Glossary

Accordion fold – An accordion fold is used as a base in manufacturing most tabletop easels. The folding base allows the easel to lay flat when not in use. Alternately, the accordion fold can be replaced with a strap riveted to the to front and back faces of the easel. The easel is held upright by the strap and allows the easel to lay flat when stored.

Chipboard – Chipboard is coarsely ground, unbleached paper pulp that is rolled into sheets of card stock.  It is sometimes made of reclaimed Kraft paper and corrugated cardboard. Chipboard is the material commonly used as the backing for writing pads and the backing in photo frames..

Coil binding – Coil binding, sometimes known as spiral binding, is typically made of plastic or plastic covered wire. Coil is one of the most popular binding methods used in tabletop flipcharts. Coil looks good and can withstand considerable abuse. There are two minor drawbacks to coil binding. First, when pages are lifted they shift slightly to the right or left and should be flipped carefully to prevent wear and possible tearing. Tearing can be minimized by applying a mylar strip along the binding edge or by laminating the entire page.

• Coil sizes can range from 1/8” up to 4” in diameter.
• Standard Colors: Black, White, Clear, Navy Blue, Royal Blue
• Special Order Colors: Red, Burgundy/Maroon, Light Brown, Green, Yellow, Reflex Blue, Eggplant Purple, Silver, & Gold

Comb binding – Comb binding is typically used for short run reports or book-like presentation handouts because it requires little setup. Binding combs can be re-used and re-opened for adding or removing pages. Comb binding is not particularly effective for binding flipcharts since it too easily opens. Dimensions: From 3/16” to over 4”.

• Standard Colors: Black, White, Blue, Navy Blue, Brown, Red, Dark Green, Green, Gray, Maroon, Clear.
• Custom Colors: Yellow, Silver and Gold Metallic.  PMS Color matching is available.

Content – We refer generically to the pages, tab pages or separator pages in your flipchart, book, manual or booklet as the ‘content’.  

Cover – A flipchart cover can be a separate piece of material bound as a separate page of a large format flipchart or the cover that is an integral part of a table top easel construction  For snap ring turned edge easels, the cover is bound right into the easel. With coil, comb or Wire-O bound flipcharts, the cover is typically constructed as a separate piece from the easel and is bound into the finished flipchart.

Cover material – We utilize a variety of materials for manufacturing tabletop easels and manual covers ranging from sealed edge vinyl or vinyl impregnated paper. You can also order patterned vinyls, linen, simulated leather or a high end material similar to scuba suits.  The quantity you need, your budget and the image you want to portray are some of the factors relating to your cover choice.

Cover Stock – Cover stock is a heavy weight, durable paper.  As a reference, most paperback book have cover stock covers;hence the name.  Cover stock is very versatile and comes in a variety of “weights” and finishes, such as glossy, matte and dull.  We typically use Cover stock for printing tabletop flipchart pages. We also use cover stock as booklet covers or wherever a sturdy finished look is desired.

Debossing – Debossing molds an image into the paper or cover so that the image is raised above the rest of the material surface. An extra cost embossing die, set up and run charge is required when debossing is ordered.

Easel size – When we refer to an easel size, e.g. 27” x 34”, we refer to the finished size of the printed pages (“content”).  With large format flipcharts, the content pages and the backing are generally the same size. Tabletop flipchart easels are typically larger than the content. For example when we refer to an 8.5” x 11” tabletop flipchart, the easel may finish out at 9” x 12”. The width on the sides, protects the content from damage. The extra height is to accommodate the binding at the top and provides space at the bottom of the pages for the user to reach under the content to lift the next page.

Embossing – Embossing molds an image into the paper or cover so that the image is set into the material. An extra cost embossing die and set up is required. See Debossing".

Flexible plastic backing – We utilize a mid-weight polyvinyl or polypropylene plastic to back large format flipcharts that may need transporting from location to location by car or air.  A rolled flip chart is easier to transport in a carrying tube than is a chart in a flat carry case.  “Doesn’t a rolled flip chart curl?” Yes it will. That’s why we recommend the chart be rolled with the cover page outward. When the chart is unrolled and hung on an easel, the curl is a slight outward bulge in the middle of the chart rather than at the bottom. Gravity quickly minimizes the curl. We utilize a screw and post binding mechanism and a replaceable face plate with our flexible plastic backings.

Ink coverage – Simply put, “How much of every page will be covered with ink.”  

• We ask about ink coverage when discussing large format flipcharts over 12” x 18” in dimension. We print large format flip charts on bB/W or multi-color large format inkjet printers. Our standard large format page printing price is based upon less than 10%, less than 50% or greater than 50% ink coverage. By pricing in this manner, we help you keep your cost down. Most flip charts have lots of white space and typically have between 25%-50% ink coverage so we charge less. For heavier coverage, we charge more. The higher price is still tyipically less than most other large format printers charge because of the volume of pages run..
• Pricing for tabletop flipcharts up to 11” x 17” are based upon 100% ink coverage and carry no surcharges.

Lamination – Film lamination is useful for prolonging the life of your printed material. Lamination can help prevent scratching, dog eared pages, and picking or feathering of materials with heavy ink coverage. Lamination applies a permanent vinyl layer on top and the bottom of a printed page. There is both cold and hot laminating and the type we recommend depends upon your project needs.  The page is fed through rollers where the laminating material is applied using an adhesive (cold) or head (hot) application process. Laminating material can have a gloss, matte or satin finish. For most flipchart presentations we recommend a satin finish to minimize reflection from lighting or windows.  Lamination comes in common thickness .015 mil to 10 mil.  The thicker the laminate, the more rigid it becomes and the heavier a presentation will be. As a result we recommend the lightest practical laminate for your particular use.

