We recently added the Martin Yale GC210 gutter cut business card cutter to our site. This cutter is the replacement to the Intimus GC208. The GC208 was very popular and we expect the GC210 to be equally popular with our customers. This is because the Martin Yale GC210 is extremely well built. Here are a few of its features.

• It can cut full-bleed business card templates.
• It has durable hardened-steel blades that are self sharpening. No more dull blades!
• It cuts up to 360 cards per minute.
• It includes a CD with business card templates.

These are just a few of the features. One of my favorite features of the GC210 is the included waste bin that holds cut paper particles. If you have ever used a business card cutter, you know how much paper mess they can make.

We are pretty excited about this addition. You can read more about the Martin Yale GC210 business card cutter by going here.

Business card cutters have been around for some time now, both electric and manually-powered versions. Gutter cut business card cutters, however, are relatively new. They are designed to cut business cards in a way that allows for a full bleed print. Full bleed business cards are cards that feature full edge-to-edge color.

What does the gutter cut business card cutter do that a standard business card cutter can’t? Why not use a standard business card cutter for full-bleed prints? First of all, it is difficult to print a full bleed card using a standard business card template. If this were done, business card colors would bleed over in to other cards, ruining them.

Even if the print turned out OK, it would be very difficult to align a standard business card cutter to cut the line straight enough that the full-bleed color from one card, even a sliver, wouldn’t appear on another card. In other words, there would be some fine-tuned alignment issues.

Business card cutters, like the Martin Yale GC210, are designed to cut a gutter cut business card template. This doesn’t mean the GC210 can only cut full-bleed prints. It can also cut out more traditional prints that utilize more white space. The GC210 uses a 10-up cutting pattern, which allows it to cut 10 cards per sheet of paper. You can view the new Martin Yale GC210 business card cutter here.

Lamination carriers have been around for decades and are nothing new to the lamination industry. How are they used? After placing your document in a lamination pouch, the pouch is then placed in a carrier prior to being run through a pouch laminator.

What’s the main purpose of a carrier? The main purpose is to provide the pouch with added support, preventing wraparounds and jams, as well as preventing hot glue from squeezing out onto silicon rollers and other important pouch laminator components.

Many of the newer pouch laminators claim they can laminate without the use of a carrier. While this may be true, I personally recommend still using a carrier. This isn’t because I want you to purchase more carriers, after all, most lamination pouches come with carriers. It is because I personally believe that carriers will extend the life of your laminator.

Even though newer laminators may be less prone to jams, the pouch still gets hot and hot glue still squeezes out of the sides of the pouch as pressure is applied. This glue can still get on rubber rollers inside the machine and decrease the effectiveness of your laminator.

HELPFUL LINKS & TIPS:

Have a laminator that needs to be repaired? Consider using our Service Department. You can reach them by calling 1-800-658-8788 x129.

You can find our entire selection of lamination pouches here.

You can find replacement lamination carriers here.

We often get great questions from customers with regards to our office equipment. I just had a great chat with a customer who asked some very good and commonly asked questions regarding coil-binding machines. Included in this post is that conversation. Hopefully you will be able to pull some good information from it. Enjoy!

Customer: I am looking to buy a spiral binding machine and am pretty new at this.

Dave: Sounds good. How many books would you like to bind per day?

Customer: It’s for office use. I would say 2-3, about 65 pages each.

Dave: Would you be OK with a manually operated punch or would you like an electric punch?

Customer: Could I punch all 65 sheets at a time with a manual machine?

Dave: It won’t be able to punch all 65 at once, but you would be able to punch 15 or so sheets at a time until all 65 were punched. Electric punches are unable to punch 65 at once either, but can often punch a few more sheets at a time.

Customer: I need something inexpensive.

Dave: If you will only be binding 2-3 books a day, a manual punch should be fine. My recommendation, for spiral binding on a budget, would be the Akiles CoilMac-ER found here. This machine has a manual punch, but includes an electric coil inserter.

