The Journal & Courier in Lafayette, Ind., printed its first edition in the Berliner format, in the process formally inaugurating its new $24.1 million production facility.

“It’s going well,” Operations Director Travis Komidar told Newspapers & Technology one week after the July 31 launch. “We’re shaking the bugs out and production times are improving.”

The Gannett Co. Inc. paper last year said it would convert from broadsheet to Berliner in conjunction with a new production facility anchored by a MAN Roland Inc. GeoMAN 4-by-2 press. It’s the first U.S. daily to adopt the format, in which pages measure 18.5 inches high and 12 inches wide.

The Journal & Courier in Lafayette, Ind.,  spent more than $24 million constructing a new production facility anchored by a MAN Roland GeoMAN press configured with three eight-couple towers. Executives believe the Berliner format will help the paper cut newsprint costs by 15 percent.
Photo: Journal & Courier
 

The press is configured with three eight-couple towers and four end-mounted reels, and is also equipped with a cylinder stitcher, double 2:3:3 jaw folder and quarter-folder to produce commercial products. It replaced a decades’-old letterpress.

Save newsprint

The move to the smaller format is expected to save the daily as much as 15 percent in newsprint expenditures in addition to other cost reductions, officials said when they announced the press purchase. The Journal & Courier was formerly produced with a 22.5-inch cutoff and a 54-inch web width.

The July 31 inaugural edition contained 76 pages, more than double the usual folio. It also sported the paper’s new banner, with an ampersand replacing the “and” that formerly linked the Journal & Courier’s moniker.

Komidar said advertising and reader acceptance of the format remained strong. “We’re getting a ton of color advertising,” he said.

In addition to the press, which can print up to 48 pages in full color, the Journal & Courier upgraded its postpress operation, tapping GMA Inc. to install an 18:2 SLS-3000 inserter and a PowerWrap system to seal inserts as they are completed. The paper also bought two CombiStack bundle inserting units and a line of GMA’s NewsGrip single-gripper conveyor to transfer papers from the press to the postpress area.

Crews are using the bagger to enclose the Sunday edition and - for now - daily editions for newsstand distribution, Komidar said. “The plan was always to bag the Sunday paper; we’re doing the daily newsstands to acquaint the crews with the technology.”

The Journal & Courier also upgraded its prepress systems, installing two Trendsetter News 100s from Kodak to handle computer-to-plate processing. The paper also deployed ProImage’s NewsWay software to oversee production workflow and to generate the CIP3 data funneled to the MAN Roland Pecom control system. Nela provided punch bending equipment.

Gannett trumpeted the launch of the paper, issuing a press release in which company Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Craig A. Dubow touted the new size. “With this first in the U.S. publishing industry, Gannett is demonstrating our commitment to innovation and pleasing our customers,” he said. “Importantly, this new press facility proves our abiding belief in the value and significance of newspapers.”

Vincent Lapinski, chief operating officer of MAN Roland’s web operations, said the format change “is a great example of how to make a newspaper more appealing and more connected to its readers and advertisers. We’re proud to be a part of this history-making event.”