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In memoriam: Johan Vloeberghs

† July 2020. Dear Johan, we will never forget you ♥

Johan Vloeberghs

I am Johan, 52 years young and attached to the printing industry all my professional life. For two years I have been sailing under the banner of Buroform as a project manager.

At Buroform, I am responsible for…

I work as a project manager, which basically means I guide our clients through their project from start to finish. This ranges from the initial contact on the phone and preparing the quotation to the delivery of the final product and everything in between. I advise the customer on paper choices, printing techniques and finishing forms, engage any external partners and ensure that the relevant teams get the correct info. In fact, you could say that much of what is organizationally necessary to add sparkle and glamour to a product falls into my duties.

I got my job at Buroform through…

By now I have been here for two years. Before that, I worked for eighteen years at Copycat in Wilrijk, a company I helped build. But at some point it ran out there, as far as I was concerned. After much thought, I spontaneously applied to Buroform. I knew the company by name, knew it was a place that wanted to grow and look: took the plunge and am extremely satisfied with it!

My morning ritual is…

Waking up very slowly 😊. I like to start the day as calm and relaxed as possible. To the extent possible, because actually I’ve been doing my job from the moment I get up. Even during the traditional choco sandwich, my work rarely leaves me. Nature of the beast surely?

What people don’t know about my position is….

The entire process leading up to printing is too often underestimated. Printing is about more than pushing a button so that several sheets of paper roll out of the presses. It’s a very technical thing. Many people don’t realize that. The know-how today is incredibly high. Printing goes a long way, and the slightest mistake can ruin an entire job. Each choice is important to give the final product the right look. There are untold numbers of paper types, printing techniques and finishes. As a project manager, but also as a company in general, you have to guide the client very well in this. That’s what makes Buroform so strong: we really take people by the hand so that every aspect of the final product exceeds their expectations.

My proudest moment at Buroform is….

This interview! 😊 No, in itself, the first project you bring in is still special. Lead the customer through that entire process until delivery. You are quite proud of that. But actually, I have that feeling with every project. I am happy, relieved and satisfied every time a client beams and looks back on the collaboration with satisfaction.

What I like most about working at Buroform is….

By choosing Buroform two years ago, I took a giant leap. I had my own business and suddenly, at 50, I became an “employee” again. I was extremely well received and taken care of here, both by the management and the other colleagues. What a team spirit. On my first day, there was a sign on my keyboard, “Welcome to Buroform. Such details still make this company rise above the ground. I also sincerely believe in the vision of the future here. Management has a well-defined idea of where Buroform wants to go. I fully subscribe to that philosophy. If you want to survive in this industry, you have to do things differently. Then you have to jump out. I am convinced that the future is up for grabs.

On weekends you’ll find me…

In the winter I work my way through the house, in the summer I like to roll up my sleeves in the garden. In addition, I regularly go out with my wife: visiting a city, going for a walk or a bike ride. A terrace and a fresh pint should not be missed then. Or I venture out to a festival during the summer months; that too is part and parcel of time. We are lucky to have a large group of friends, there is always something to do.

If I wasn’t a “project manager,” I’d be…

Teacher, according to my wife. A missed opportunity she continues to claim. But that has never been my ambition. I studied graphics at Saint-Lucas and then worked in a publishing house and print shop. Graphics is in my blood.

The best career advice I have ever received….

I am rather stubborn, so I don’t remember much advice 😊. But I just think it’s important to make my own decisions. What you choose for yourself, you cannot regret. I am someone who does not like to look back, I prefer to turn the gaze forward toward the beautiful things to come.

SPACES: A creative environment needs creative tools

Spaces was founded in Amsterdam in 2006 with the goal of creating a creative, personal and stimulating office environment where a community of like-minded startups, entrepreneurs, SMEs and (inter)national companies can meet and inspire each other. Various services are then offered to that community such as free WiFi, a barista coffee bar, administrative support, a wide range of business events and networking lunches and so on. Characteristic of Spaces is its innovative design, each time calling on internationally renowned designers.

Spaces offers a creative work environment with a unique entrepreneurial spirit.

What can Buroform offer for Spaces?

A creative way of working needs a creative way of ordering printing, and let us excel in just the latter. With our marketing automation tool BAAS, we ensure that every Spaces branch can order print materials uniformly. With an approval flow, Spaces ensures control in every step of this process. Each order is first approved internally by Spaces before we begin printing or gathering the materials from our stock for shipment. Because in addition to printing, we also print and stock gadgets, roll-ups & other materials to make it as easy as possible. In this way, transportation costs are kept under control by sending everything from one place.

Wondering how we can optimize your network?

Connect with BAAS

3D Varnish: impress with your imprint

Your printed materials are often the first knock on the door of your target audience. How do you ensure that that door effectively opens? With 3D Varnish, you are already one foot in. As the name suggests, this new technique puts a three-dimensional layer of varnish on your printed matter. The result not only looks beautiful, you also create a unique experience for the fingers. Because 3D Varnish creates a relief on the paper, which guarantees extra attention from your reader.