Customer: How much do the prices of the coils run per book?

Dave: They are sold in boxes of 100. The price varies a bit, depending on the diameter you use. You can find the coil supplies here. Coil binding supplies are available in two different hole patterns (4:1 pitch and 5:1 pitch). The machine I recommended for you uses 4:1 pitch holes.

Customer: I got it. Thanks for your help

The concept of collating documents was a little foreign to me when I first got into the office equipment business. It was then explained to me in a very easy way.

Remember when you were in school and the teacher would place six different stacks of paper on a table with a stapler at the end? The teacher would then ask all the students to form a line and take one sheet from each stack and later staple it. Voila, a human-powered collator.

Although using a line of people to collate six different stacks of paper can be pretty fast, it is completely inefficient. It takes a lot of time and energy to manually collate paper. This is why automatic collators are so ideal to use for collating several stacks of paper.

Automated collators usually have several different trays for separate stacks of paper. Many have up to 10 trays. Some of the larger units feature two 10-tower units linked together for a total of 20 trays. Many collators even feature an integrated stapler for corner stapling.

Collators are also commonly used for creating booklets, with some collators commonly being integrated with booklet makers. Paper is first placed in the collating trays; the collator then creates a collated stack. The collated stack is then fed into the booklet maker where it is folded and stapled.

You can find our entire selection of automatic collators here.

We just recently added the Fargo HDP5000 id card printer to our site a few days ago. While most ID card printers operate in a similar way, the HDP5000 does a few things that really separate itself apart from the competition. Here are a few things I have noticed.

First off, this printer claims to produce high definition printing. What does this mean? Well, apart from the marketing lingo, it means this printer can create some of the most realistic and crisp images available in digital ID card printing today. In technical terms, this printer can print up to 16.7 million colors at 256 shades per pixel.

This printer prints the image, text and other data onto a layer that is then fuzed to the target card’s surface. Why is this important? Because it means the Fargo HDP5000 can print on uneven surfaces, such as cards with embedded electronics. The technical jargon for this is HDP® dye-sublimation / resin thermal transfer.

The Fargo HDP5000 is available in several variations, depending on the type of card you will be printing and the quantity you will be printing. This printer is available in a single and double-sided design and available in a standard or overlaminate design. The overlaminate coating, available on the LC versions, helps to prevent image wear and extends the life of the ID card / security badge.

You can view all versions of the new Fargo HDP5000 ID card printer here.

What is the best way to fold invoices, bills, promotional material and other paper for the purpose of mailing? While this can be done manually, it can be costly and time consuming, not to mention the nasty paper cuts. Thanks to modern technology, most mailing products can now be done using machines.

The machine (method) used for mailing literature varies depending on exactly what you are mailing and what your budget is. Here are a few of the most common methods used today.

Folding Machines – Automatic folding machines (aka paper folders) can be used to fold paper into a C fold (letter fold) or a Z fold (accordion fold) for the purpose of mailing. A single fold is also common for mailing tabbed marketing literature. A paper folder is probably one of the most affordable automated machines that can be used for mailing literature. Once the letter is folded, it can then be manually inserted into an envelope or fed into a tabbing machine. This is ideal for low to medium volume mailing. You can find our paper folders here.

Mail Tabbers – You have probably received promotional material in your mailbox that has been sealed using a tabbing machine. This may be a promotional flier for lawn treatment, or an advertisement for cheap Internet. “Letter folded” or “single folded” paper, taken off a paper folder, is fed into the tabber. The tabber is then used to apply a round tab on the open edge of the folded document, keeping it secure during mailing. The tab is broken to gain access to the folded material. You will find our tabbing machines here.

