Scripps
nearing end of Florida treasure hunt
Staff
Report
STUART,
Fla. - E. W. Scripps Co. last month expected delivery of its two presses as its
$45 million Treasure Coast Newspapers production facility nears completion.
“We
expect to be on time and within budget,” said Michael O’Leary, operations
director for Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers. The new facility, designed by
McClier, features safety, durability and operational efficiencies and is being
built to withstand a Category 5 hurricane (155 miles per hour or higher).
Randy
Bridgeman, project superintendent for McClier and Michael O’Leary, operations
director for Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers, outside the nearly completed new
production facility.
Photos: Newspapers &
Technology
The
126,000-square-foot facility, slated to be operational this fall, is being built
around two RegioMAN presses from MAN Roland Inc. The machines will be configured
with 82 printing couples, a double 2:3:3 jaw folder and a single 2:3:3 folder. Fourteen reel splicers will feed the presses, featuring a
21-inch cutoff and 50-inch web width.
The
plant can accommodate a third press, if needed.
To
protect against the possibility of a power failure, the facility features a
backup generator system. The main floor, meanwhile, is finished four feet above
I-95 to prevent flooding. The roof’s steel deck is reinforced with concrete
for further protection against winds.
Treasure
Coast’s quiet room has windows with a sloped design.
Photo: Newspapers & Technology
Photo: Newspapers & Technology
McClier engineered two additional unique features. The plant’s ink mist
filtration system uses the heat of
the press to generate an airflow that rises inside and around the press, thus
forcing the ink mist out of the pressroom and roll back down the exterior walls.
Large return air intakes then reintroduce air into the system. Ink, meanwhile,
is filtered where it enters the system to eliminate ink mist in ductwork and
air-handling systems, McClier said.
The
quiet room employs a glazing system specifically designed to minimize glare,
McClier said. The glass is sloped, which welcomes more light and lets operators
see the entire press without running into blind spots created by glass frames.
The
Treasure Coast facility will centralize three of Scripps’ existing printing
plants into one and serve the needs of the Stuart News, the Press Journal in
Vero Beach and the Tribune in Fort Pierce. Scripps also prints two weekly
newspapers and a variety of other publications. The plant will also serve as one
of Scripps’ five new distribution centers used to support delivery of the
papers.
| Ink
mist filtration system battles contamination
The
prominent ink mist filtration system in the Scripps Treasure Coast
Newspapers production facility is a component of a highly effective
system of air circulation, and consequently, air filtration.
The
system depends on the heat of the press to induce an airflow that rises
inside and around the press, causing the ink mist to be carried
vertically in the center of the pressroom and roll back down the
exterior walls of the press hall. Large return air intakes, mounted with
roll media filtration high on the wall, will then return the air to the
system.
The
ink will be filtered at the initial point of induction to alleviate the
introduction of ink mist to the ductwork and air handling systems. The
filtration media is automatically replenished with fresh media while
soiled media is rolled at the bottom, triggered by sensing the air
pressure.
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