A book's life depends on a few grams of adhesive in its spine. Pages that stay put, a book that opens easily and lasts for years all come down to the right glue.
Binding methods
Perfect binding (softcover): pages are milled at the spine and glued into the cover with hot melt. Common for magazines, catalogues and economy books.
Hardcover: the book block is bound, then cased in with cover covering and endpaper gluing.
LayFlat: photo books and albums need pages to open completely flat, requiring a thin, flexible spine adhesive.
EVA vs PUR
| Property | EVA hot melt | PUR hot melt |
|---|---|---|
| Page pull strength | Good | Very high |
| Coated and gloss paper | Limited | Very good |
| Lay-flat opening | Moderate | Very good |
| Heat and cold resistance | Moderate | Very high |
| Adhesive amount | High | Up to 50% less |
| Cost | Low | Higher |
The role of dispersions
EVA and PVAc dispersions are used for spine priming, side gluing, case making and endpaper gluing. Fast-drying grades suit high-speed lines.
Recommendation
- Coated paper, high page counts, photo books: PUR
- Economy print, magazines, brochures: EVA
- Case making and sheet lamination: EVA dispersion
Let's find the best solution for your speeds and paper types together.
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