Folder Inserters – These are the Cadillacs of the mailing industry. These machines do it all. Place your paper in the machine and the folder inserter will then fold the paper, insert it into an envelope and seal it shut. This is all automated and done by the machine. Very little human interaction is involved. Multiple sheets, and even inserters / return envelopes, can be put in the envelope, depending on the model used. These machines are ideal for medium to high-volume use. You can find our entire selection of Formax folder inserters here.

Folder Sealers – Folder sealers use a special pressure sensitive paper. This paper has special glue bubbles that are integrated into the paper. Safe for printers, this paper may be printed on to include a check, a bill or other literature. Once taken of the printer, this special paper is inserted into the folder sealer. The folder sealer will fold the paper and apply pressure to the glue pockets, causing them to burst and seal the paper shut for mailing. These machines are commonly used by banks and are ideal for medium to high-volume use. You can find our entire selection of folder sealers here.

All of these methods can be used to create professional, effective mailers. Have additional questions about folding and mailing material? Have a suggestion on something that has worked for you? Post your comments here!

A few years ago, when we first started adding Sircle binding machines to our site, I would never have guessed that they would later become so popular. Sircle binding machines are in such demand that they are flying off the shelves. Why is this brand, new to the industry, so popular?

Here are a few reasons why Sircle binding machines are so popular:

Price – Sircle binding machines are just plain cheap. Sircle binding machines cost just a fraction of what comparable brands (like GBC) run.

Functionality – Sircle binding machines often include features such as margin depth control, selectable punching dies and more. These are features often considered luxury options with other models.

Cross Platform – Sircle book binders are often capable of binding multiple formats. This may include comb and wire or multiple wire hole patterns. Over half of Sircle’s machines have this functionality.

Quality – For the price, it is difficult to find a comparable machine of equal quality.

So there you have it, just a few reasons why our customers choose Sircle binding machines over the competition. You can find our entire line of Sircle binding machines here.

What is the purpose of a shredder bag? Obviously they are used in a shredder for holding shred particles, but are they necessary? Why not just use a garbage bag? Seems simple enough. Here are a few answers to these commonly asked questions.

Shredder bags are used in paper shredders to collect shredded documents. Seems simple enough. The nice thing about shredder bags is that they make emptying a paper shredder easy. Simply pull out the bin, tie off the bag and put in a new bag.

I have emptied shredders that didn’t use a shred bag. It was not easy. Static electricity builds in shredded paper and the end result was a huge mess with diamond-shaped particles all over the floor.

So, we have determined that shredder bags are a good thing. So why not just use a garbage bag? The reason: the bags don’t fit. Sure you can use a large garbage bag in a shredder, but there is usually excess bag and gaps are left open.

In the end, you have to change your bag more often, because a large portion of the bin is filled with excess bag plastic. Because the bag doesn’t fit correctly, gaps cause particles of paper to still fall into the cabinet of the shredder, causing a mess anyway.

We offer a great selection of exact-fit shredder bags for Fellowes, Destroyit, Dahle, Kobra, Intimus and other brands. Our bags are OEM replacement bags designed to fit your shredder like a glove. Using a correct-size bag makes all the difference in the world when it comes to emptying a shredder. You can find our entire selection of shredder bags here.

Patient privacy is a big deal, due in large part to HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996). Not only do unused patient documents need to be destroyed, but active patient documents need to be protected as well. Gone are the days of clear plastic chart holders in medical facilities, hospitals and doctors’ offices.

Chart holders now have to have the front panel be completely blocked. This is done to protect patient privacy and prevents random people from seeing this data. Most of these chart holders are made out of wood. The chart holder pocket is deep enough to protect the data, but still allows tabs to be visible for easy access.

ABC Office carries over a dozen different HIPAA compliant chart holders. These chart holders include standard wood chart holders, open ended chart holders and deep pocket chart holders. These chart holders include all necessary mounting hardware and are available in different wood stains. Most of ABC Office’s chart holders will fit right in with existing furniture.

You can find ABC Office’s HIPAA compliant chart holders here.