Give your logo, text or image a glamorous effect.

As subtle as 250,000 atoms in a row

Did you know that the layer of varnish of 3D Varnish is only 50 microns thick? That’s half as thick as a sheet of newsprint, or the thickness of 250,000 atoms in a row. Still, you can clearly feel the varnish with your fingertips.

Differentiate with class

3D Varnish offers unique opportunities to make your printed materials – and therefore your company or brand – stand out above other communications. For example, choose gold or silver foil on a black background, giving your logo, text or image a glamorous effect. And can you imagine the admiring looks you garner when you deliver your business card with 3D Varnish?

Buroform - 3D Varnish

3D Varnish through a technical lens

3D Varnish…

  • … is a post-printing coating technique, in which a coat of lacquer is added via UV light
  • … Requires a font at least 8 pt in size
  • … has a gloss level of 99%
  • … can only be on paper with laminate or varnish
  • … is possible for offset and digital printing
  • … can be up to a maximum size of 52×105 cm
Buroform - 3D Varnish

An extra dimension for beautification, as well as protection

3D Varnish literally adds an extra dimension to your printing. This not only offers aesthetic benefits, but also protects the paper from moisture, scratches and dust. The technique is ideally suited for printed materials that you want to give a longer life: a book cover, your corporate brochure, your business card, product packaging, the invitation to your event – even your wedding card. Because you can be sure of one thing: thanks to 3D Varnish, you will impress with your print.

The result not only looks beautiful, you also create a unique experience for the fingers.

One example says more than a thousand words

So come see some fine examples at our office. We warmly welcome you.

Make an appointment

BAAS over every aspect of your printing


Buroform as a Service, or BAAS, is the name of our online printing platform. The direct link between you and our printing press. Not only do you personalize and order all your corporate identity documents with it, you use it equally well as an online product catalog and marketing portal.

BAAS - Buroform as a Service

Simplicity, transparency and efficiency. These are the code words of BAAS. The new platform brings all our previous initiatives together under one umbrella, making it easier for you to organize, personalize and order all your print materials. No more phone calls or emails. No hassle with choosing printing technology or paper, with numbers or sizes. Everything is highly automated so that future order confirmations can happen in just a few clicks.

Printing personalized in line with corporate identity

Many of our clients have several branches or dealers. All must communicate according to the guidelines of the headquarters. Therefore, BAAS is first and foremost a platform that monitors the corporate identity for everyone directly connected to your company. Like you, each of your branches can log into it for its printing. In your account, they will find all documents according to fixed, predetermined templates, in line with your corporate identity. These can then be personalized to your heart’s content. BAAS therefore helps ensure that all communications linked to your company run according to the agreements made. Name tags, brochures, flyers, posters, you name it. Your branch or dealer requests its templates, adjusts data such as logo, contact and opening hours and hop: the order can be passed on.

BAAS makes it easier for you because you truly control every aspect of your printing, without detours.

Online marketing portal and product catalog

Having all your corporate identity documents in one place is one thing. But thanks to BAAS, you also have more control over your further marketing initiatives. In fact, the platform also acts as an online marketing portal. For example, you can use your own image bank where you can house logos, images for social media, sales brochures and the like. In addition, BAAS also collects your product catalogs. Its pdfs are just online in your account. In an instant, you order the copies you want and have them printed on demand. Or you can have your products printed ahead of time for later retrieval from our central stock via order picking. BAAS makes it easier for you because you truly control every aspect of your printing, without detours. And so you can spend your precious time on other things.

Want to know more? Go to the website and connect with BAAS!

Meet the Buroform crew: Robin De Ceuster

Variety abounds within the Buroform crew. Wondering what it’s like to work with us? Then take a look behind the scenes.

Robin de Ceuster

I am Robin and have been working at Buroform for more than four years now. Feel free to call me the jack of all trades within the finishing team.

At Buroform, I am responsible for…

I am part of the team that “finishes” the printing. Within that, my function is actually twofold. Primarily, I am responsible for the Horizon StitchLiner, which amounts to cutting, stapling, gluing, stitching and folding brochures and leaflets. So I put the finishing touches on the printing myself. On the other hand, I serve as our foreman’s right hand. I am the point of contact for my colleagues and help coordinate the work, adjust the machines, you name it.

I got my job at Buroform through…

After my studies, I worked as a graphic designer and digital printer for five years. Then I operated the folding machine in another company for six months. The latter challenge suited me less. Not because of the work per se, but because we worked in a shift system. I had to cut back considerably on my social life, and that is exactly what I find so important. At some point I got in touch with Jesse, manager at Buroform. He was looking for someone for both the graphics team and the finishing team. Since I had experience in both fields, I was allowed to choose. I chose to finish. I like having control over the final product. Every detail has to be right. What disappears in the box toward the customer must be taken care of to perfection.

