To rebuild or not to rebuild? That is the question facing a newspaper with an older press in need of a major overhaul.

The choice is not easy for any newspaper to determine if a press rebuild is more desirable than the cost of the system in the future.

“I feel rebuilding has increased in the last few years due to publishers making commitments to keep the press another 10 to 20 years and then spending the money to make sure the press is put back into shape,” said Jim Gore, vice president and general manager at Pressline Services

Four newspapers opted to rebuild their press units through Pressline Services last year.

Don Menzer, operations director of The News-Times (daily, 32416; Sunday, 38,121) in Danbury, Conn., said the newspaper decided to rebuild its existing press rather than purchase new equipment.

Smooth transition

The rebuild at The News-Times included a complete rebuild of cylinders, gears, bearings — the entire unit was torn down to bare metal.

“The project was handled very efficiently. It was a seamless transition with no lost press time,” he said.

Each of the seven Goss Metro units at the News-Times were torn down to bare metal at different intervals. It took approximately two to three days to rebuild an individual unit.
Photo: The News-Times

The rebuild at The News-Times in Danbury, Conn., included a complete rebuild of cylinders, gears and bearings in a bid to boost registration. Photo: Pressline Services

Each of the seven Goss Metro units at The News-Times were torn down to bare metal at different intervals. Menzer said that it took approximately two to three days to rebuild an individual unit.

The paper was configured to allow units to be operational while companion units were retooled during the weekday. All of the press units were available for production of The News-Times’ Sunday edition.

Since the installation, The News-Times has seen an improved product rolling off the press.

“The print quality since the rebuild has made a tremendous change,” he said. “We were so far worn on our bearings that our register wasn’t that great.”

The work at the Daytona Beach (Fla.) News-Journal (daily, 94,977; Sunday, 112,489) included stripping each of the seven Goss Metroliner units to the frame. New bearings were installed and the cylinders and eccentrics were reconditioned. The vertical drives were rebuilt by in-house technicians who replaced all air and water lines.

“With a unit running continuously on either side of them, they worked efficiently to beat our schedule,” said Terry Grubbs, project leader of the rebuild at the News-Journal. “Our presses have been running constantly for 27 years and it was time for an overhaul.”

The staff at The Eagle-Tribune in Lawrence, Mass., discovered that the folder it was using had been operating incorrectly for years. During the rebuild, Pressline adjusted it to run properly.

The rebuild came at the right time for the daily (daily, 51,940; Sunday, 57,731). The newspaper purchased three additional newspapers since the presses were rebuilt. The site is now operational 24 hours a day.

Sam Solomon, pressroom production specialist at The Eagle-Tribune said the relationship between the newspaper and Pressline Services has grown since the rebuild.

“Pressline craftsmen did a good follow-up to make sure everything is running well,” he said

Finally, the LaPorte (Ind.) Herald-Argus (daily, 12,014; Sunday, 12,6793) did a complete overhaul of its six Goss Urbanite press units. Terry Olsen, project manager for the LaPorte Herald-Argus, said that the daily and Pressline technicians coordinated time and money efficiently.