finishing-1finishing-2DUMAC Print and Marketing

Print Finishing is essential to making any printed piece appealing to the senses.  Something nice to look at or maybe soft to touch.  Print finishing can mean anything from coatings, cutting, scoring, folding, binding and more.  The type of finishing required is dependent upon the application of the final piece.

  • Coatings
    • UV or flood varnish adds a shiny look to your product
    • Soft touch lamination makes the product feel soft and textured.  Not like a printed piece of paper.
    • Plastic lamination adds a thick plastic shell to the printed piece.  The laminate can be as thin or thick as desired.
  • Trimming (Cutting)
    • Trimming is an important part of the finished product.  This is done to add the appearance of ink bleeding off the edge of the sheet.  It is also important for a product that has a set border.  A properly trimmed piece has the same border width on all sides.
  • Die-Cutting
    • Die cutting has many applications from pull-tab scenarios to shaped sticker applications.  Custom dies can be manufactured to fit the desired look of the finished product.
  • Scoring/Folding
    • If print collateral is to be folded then nine times out of ten, scoring the piece will be part of the process.  Especially when the printed piece is on thicker (cover stock) paper.  The score lines allow for a clean fold without the appearance of cracking.
    • Folding can be done in several ways, such as parallel, double parallel, gate, etc.  See our Folding Guide to learn more about different folding options. 
    • Folding for a mail project is more involved as the Postal Service has a plethora of regulations that must be followed to obtain the best postage discounts.  Our seasoned professionals are current with Postal Regulations taking the worry out of our client’s hands.  Please see our mailing page to learn more about current Postal Regulations.
  • Binding
    • Several binding methods are available, but they depend on the number of pages and the finished look that is desired. Some methods require the print art to be laid out to accommodate for creep. See our Binding Guide for the different bind types available.
      • Saddle-Stitch is a binding method that uses two or three staples on the spine of the booklet. 
      • Coil or Wire-O is a coil of plastic or metal wire that holds punched pages together.  This method is best suited for notebooks and/or workbooks.
      • PUR (Perfect Bind) is the typical bind method for full books with a hard or soft cover.  The pages are stacked and glued into the cover.
  • Padding
    • Business forms, or two-part and three-part forms, are still used by some business to handle estimating, time keeping, invoicing, etc.  Padding is the method by which these forms are bound into a book.  Forms can be padded into a single book, with a cover or a cardboard backer. 

This list touches on the core of our bindery department, but we can do much more.  Contact a representative to learn more about how we can help with your project.  We are happy to assist.