Commercially available with immediate effect, the Fastbind Pureva Neo offers users PUR technology with the option of EVA hot melt binding in the same machine.

It is suitable for soft and hard cover books and tear-off pads, with no adjustments required for form, size or paper type.

Ashgate said that as runs of on-demand perfect-bound and hard cover books get shorter, printers are choosing to bring this type of work in-house due to time constraints, to give them more control, and to enable them to eliminate set up and transport costs.

“In just a few years PUR binding has become the de facto standard for short run book binding. It has become one of the most profitable products that printers can offer,” said Ashgate managing director Lewis Price.

“At the same time, customers realise the benefits of PUR binding for the strength of the bind and improved quality.”

The Pureva Neo’s glue mechanism can be easily cleaned or changed thanks to economical glue cartridges, which Ashgate said makes it possible to change from PUR to EVA in seconds.

The device uses an electronic adjustable temperature control with a single button operation between glue types.

It also has a new PGO Microcut roughener for coated paper stocks which provides an optimised cutting pattern that increases glue penetration for better binding strength.

Unlike other spine rougheners that grind the spine, creating noise and dust, Ashgate said the PGO opens the paper grain with very little noise and almost no paper dust.

The Pureva Neo has a production speed of one to three books per minute with a minimum binding thickness of 0.1mm and a maximum of 45mm.

The minimum product width is 140mm with a maximum of 320mm, while the binding length is up to 455mm.

Ashgate said the £7,990 Pureva Neo complements the £15,000 Pureva Smart PUR and EVA semi-automated binder, which was launched last summer.