Prepress
Newspaper Printers Increase Efficiency, Extend Editorial Deadlines, and Reduce Environmental Impact with KODAK Solutions
Tuesday 02. March 2010 - The Memphis (Tenn.) Daily News and Yorktown Heights, N.Y.-based Chase Press have improved production efficiency, output quality, and environmental performance with their recent purchases of a complete newspaper prepress solution from Kodak.
When The Memphis Daily News needed an equipment upgrade, publisher Eric Barnes simply performed an Internet search for “direct-to-plate” to peruse different vendors.
“We were still running film and needed an upgrade,” Barnes said. “Kodak made the transition to digital an easy process by providing an entire solution at the right time, with the right price.”
The newspaper installed a KODAK TRENDSETTER NEWS Thermal Platesetter with KODAK PF-N Non Process Plates, KODAK PRINERGY EVO Workflow and KODAK PREPS Imposition Software. Covering business and politics primarily, The Memphis Daily News employs 45 people. It has been independently owned by the same family since 1886. The daily edition has a circulation of 3,500 and the weekly edition boasts 20,000 subscribers. Barnes was seeking to relieve some of the pressure on editorial lead times and improve error-checking controls.
“We were looking for speed, first and foremost,” said Barnes. “Weve gone from three hours burning film down to an hour making plates. From the time we push print to being on the press, were saving two hours. That allows us to push editorial deadlines back. Plus, the workflow allows us to more efficiently correct mistakes before they hit the plate.”
Making the change to non-process plates was also a plus for The Memphis Daily News. The paper has made significant improvements in its facilities to improve environmental efficiencies. Updating its printing process with a plate that has a smaller environmental footprint, such as the non-process plates, seemed to be the logical next step.
Chase Press is a newly formed division of Chase Media Group, a multimedia publishing products company serving the upper Hudson Valley, N.Y., area for 52 years. The fastest growing enterprise organization among the companys seven product areas, Chase Press prints newspapers and shoppers, plus does other commercial print work.
Chase Press added a KODAK TRENDSETTER NEWS Thermal Platesetter with KODAK PF-N Non Process Plates, KODAK PRINERGY EVO Workflow, and KODAK PREPS Plus Imposition Software.
One of the main objectives of the recent installation was to become a more environmentally friendly company. “The major benefit of Kodaks PF-N non-process plate is its reduced impact on the environment, both inside and outside the shop,” said Jim Brennan, Prepress Manager, Chase Press. “We no longer need to use chemicals in the prepress department for film and plates. The plates develop on press with our regular fountain solution, and the pressmen have given us nothing but positive feedback.”
Reducing waste provides additional benefits well beyond the companys environmental impact. By replacing its old film-based workflow with KODAK Unified Workflow Solutions, Chase Press is also enjoying increased automation and efficiency. That brings with it a noticeable increase in output quality, which is one of the reasons Chase Press began working with Kodak two years ago.
“Due to the growth of our commercial printing division, we needed to produce predictable, high-quality color output,” said Brennan. “We have seen an immediate positive impact on our quality and productivity. The registration is much improved from our old film-based workflow. This allows our pressmen faster make-readies with less waste.”
The KODAK TRENDSETTER NEWS Platesetter delivers fast, reliable imaging with a standard file format interface for newspaper production systems and is available with semi-automatic or fully automated plate loading and unloading. The KODAK PF-N Non Process Plate provides the resolution, reliability, and imaging accuracy of thermal, digital plates without the need to install and maintain a plate processor, and KODAK PRINERGY EVO Workflow is an affordable PDF workflow system for controlling prepress, plate, and film production with customizable configurations.