Mylar-edge reinforcing – A thin strip of Mylar is laid along the binding edge of content pages to minimize tearing as the pages are turned.  Mylar edge reinforcing is a lower cost alternative to laminating. Mylar strips are commonly applied when coil binding is being used and the content pages are not being laminated..

Orientation – Orientation applies to the direction the paper will face when bound on the top. Portrait (taller than wide) or landscape (wider than tall) are your choices.  Printers typically describe orientation by stating the width before the height.  For example, a portrait orientation is 8.5” x 11” (narrower than tall).  

Padding – Padding is a binding process that glues pages together along one edge. Padding allows pages to be easily removed. We recommend padding for standard sized and performance measuring flipcharts that are designed for one time or limited use.

Page backgrounds – Page backgrounds add style and color to flipcharts pages. Unfortunately, backgrounds have a detracting effect on readability the larger a flipchart is. For large format flipcharts we suggest page backgrounds be replaced with a lot of white space with simple graphics that highlight the main points of the page.

Pasted chipboard – A high density rigid paper material manufactured by gluing multiple pages of recycled material together. We typically utilize pasted chipboard and heavy duty chipboard to construct our turned edge tabletop easels and some point-of-purchase flipcharts. This is the same materials publishers utilize for making hardbound book covers. Pasted chipboard can be covered with any number of materials ranging from vinyl impregnated paper to leather to provide the finished look and feel you desire.

Readability – Readability refers to how easy it is for your audience to grasp the meaning of your content. For large format flipcharts simplicity is key (KISS - Keep it simple, stupid.).  Maximum comprehension in large format flipcharts comes from lots of white space,  key words, large font sizes and simple graphics.

Release – A “Release” is a device at one or both ends of a snap-ring binder unit. The release is a mechanism for opening the snap ring unit. If the content is oversize, a snap-ring device without a release unit may be employed so the release does not get in the way.

Rigid plastic backing – We utilize a semi-rigid plastic material to back flipcharts that will primarily be used in a relatively fixed location such as a classroom. Rigid backing makes it possible to remove the flipchart from the easel and simply stand it against a wall when not in use. We utilize a screw and post binding mechanism and a replaceable face plate with our rigid backings.

Ring mechanism - Ring mechanisms come in several formats and sizes, all with a different use and function:

• Round ring (used in easels & manuals)
• Straight D ring (mounted on back cover, used in manuals)
• Angle D ring (ring mounted on back cover, used in manuals)
• Post Rings (used in catalogs)

Screw and Post binding – Screw and post binding devices have a male and female end we utilize to bind our rigid and flexible backed full size flipcharts together. This binding system allows for the removal, reordering or replacement of pages with the simple use of a screwdriver..

Sealed edge – Sealed edge refers to a manner of binding a vinyl cover over the internal chipboard. It is the most commonly used method for manufacturing everyday three ring vinyl binders. The benefit of sealed edge vinyl is that it is versatile and relatively inexpensive. You can layer sealed edge vinyl pages so you can seal printed material between layers. You can also add pockets. The primary drawback to sealed edge vinyl products is that the vinyl tends to crack around the seams with extensive use or if opened when cold. Depending upon how complicated the design, sealed edge vinyl easels are less expensive than turned edge easels.

Sheet protector – A sealed edge vinyl pocket with reinforced holes into which content pages can be introduced.

Silkscreen – Screen printing or serigraphy is a printmaking technique that uses a woven mesh screen to support an ink blocking stencil. The attached stencil forms open areas of mesh that transfer ink as a sharp-edged image onto a substrate. A roller or squeegee is moved across the screen stencil forcing or pumping ink past the threads onto the substrate. This method is an effective and relatively inexpensive way for transferring logos or images onto materials.

Snap rings – Snap rings are a common enclosure and are a practical binding method if the content is subject to periodic updating or replacement. When used in a tabletop easel, the page design must be altered to allow for the flexing on the spine upon which the snap ring assembly is typically mounted. With most snap ring binders, the content will not lay uniformly flat on the front and back of the open easel as pages are flipped. This requires a large margin at the top of the page. Also, pages must be flexible to lay flat. Laminating, if utilized, should be light weight to allow flexibility.

Stapled binding – We staple bind some large format flipcharts. We will use a chipboard backing and faceplate and staple the content between the two.  We then cover the faceplate and drill hanger holes. It similar to the blank flipchart pads you find at your office supply store except we use a much higher quality paper.

Tabs – Tabs are section dividers that typically extend inch below (and sometimes to the right of left) of the content to easily access different subjects. When tabs are used, we will describe the Easel Size in term of the total content size to include the tabs.

Trigger – See “Release”

Turned edge – Turned edge binding is how book publisher make most hardbound books covers. We also make turned edge easels. Material is glued to the face of chipboard and then folded over the edge and glued to the inside of the cover. The inside of the cover then is then covered with material to give a professional appearance. When making an easel we hinges any joints like the spine of a hardbound book. It sounds complicated, but to make it simple, just pick up a hardbound book and look at its construction.

Wire-O binding – Wire-O is also known as twin loop wire, double loop wire, double-o, ring wire and wire bind.  It refers to a binding system that allow for a 360º rotation of the content around the binding.  Wire-O is advantageous in that it has a very professional appearance and allows the pages to be rotated upward and directly over the back of the easel. This is unlike coil binding where the page actually shifts a bit to the side. The primary drawback to Wire-O is that the wire rings can be bent and don’t automatically realign like coil. As a result, Wire-O is not recommended if the flipchart might be subjected to rough handling. Wire-O is highly recommended for fixed location desktop flipcharts.