EVA (Ethylene Vinyl Acetate), also called traditional or conventional perfect binding, was originally developed for paperbacks. It's an economical choice for brochures, manuals, reports, magazines, catalogues and yearbooks — and books are ready for final trimming almost immediately, enabling fast turnaround.
PUR (Polyurethane Reactive) generally offers superior longevity for demanding applications, while EVA provides cost-effective quality for shorter-lifespan publications. The right choice depends on how the book will be handled and stored.
Sizes & options
We accommodate sizes from A5 (148 × 210mm) up to 308 × 308mm, with optional celloglazing in matt, gloss or velvet to prevent spine cracking on dark covers.
Perfect binding set-up guidelines
- Text: max 305 × 305mm, min 135 × 105mm (binding edge)
- Cover: max 620 × 320mm, min 140 × 230mm, max 350gsm
- Supply covers flat, untrimmed and unscored
- Supply text blocks as collated sets with divider sheets (we also offer collating)
- Minimum text block thickness 1.5mm
- Text bleed: 3mm past head, tail and foredge trims; 1mm past the binding-edge marks
- Cover bleed: an extra 5mm overhang at head and tail
- Keep the glue area (spine + 5mm either side, inside the cover) free of celloglaze and print
- PUR books need several hours to cure before trimming