Use this article when your shop assembles signatures into bound books, calendars, or pads and you need Estimator to price the bind step on every quote that selects a bound category. After this you will know what the Binding Machines library is, how a bound quote picks a binder, and how each binder subtype carries operator concepts that the per-subtype configuration articles cover in depth.
What a binding machine is
A binding machine in Estimator is any row in Estimate Setup → Binding Machines. The library is split into five subtype tabs by binding method: Saddle Stitch, Perfect Bind, Wire-O, Case Making, and Pad Glue. Each tab is the editor for one binding method and only displays the fields that apply to that method.
Every binder row tells Estimator that a specific bindery line exists, how fast it runs (in books, sections, or pads per hour depending on the subtype), how much it costs to run per hour, what make-ready it consumes per section, and which book sizes and signature counts it can accept. The categories sub-menus — Saddle Stitch Categories, Perfect Bind Categories, and so on — link each subtype to the product categories that may use it, so Estimator knows which binder applies to which product.
Cutting and sheet-finishing live in a separate library and are documented separately. See How cutting machines work and How finishing machines work. The five binding subtypes each carry particular operator concepts that the Configure articles for each subtype cover field by field.
A worked example
Northgate Press binds a 32-page A5 booklet through saddle stitching. The Stitcher 1 row under Saddle Stitch has Output per hour set to 3000 books per hour, Stations set to 13, Make-ready labor cost set to a small per-section value, and a Labor assistant required range table covering 1–5 signatures, 6–10 signatures, and 11+ signatures.
Estimator picks Stitcher 1 because the product category — Stitched Book — is in the Saddle Stitch Categories list. The bind step on the quote uses the stitcher's per-hour rates and the necessary book count. The Labor assistant required rule multiplies the labor cost by the assistant count plus one (operator) for the signature count on this job.
If the booklet had been a softcover novel instead, Estimator would have picked the perfect binder configured under Perfect Bind rather than the stitcher, because the Perfect Binding category is linked to that subtype. The price breakdown shows a Bind line with the binder name, the binder type, and the cost the line contributes to the quote total.
What this affects
Bind step on the price breakdown — when a quote routes through a binder, the Bind line uses the chosen binder's per-hour rates, make-ready, spoilage, and any subtype-specific cost fields (PUR adhesive cost on a perfect binder, wire cost on a Wire-O, case-board cost on a case maker).
Which binder Estimator picks — the product category is the routing key. A quote selecting a category in Saddle Stitch Categories routes through a stitcher; one in Perfect Bind Categories routes through a perfect binder.
Subtype-specific operator levers — Saddle Stitch has Labor assistant required and Multi-pass speed reduction; Perfect Bind has adhesive choice (PUR or EVA) and lining; Wire-O has wire pitch and wire cost per length; Case Making has hangover, turnover, hinge gap, and gutter grind-off; Pad Glue has glue per linear length and greyboard area. Each Configure article documents these per subtype.
What this does not affect
Folding the signatures before bind — the signature fold is a Finishing Machine row (Fold tab), priced independently. A stitched book quote shows both a Fold line for the signature fold and a Bind line for the stitcher. See How finishing machines work.
Guillotine pretrim and final trim — the trim cuts after binding are priced on the guillotine row, not the binder row. See How cutting machines work.
Routing between bind subtypes when categories overlap — if a product category is assigned to two binder subtypes (an unusual setup), Estimator will not auto-choose between them based on cost; the category-to-subtype mapping is the routing key, so keep each category in exactly one subtype's category list.