FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Here are some questions (and answers!) that may matter to you.
Where are you located?
I have a Walch Printing address of "321 Valley Street," in Portland.
I have a book I need to publish. What do I do next?
How do I calculate the spine width of my book?
What kind of digital files do you need my book to be on?
What is your turnaround time?
How do you handle billing? Do you take credit cards?
What's the minimum number of books you can print?
Do you carry recycled paper?
Can you ship my project to another location? Or several locations?
Do you have a designer in house?
Can you scan previously printed books?
Will I be able to see what my project looks like before you print the entire run?
How green or sustainable is Walch Printing?
Many of the terms printers use are unfamiliar to me.
Where are you located?
We're in Portland, Maine, and we print and bind books for customers throughout the U.S. If you're ever in the vicinity, we'd love to have you stop by and visit our digital printing facility.
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I have a Walch Printing address of "321 Valley Street," in Portland.
We haven't been at Valley Street since 2004, when we moved into our new facility. Our correct mailing address is no longer "321 Valley Street" nor "PO Box 658". Our correct mailing address is Walch Printing, 40 Walch Drive, Portland, ME, 04103.
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I have a book I need to publish. What do I do next?
Get in touch with Jen White right away!
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How do I calculate the spine width of my book?
We have an online calculator you can use right here.
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What kind of digital files do you need my book to be on?
We work off of PDF files, which can be on a CD, zip disk, floppy disk, uploaded via our website, or an email attachment. Read more specific information on how to best prepare your files.
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What is your turnaround time?
Typically, once we receive a file, turnaround time is two weeks, assuming that the PDF files we receive from you are in the correct format, and that once we send you a proof, it is returned to us in a timely fashion with your approval.
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How do you handle billing? Do you take credit cards?
We accept Amex, Visa and MasterCard. If you prefer, we can also invoice you; see our Credit Application to get started.
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What's the minimum number of books you can print?
There is no minimum number of books per order, but there is a minimum order value of $150.
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Do you carry recycled paper?
We appreciate that many of our customers want to have their books printed on recycled paper. Approximately 90% of our text paper comes from sustainably managed and harvested eucalyptus plantations (Eucalyptus globulus), which have a high yield per acre, are highly efficient in water usage, and produce a high-quality fiber ideal for fine paper production. Please talk to us about the availability of various recycled products.
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Can you ship my project to another location? Or several locations?
Absolutely! Shipping to multiple locations is not a problem for us.
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Do you have a designer in house?
We can make some recommendations for excellent designers we work with regularly. Let us know how we can help out!
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Can you scan previously printed books?
Yes, we can scan previously printed books. Please understand that this adds an additional step and time to the printing process, and may incur additional costs.
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Will I be able to see what my project looks like before you print the entire run?
Yes, you will be sent a press proof, which is produced on the same equipment that will print your entire run of books. We will not run your job until you have approved (or made any corrections to) your press proof.
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How green or sustainable is Walch Printing?
We take seriously our role as book manufacturers. Using digital presses has allowed us to substantially reduce our environmental footprint:
- Digital printing, rather than offset, allows us to print exactly as many copies as we need, thereby reducing unnecessary overages and wasted paper.
- Digital printing also eliminates the wastewater by-products, volatile chemicals, and air pollutants associated with offset printing. Unlike offset printers, we have no plates, film, oil, or waste sludge to recycle.
- As noted above, approximately 90% of our text paper comes from sustainably managed and harvested eucalyptus plantations (Eucalyptus globulus), which have a high yield per acre, are highly efficient in water usage, and produce a high-quality fiber ideal for fine paper production.
- We recycle both paper and corrugated cardboard.
- We use captured heat from certain machinery in our printing plant to heat the entire printing facility.
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Many of the terms printers use are unfamiliar to me.
Our business does have a lot of "inside chatter." If you'd like to get up to speed quickly, we recommend one of the following glossaries:
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