My morning ritual is…

I get up around 6 am, quietly get ready and leave for Mechelen where I start my work day at 8 am. I have half an hour to bulldoze, so I drive on in time to try to avoid the busiest part of the traffic jam anyway.

What people don’t know about my position is….

I have to pay attention to a lot of things, and sometimes they are minuscule details. Thus, my job is to help ensure that my colleagues can do their jobs perfectly. I check that the paper came in properly, that the printing was packed as requested by the customer, that everything happened as stated on the work orders. All small things that can have major consequences if not meticulously followed.

My proudest moment at Buroform is….

A while ago, our foreman was on vacation. Then I was given the task of replacing him for a week. Being allowed to bear that responsibility really stirred something in me. I have been working here for a good four years and suddenly I was put in charge. Surely I saw that as a form of recognition. If the colleagues also say afterwards how well you did, you should be proud 😊.

What I like most about working at Buroform is….

Colleagues. The atmosphere in our team is fantastic. There is work to be done, but laughter is also allowed. Within our team, everyone pulls the same rope. Even when criticism is once given, we try to see the positive in it. It reflects perfectly how well matched we are.

On weekends you’ll find me…

Rarely at home! I work out, play soccer and like to hang out with friends. My social life is incredibly important. Also during the week, I am constantly out of the house: soccer practices, indoor soccer… When I am among people, I am happy.

If I wasn’t a member of the finishing crew, I’d be….

Maybe cartoonist. As early as elementary school, I constantly heard how good I was at drawing. Later I went on to study graphic design and there, too, my talent must have caught people’s eye. At one point I was even asked by a company in Ostend as a cartoonist. But I was still young, I didn’t want to be so far away from home. Leaving everyone behind, I didn’t see the point. I didn’t take the step then, and although many still don’t understand that, I don’t regret it. I made other choices and I am still very happy about that.

The best career advice I have ever received….

“That I’m a stupid chicken because I never got into that comic book story!” :D
No, I don’t know very well. Personally, I just believe that you should use your mind and always keep going for it. My motto is: give 100% and don’t regret anything. I might have been a cartoonist. I chose the graphic arts field. And I enjoy doing my job immensely.

Stay tuned. We continue to share stories about each member of our team. That’s how you get to know what it’s really like to work at Buroform.

Would you like to be part of our #buroform team? Then take a quick look at our job openings and there might be something for you.

See you soon!

How is a cliché created?

Foil printing adds a very nice shiny touch to your printing. But no foil printing without a cliché, a brass template used to press the desired text, shape or drawing into the paper. How does such a cliché actually come about?

Like just about everything these days, clichés – or stamps – cannot really be lumped together. You have them in different materials, manufactured using different processes and techniques. However, the most commonly used are clichés in etched magnesium and brass, the latter being particularly popular. “A brass stamp is very easy to bend to your will,” says Rosita Van Unen of Repro Hermans, specialist on duty in Rotterdam. “You can edit those in great detail and adjust them almost endlessly until you get the desired effect.”

From black and white PDF to engraving file

Within the product range in brass, Repro Hermans distinguishes foil stamps (the standard cliché for shiny foil), embossing stamps (bring relief to your printing) and foil embossing stamps (combine both techniques). Rosita Van Unen: “The basis of the creation process is always the same. We receive a pdf from the customer that we import into a special engraving program. That pdf must be black and white, otherwise the system will not accept it. If it is colored anyway, we adjust the color. The same goes for files with different encoding. We also have to convert them to the correct format first. So starting can be very easy, but just as well you have some work in Adobe Illustrator first.”

A brass stamp can be molded to your liking very easily. You can edit those in great detail and adjust them almost endlessly until you get the desired effect.

Engraving with CNC machine

In the engraving program, Rosita creates a simulation of the cliché. It is important to consider what milling size the actual machining will be done with. “Let’s assume a 0.1mm cutter,” she says. “Then we must first see which parts are large enough to engrave with the CNC machine and which are too small. Some details require such minute treatment that additional processing with the laser is necessary. Were we not to do that, we run the risk of an upset result. So we select the smallest parts of the file that the cutter can’t go through and transform them into a laser file.”

Lasering for additional refinement

The cliché is first engraved with the CNC machine, as fine as possible. “In some cases, this step is sufficient. In the case of a very detailed file, we then move on to the laser machine. There we engrave the stamp again, so that even the very finest particles are burned away. Actually, you should engrave the entire file that way. That would be the most beautiful thing. But that is not desirable, not for the customer and not for us. The laser burns away microscopic pieces of 0.02mm per focal point. If you make a cliché that way, you’re easily two weeks away. I don’t think anyone wants to pay that cost.”

The laser burns away microscopic pieces of 0.02mm per focal point.