Spiral-bound Menus

Submission specifications for Spiral-bound Menus

Add 3 mm bleed.

To allow leeway for cutting differences in production, always add a bleed of 3 mm around all edges of your design. Make sure colours, background pictures and layouts extend into the bleed area so as to avoid leaving white lines as a result of cutting tolerances.

Keep 4 mm safety margin

Keep all important text and images at least 4 mm away from the edge of the finished size.

Use CMYK as the color mode.

Prepare your files using CMYK as the color mode, not RGB. Use colormode FOGRA39 (ISO Coated v2) for coated papertypes and colormode FOGRA47 (PSO Uncoated ISO12647) for uncoated papertypes. If you are unsure of the colour mode of your file, don't worry we can always convert this for you. Keep in mind this can cause the colours to differ from the original file.

Save the file for booklets as one PDF document with single pages.

Save the file for booklets not as spreads (two pages facing each other), but as PDF document with single pages, starting with the cover page (NOTE: saving as a multi-page PDF means 1 PDF file with multiple pages inside). Delete empty unnecessary pages from the file with the final save. Desired blank pages have to stay in the file.

Resolution of at least 300 dpi.

Make sure the resolution of the images and graphics in your artwork are at least 300 dpi.

Convert fonts to outlines or embed all the fonts.

Make sure you convert fonts to outlines or embed all the fonts when saving it to PDF.

Make sure the ink coverage isn't higher than 300%.

Force Color Images to CMYK with a 260% ink limit (in Photoshop > Convert Color Profile > Photoshop 5 Default CMYK). Make sure the ink coverage isn't higher than 300%.

Fonts should be at least 6pt.

Fonts should be at least 6 pt.

Save your files in uneditable, print-ready file formats.

Save your files in uneditable, print-ready file formats (PDF (1.4 or higher), TIFF, EPS, JPG). Deliver your files in one layer: the background layer.

Use the right values for full color black.

Use Rich Black (C:63% M:52% Y:51% K:100%) for larger areas and text to get a deep black color. Do not use this value for text smaller than 15 pt or plain text. This can only be used in full color printing. For designing black smaller texts use 100% black.

Make sure the ink coverage isn't higher than 300%.

Force Color Images to CMYK with a 260% ink limit (in Photoshop > Convert Color Profile > Photoshop 5 Default CMYK). Make sure the ink coverage isn't higher than 300%.

Check line thickness

Lines should be at least 0.25 pt. Negative lines should be at least 0.5 pt.

Check your artwork on overprint.

Make sure no elements in your artwork are set on overprint. Unless you want this effect in your design. The degree of transparency in printing depends on the ink, paper, and printing method used.

Frequently Asked Questions for Spiral-bound Menus

Why can my booklets only be printed per 4 pages?

• "To make sure that there are no pages falling out of the brochure, we make use of a format that is twice as large as the final format of the brochure. When you choose for a A4 size brochure with 8 pages, then we will print two A3 sheets (two times as big as A4) and fold it in half. When you want to number the pages you will find out that you can number from 1 to 8. Every A3 sheet will have four pages. Don't have enough content to fill four pages? Then, there are some solutions of course: You can find a sponsor who would like to have his advertisments in you brochure or make use of an extra introduction page. You can leave 1 or more pages white, or be creative and design an extra page in the style of your brochure."

What is the maximum amount of pages per brochure?

• The maximum amount of pages available is 200. However, most of our orders have between 10 and 64 pages. That is the reason why we only show these amounts on the website. If you are interested in more than 64 pages, please contact customer support.

What is this product exactly? And what can I use it for?

• A stapled brochure is a small book consisting of 8 or more pages and is finished with metal staples. A brochure consists of the contents (pages) and the cover, which don't have to be the same. Our brochures are available in various types of paper, combinations and numbers of pages!
• This product is used to / as:
• • Introduce people to your business
• Serve as a presentation guide
• Serve as an information guide
• Serve as a pricelist
• Bundle reports
• Represent your company's identity or brand

What is the fastest possible turnaround?

• Note only applicable for products which require your design: To make sure that your order is delivered at the indicated time, it is important that we receive your file with your design for the product, on time (also called cut-off time). In this way the product can be moved into production on time. The deadline is always communicated in the yellow bar on the product page, above the "Add to shopping cart" button.
• The cut-off time for your printed item may vary. This depends on the combination you choose. This has to do with the manufacturing technique and / or the order quantities.
• NOTE: The product delivery shifts a day every time the deadline for submission has passed. This is also the case if the file is rejected by us and corrected artwork isn't supplied before the next cut off time.

Which carriers are used for the delivery?

• For the delivery of your spiral-bound menus we use multiple carriers. Because of the highest reliability, in most cases we use UPS or DPD.
• UPS
• Other carriers we use are DHL and even our own courier service. These carriers are used for certain products (depending on the size, the turnaround and the quantity).

I can't find the product I'm looking for. Can I request a quotation?

• The Spiral-bound Menus that is chosen in most cases can be selected via our website.
• If your material type, weight, quantity, size or other specification is not listed, you can request a quotation. We will send you our offer within 1 working day.
• Depending on the complexity this can take a bit longer.