If you have electronic equipment (and who doesn't?), you need to protect it from damage.  There are a couple ways to do this - one of which is to use surge protectors.  There are lots of variables to choosing a good surge protector and I may bore some of you if I were to discuss all of them, so I'm going to try to narrow it down to the most important points.

Here are a few interesting facts that I'll bet you don't know about office supplies:

Yellow fluorescent highlighter ink accounts for approximately 85% of all highlighter sales.  This is because yellow is the middle spectrum of visible light and works well for people who are color blind.

Probably the main concern when purchasing casters is making sure you get the right kind for the type of surface the chair is being used on.  If it's being used on hard floors, you need soft casters and if it's being used on carpeting or chair mats you need hard casters.  The other concern is getting the correct stem length and diameter.  Match your caster stem to the diagram below for the proper size and length.

Here's a quick one that I want to pass along to all the schools.  Yes, I know - school just got out, but I also know that this is the time that schools start putting in their supply requisitions for the next school year.

Xyron is offering either a $10 or $25 gift card as a rebate for purchases of their XRN624672 or PRO XM1255 cold laminators.  These are perfect for schools - cold lamination means no heat or electricity required.  Click on the image below to be taken to a printable copy of the rebate form.

When evaluating a workspace for ergonomic correctness, remember to consider the keyboard.  Many people can work just fine with the keyboard on top of the desk, but frequently the desk isn't the right height and the user can't be positioned correctly.  Ergonomics are a critical component of an office - a space that isn't ergonomically correct can cause multiple health issues.

Today I have two sets of rebates for you on Swingline Shredders.  The first one is on the Stack and Shred Cross-cut shredders.  You can get anywhere from $50 to $500 cash back depending on which model you purchase.  The offer includes purchases made from Jan 1 to June 30 and all submissions must be received by July 31.

We live in a digital age.  Transactions are electronic now - we pay our bills online, make purchases online - even buy our coffee with our smartphones.  Technology is wonderful, isn't it?  

Until something goes wrong.

ID Theft is everywhere - has it happened to you yet?  It has to me.  Fortunately, an alert bank teller stopped it before it became a disaster for me.  Trying to restore your identity and credit rating, as well as recovering your money, is time consuming and frustrating.  It can take years sometimes and require a lot of hoops to be jumped through.  And you can incur a lot of expense in the process.  Just what you need, right?

We get a lot of calls and questions about binders.  Many of you need help choosing the proper binder for your particular use and we're always happy to help answer your questions.  I thought I'd try to make it a little easier for everyone by posting this buying guide.  I'll walk you through it step-by-step so you know how to get the right binder for the job!

If you haven't been taking advantage of manufacturer rebates on your company purchases, you're missing out of lots of cool freebies.

Here are some more deals on things I'm sure you buy.  Click on each image to be taken to the full rebate form.

It's our anniversary!  

2016 is Office Express' 30th Anniversary and we'd like you to celebrate with us!  If you read our blog, you know that we have a weekly Trivia Contest (and if you don't read our blog, you really should!).  We post a trivia question and give a prize to the first person who emails us the correct answer.  Well, beginning May 1, our normal Trivia Contest will get a little more interesting.

Here we are again with some more rebate opportunities for you.  Today's featured rebates are from Acco, Fellowes and HP.  Click on the pictures to be taken to a page with complete details for each offer.

First up is Acco's American Made Promotion. Purchase qualifying American Made products and earn Visa Gift Cards.  The promotion runs from January 1 to December 31, 2016.  

Spring is just around the corner and many of you are already planning your spring cleaning projects - home, office, school, etc.  What products will you use?  There certainly are a lot of different brands to choose from - and most of them contain harsh chemicals.  If you are concerned about the effect these chemicals have on your health, or if you want to be green and environmentally friendly, consider the CleanSmart product line.

Why do consumers laminate? Mostly for protection and presentation - you may need to protect a price list or a menu from spills or maybe you want to laminate a document that you'll display at a conference to enhance the colors.  So you buy a laminating machine and all the supplies that go with it.   Well today I'd like to show you an alternate solution - Xerox Revolution Never Tear Papers.

As promised, here are some more rebate opportunities for you!  Click on the pictures to be taken to the full rebate information.

First up is a rebate on Swingline GBC  binding supplies.  Spend $100 on select SKUs and get a $25 Ulta gift card when you fill out the online rebate form.  Promotion runs from 1/1/16 to 6/30/16.

Are you a coupon clipper?  I am.  I have several apps on my tablet that get me discounts on everything from groceries to airline tickets.  Coupons and discounts can really add up and I don't like to leave money on the table.

Many office products manufacturers offer special promotions and rebates.  Some you'll find inside the product package when you open it, some you'll find on their websites.  Take advantage of them - they're there for you to use!

Here are a few that are active right now.  Click on the pictures to be taken to a printable rebate form that has all the terms and conditions.  

I get a kick out of writing these posts.  I love to find some of the oddest or goofiest facts (along with some actually useful ones).  So ........ Welcome to the next edition of "Did You Know?" 

• One percent of U.S. employers allow employees to take naps during working hours.

Here's another product that I recently tested for cleaning and disinfecting office surfaces - Scott 24 Hour Sanitzing Wipes.

When last we met to discuss custom printing, we were exploring process color vs. spot color.  Today we will venture further into the world of color space.  Color space is one of the most often misunderstood terms.  Also called a color model, it  refers to the range of colors, or gamut, that a device can reproduce.

Hello Everyone - October 4-10 is National Fire Prevention Week.  Safety in the workplace is a hugely important topic and fire prevention is nothing to skimp on.  Is your company in compliance with OSHA regulations?

What do OSHA standards require?

A couple of weeks ago, I posted the first blog in a series about custom printing.  Today, in segment 2, we will touch on the difference between process color and spot color printing.  This is an important topic not only to the person creating the file, but also to the person paying for the printing.

Commercial printing presses print in either process (CMYK) or spot color.  Process printing, also called four color process or full color printing, uses layers of 4 ink colors - Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and BlacK - to create the colors in the document.