Quality Bindery Services is proud to be a Buffalo, NY family owned and operated business!
Award-winning QBSI Celebrates Over 17 Years of Service
As Kathleen “Kathie” Hartmans, President of Quality Bindery Services Inc. states, "The full service trade print bindery opened in 1993 'on a wing and a prayer.'" She and two partners, Chuck Stachowiak Jr. and Dave Borics had a vision of running a quality finishing shop for Western New York printers. With three pieces of equipment and 5,000 sq. ft. on Niagara Street, Buffalo, New York--the dynamic trio bound their first job for Buffalo Printing, an 8-page, self-cover for Science Kit.
The award-winning firm has grown to 35+ employees in their own 20,000 sq. ft. building at 501 Amherst Street, Buffalo New York. The bindery will celebrate their 18th anniversary this July 2011. QBSI serves the print industry of Western and Upstate New York, as well as the Southern Tier and Erie, Pennsylvania for post-press finishing services. Their custom hard cover bookbinding division serves the nation. With qualified craftsman few and far between, QBSI saw a need for the specialized services of case bookbinding. The Internet is the ideal solution for offering quality hard cover book binding.
The corporate culture of QBSI is one of work hard and play hard. Get the job done right--yet check out what the bowling scores were Thursday night in the lunchroom. It's not uncommon to have three family members working the same shift--a grandmother, grandchild and a cousin. The picnics and parties are fun for both employees and vendors--it's a great place to work. Click here for more information on employment opportunities with QBSI. The management team has declined use of traditional head and shoulders photos of themselves, so we've kept the "fun up" by interpreting them with some familiar animals!
Kathie Hartmans, President, is the queen of the jungle. She looks after all her printers, clients, staff and vendors.
President, Kathie Hartmans, was born and raised in Buffalo. She received her B.S. in Business Administration from SUNY Fredonia 1977. After graduation she embarked on career positions that supported her enthusiasm as a bona fide Buffalo booster. Kathie’s years in the hospitality industry and with the Buffalo Convention and Visitor’s Bureau helped her hone her sales and management skills while promoting Buffalo. One of Kathie’s key accomplishments with the Bureau was to create the Buffalo Ambassadors’ Program. In 1991 Kathie took a sales job with MM Bork & Sons Bindery. The new job fed her innate love for both books and manufacturing. As they say, the rest is history.
Over the last 17 years Kathie has contributed to both the print industry and the community. She served as President of the local PIA Chapter 2001-02, received a 2002 Pathfinder Award from the Buffalo Alliance for Education and graduated from the University at Buffalo School of Management Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership in 2001. Kathie was also honored as the 2002 Printing Executive of the Year. It's an honor she shares with all of the Quality Bindery Services Team—Chuck, Dave, the employees and her C.E.C., or Chief Executive Child—Tim!
Chuck Stachowiak, Jr.'s knowledge of the industry is key in QBSI's continued success.
Chuck Stachowiak is the wise guy of QBSI--his feathers never get ruffled. He gets things done, a regular "go to" guy – not to mention also a Vice President of QBSI. Chuck has fugitive glue in his veins. He started in the business in 1974 at Hoffman Printing as a helper on the web offset press. He worked his way into the folding area of Hoffman bindery as an apprentice. He was taught and mentored by Ronnie Kanai -- who himself is recognized as an expert in the bindery trade. At this point with over 29 years in the industry, Chuck is now “the man” the other binderies call for information and assistance when they are in a tough situation. Click here for some of Chuck's finishing tips.
Over the years Chuck has worked at a number of different binderies and printing companies in both full and part time positions. This on-the-job training and experience in problem-solving combined with the knowledge of printing company operations, makes Chuck an ideal post-press finishing manager. There isn’t a fold he can’t do or a machine he can’t operate. He continually comes up with a better way to lay jobs out in order to benefit our customers with a less expensive fold or quicker finishing techniques.
In his spare time Chuck is an avid bowler as are his brothers, Kevin and Danny—who also work at the shop. Chuck is addicted to real, as well as fantasy baseball.
David Borics is the go-to, take charge guy for 2nd and 3rd shifts. He's aptly called "gorilla."
Dave Borics started working at Hoffman Printing in the maintenance department—also with load mover responsibilities. Similar to Chuck, Dave worked his way into an apprenticeship in the bindery—primarily on the saddle stitchers for 10 years. With years of experience, training and on-the-job learning of the “do’s and don’ts,” running and managing saddle stitching and other machines comes second nature to Dave. He joined Kathie and Chuck at the start-up of Quality Bindery Services Inc. in 1993. The dynamic trio each respected the others expertise and talents. Dave’s quiet, yet determined personality, fit particularly well with running the 2nd and/or 3rd shifts as the company grew and the workload demanded it. His knowledge and command of all the facility equipment made adding the shifts a no brainer. Usually shift changes can cause bumps and bruises, but with night owl Dave running the operation, QBSI has managed the shifts and finishing quality work much to our customers’ satisfaction
As QBS’s Director of Mailing Services, Cathy Rajca qualifies as a dependable carrier pigeon. She figured out very early the secret of how carrier pigeons were trained . . . by placing their food at one location and their home at another location, pigeons were trained to fly back and forth up to twice a day reliably. Cathy applies this undercover information to her mailing strategies.
Cathy Rajca’s career in the “bulk” mailing industry began by accident in 1995. United Educational Services’ publisher (her dad) and distributer of educational testing material was closing. JMB Mailing Services was contacted to see if they were interested in any of their mailing equipment. Next thing Cathy knew -- she was immersed in the mailing industry, now referred to as “presort standard mail.” She learned all she could about processes, mailing techniques, dealing with the post office and deadlines. If there is anyone who can figure out what the post office is talking about, it’s Cathy! Her fulltime employment followed as JMB was purchased by Buffalo Mailing Services which eventually became a division of Quality Bindery Services Inc.
In her spare time or when she gets a day off, Cathy finds herself on the golf course. She was the Cazenovia Women’s Champion in 2000 and has a hole in one to her name – Cazenovia #3, par 3 110 yards! Cathy keeps up with the Stachowiak boys and her husband Dan, both on the golf course as well as at the bowling allies with her 162 average.
