Book production

The quality and longevity of every book depends not only on knowledge and technology, but also on the quality of the materials used in its production. We procure specialized materials suitable for book production from well-known, mainly European manufacturers or their representatives. For us and for the client, this means reliability, availability and quality guarantee both during the creation of the book and during its further use. Our material assortment is based on a wide range of time-tested materials, which we constantly top up with innovative and environmentally friendly materials.

Commonly used materials

• Paper for interior pages – gloss, silk and matt coated papers, coated papers with increased bulk or volume papers, standard offset papers, wood-containing book papers with increased bulk, smooth and rough high-quality cellulose book papers in various shades.
• Coated and uncoated design papers for covers and jackets in various shades and textures.
• FSC certified, partially or 100% recycled papers.
• Cover materials in various shades and finishings – canvas, PU and PVC leather imitation materials, cork materials, different non-standard materials.
• Different paperboards for hardcover books: grey boards, laminated and dyed-through boards, solid boards and foam boards. Standard thickness: 1–3 mm.
• Pelēkie makulatūras kartoni, aplīmēti un masā krāsoti iesienamie un putu kartoni cieto sējumu vākiem. Standarta biezums: 1–3 mm.
• Solid and mixed-colour cotton, viscose, silk and semi-silk headbands, as well as satin, acetate and cotton ribbons of various colours and widths. Standard width of ribbons: 3–6 mm, non-standard – up to 10 mm.
• White and coloured polyester sewing threads.
• Round and flat (smooth and ribbed) rubber bands of various colours and elasticity. Standard width of flat rubber bands: 6–8 mm.
• Various laminate films: gloss, matt, scratch-free, soft-touch and others. Standard width: 34, 45 and 51 cm.
• Cobalt-free plant-based primary colours (CMYK) and special colours (PANTONE).
• Offset, dispersion and UV varnishes.
• Hot glue and cold glue for cover production, binding and other works.
• If necessary, we will find and offer you various non-standard materials for the realization of your creative and artistic ideas.

Ordering

When ordering materials that are not available in our warehouse, or in warehouses of our wholesalers in Latvia, please expect that the delivery of the materials may take 1–5 weeks. Overall delivery time depends on manufacturer’s or its representative’s production capacity, delivery conditions, order volume, availability in warehouses and market situation. By planning the production process in advance and considering the time required to procure materials, it is possible to procure materials at the most favourable price at that time. Our procurement specialists, in close cooperation with the project manager, will find you the most suitable materials or their alternatives.

Storage

We procure and store most popular and frequently used papers and materials in our printing house’s warehouse, creating a so-called Home Paper assortment for various paper groups. We also purchase and store special assortment materials for future planned projects at the request of our clients.

We use sheet-fed offset printing presses for book production, a method known for its high speed and cost efficiency in large-volume printing. It allows the use of both standard CMYK process colors and spot colors (Pantone), with configurations supporting up to 8 colors per sheet side.

Offset printing delivers high-resolution, finely detailed images, suitable for papers with varying grammage and surface textures. It’s also economical in ink consumption, ensuring quick drying. The company supports AM (Amplitude Modulation), FM (Stochastic or Frequency Modulation), and hybrid screening technologies for superior image reproduction.

Types of Printing Offered

• Single-Color Printing
  This refers to one-color printing, either single-sided or double-sided, using a process or spot color. Most commonly applied to book inner pages with text-only content, typically produced using two-color offset presses.
• Multi-Color Printing
  Printed in multiple CMYK or Pantone colors, either one- or two-sided. Executed on four- or eight-color presses. For design-rich materials, eight-color presses allow combining process and spot colors in a single pass—ideal for projects that include both images and precise design elements.
• Black-and-White Printing
  Black-and-white can be achieved in different ways: basic (one-color, usually black) and enhanced – using all CMYK process colours or Rich Black (a deep, composite black mix) to increase tonal depth and image dimensionality.

Colour Management

Paper type significantly affects print output due to varying ink absorption and surface coating:

• on uncoated paper, ink soaks into fibers;

• on coated paper, ink remains on the surface.

To ensure accurate and consistent results, colour profiles tailored to paper type and printing method are used. This process is known as colour management, where embedded profiles in the print-ready files guide the press to reproduce colours as intended.

Prepress (Pre-Print) Processing

Prepress refers to the set of steps between design layout and the actual print run:

• the client is responsible for preparing print files according to the book’s format, binding type, colour requirements, and chosen technology;

• prepress specialists verify files for correct colour profiles, dimensions, page count, order, colour settings, and image resolution.

If issues are found, the project manager contacts the client for corrections. Then, a rasterized PDF proof is prepared for client approval.

Following approval:

• imposition (page layout on sheets) is performed;

• a test print or proof is produced as per client request;

• after final approval, printing plates are created, and production begins.

Thanks to modern equipment, we offer the production of more than 35 types of bindings, including hardcover, softcover, flexible, spiral, saddle-stitched, as well as various hybrid and custom binding solutions.

Bookbinding is a sequence of production processes that transform printed sheets into a finished book — including folding, gathering, sewing, cover production, and casing-in.

Printed sheets are folded into signatures, then these signatures are gathered in the correct sequence and bound together, forming the book block. The block is then cased-in, meaning it is fixed into covers, becoming a complete book.

Each of these steps is carried out using specialized machines or production lines.

In the book production cycle, finishing refers to processes or sets of processes that are not part of the core manufacturing steps such as printing, cover production, and casing-in. The range of postpress options and their combinations is so extensive that each book can be made unique.

Finishing processes can provide additional protection for the book cover and inside pages, thereby extending the book’s lifespan. They can also enrich the book’s cover, block, and inside pages with various visual effects.

Finishing can also add extra functionality to the book, such as closures or pockets. To ensure flawless results, compatibility between design and materials is particularly important in Finishing, which is why the assessment and recommendations of our specialists are essential already at the production planning stage.

We pack and label the finished products according to their size and characteristics, as well as the transportation and delivery requirements. We provide transport tailored to your order, ensuring delivery to the specified address.

Read more about packaging and delivery here.

Our sales and project managers are knowledgeable specialists who will be your trusted contact and advisor throughout the entire book production process – from consultation on material and technology selection and compatibility, to providing information about the delivery of the finished product.

We provide customer communication in 5 languages: Latvian, English, German, French, and Swedish.

Please contact us by filling out the price inquiry form or via the contact section of our website.

Upon the client’s request and for an additional fee, we provide book design, layout, and print file preparation in accordance with our file preparation requirements.