ideal for highly customized applications which involve four color process printing and silk screening or custom sized covers. 2. Thermal Case Binding: Binding hard bound documents using your Thermal Binding Machine is slightly more involved than binding documents with a Unibind system. Like the Unibind system you insert your pages into the cover and insert it into your machine. However, after the book has been heated and before it cools it must be inserted into a Hard Back Book Crimper for cooling. The hard back book crimper helps to ensure that the spine of the book is shaped correctly and that the glue hardens in contact with the book block. Thermal binding hard cases are available in a number of sizes and finishes that are not available from Unibind. However, thermal binding cases require a minimum two week lead time for production. Thermal cases can be customized with windows, foil stamping, silk screening and four color process printed covers (or digital offset printed) are available in quantities as small a 100 books. This makes Thermal Binding Cases a good option for special sized photobooks and highly customized presentation covers. 3. Velobind Case Binding: This style of producing hard bound covers is really only ideal for companies or individuals who already own a Velobind system. These hard cases use special fly sheets that are bound together with the book using your Velobind system. These fly sheets are then peeled back to reveal an adhesive that is used to adhere the book into your Velobind Hard Case. These supplies are produced on a custom order basis and can be foil stamped for customization. However, cost and lead time makes this the least desirable option for in house hard case binding. This being said, if you are interested in Hard Case Binding with your Velobind system you might consider reading our article on using GBC Velobind Hard Case Covers. If you are interested in producing your own photobooks, hard cover presentations, yearbooks or other hard bound documents please give us a call to further discuss your binding options.