A new breakthrough in dust jacket material, introduced to the market earlier this month, could wind up saving publishers time and money by helping to bypass the need to add a protective laminate during production.
Visual Systems Inc. (VSI), a Milwaukee-based book component manufacturer, introduced the innovative new plastic material to the market in early July. The company says the product--called BaseOneone that omits part of the production process resulting in approximately 20 percent savings for educational publishers. On the trade side of things, VSI says there is a 2 to 5 percent savings from eliminating the laminating step and the extra time and materials that step would otherwise require.
According to Jeff Burg, VSI marketing manager, BaseOne “is a clear plastic, printed wrong reading on the second surface, that basically creates a sandwich.”
“When innovation can be added to the book cover design mix--without adding new printing equipment or steps--it’s great news for both buyers and designers,” said Burg.
According to VSI, the covers produced with this technology are thinner, lighter and stronger, more resistant to tearing and bending.
Dearborn Publishing, a Chicago-based book publisher, and Lake Book, a Melrose Park, Ill.-based book manufacturer, were among the first to produce BaseOne book jackets. The company showcased an example of each at BookExpo America 2006 in May.
The BaseOne technology was first released for softcover books in 2005. A VSI spokesperson says the company has presented the new jacket technology to several dozen publishers and is currently working with several publishers who are using the BaseOne softcover.
- People:
- Jeff Burg