Commercial color printers for newspapers are starting to change, at least for the tabloid sized publications. Newspapers are still mostly printed on a web press. In this context the word “web” doesn’t have to do with the internet. A web press is an enormous machine that can create millions of copies in only a few hours.
After the sheets of newsprint are printed, they proceed to another piece of machinery called a folder. This machine cuts the pages and folds them in the proper order. Throughout the process, quality control supervisors will take out random copies and check them for problems with readability, color, or page order. After folding, the newspapers are stacked and wrapped, ready for shipping.
Today the entire layout and editing process takes place on computers using software like QuarkXpress. Newspapers are usually printed on an inexpensive grade of p aper called newsprint. Some newspapers are printed on colored newsprint in order to make their product stand out among the competition at a newsstand.
The internet and newspaper printing
There is no doubt that the ubiquity of the internet has made an enormous dent in the circulation and ad revenues of traditional newspapers. But it is far from certain that print newspapers will disappear from the scene altogether. There are some advantages of traditional newsprint that electronics can’t quite equal. The main advantage of printed media is that it is the ultimate in portability. You can take it anywhere to read, and even in tight spaces (like on a subway) it can be folded down to where it takes up very little space. They can be read on airplanes when electronic devices are prohibited. And of course, it requires no electricity or charging.
Many people in their 40s and over grew up reading newspapers and experiencing the bonding around the breakfast table that comes from passing an articl e of interest around, waiting their turn for the comics page, or getting help on a crossword puzzle. These actions cannot be duplicated by electronic versions of newsprint.
Print media can take abuse, too. If someone spills coffee on a newspaper it’s not that big of a problem, but if coffee spilled on a laptop computer or e-reader can be a big problem.
The printing industry is changing
But the printing industry is changing too. While the enormous building-sized presses will probably always be necessary for the major world dailies like The Times of London, other printing requirements are changing to be geared toward smaller print batches. At the same time, commercial inkjet technology is increasing in its affordability, quality, and ability to cope with larger formats. These two are likely to meet up, as smaller publications look for the most cost efficient means of producing smaller print batches of newspapers. Epson, Xerox, and Dell are three companies that are branching o ut into larger scale commercial printing.
Epson has two main large-format commercial color printers that can be used for tabloid sized publications. The Large Format Epson Stylus Pro 9800 and 7800 are billed as affordable sublimation transfer printing with commercial quality. It was designed with the help of well known photographers and print makers.
The Epson 9800 can print in widths up to 44 inches in wide transfer output on virtually any type of media, whether roll or sheet cut. Resolution of up to 2880 x 1440 is possible, though this level of resolution isn’t required for newspaper printing. It is compatible with Sublijet line of specialty transfer inks and Wasatch Soft Rip software. (RIP software consists of alternative printer drivers that assist in managing quality and ink management.) With these systems the user can purchase large format dryers to cure the inks quickly, and bulk ink systems for lower costs per copy.
The Epson Stylus Pro 7800 is another workhorse model commercial color printer for newspapers and much more, such as banners, flags, signage, skirting, murals, and application to items like sports equipment and apparel. Both the 7800 and the 9800 provide a commercial-quality solution for printing at high resolution, economical consumption of ink, and good flexibility in printing size and media.
These printers have capacity for eight-color ink for the widest range of colors, wider print head design, sensors that automatically clean and align the print heads, and the option of a manual media cutter and / or an optional automated take-up reel for use with longer, unattended print batches on the 9800 model.
Xerox has tabloid sized printers too, that can handle pages up to 11 x 17 inches or 12 x 18 inches.
The Xerox Phaser 7500, which starts at $4,500, prints color at 35 pages per minute (ppm) or black up to 35 ppm. The time it takes for the first page to come out is as short as 7 seconds for either black or color printing. With network connectivity standard on this model, it’s powered by a 1 GHz Freescale PowerGUICC III processor and can print with resolution up to 1200 x 1200 dpi, which is the quality needed for outstanding graphics and considerably more than is required for commercial color printers for newspapers.
The duty cycle is up to 150,000 pages per month, which is far less than what is needed for a daily paper, but which may be sufficient for less frequent publications, or those with smaller circulations. The maximum paper size is 12.6 x 47.25 inches and the machine itself is 25.2 x 26.2 x 30.3 inches. This printer bills itself as being fast, as having the capability to print on heavier media than the competitors, and uses True Adobe PostScript 3 and PCL 5c rather than emulations, which gives it accuracy across many design platforms. The larger sizes of media do not require manual feeding.
The 7500 has features like creation of watermarks, booklet printing, remote printing, scaling, and can accommodate custom sized paper. The built-in networking works with Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. It has built-in features to track and analyze printing quality. It can be used as a desktop model or as a floor-standing model with room for three extra oversized 500 sheet trays. In addition to high resolution printing, it has precise color matching using Pantone-approved color charts, and also has Color by Words correction of color that lets users modify colors from a drop-down list.
The Xerox Emulsion Aggregate Toner is capable of producing extremely fine lines, better image quality, and higher contrast while requiring less energy and using less toner per page. Access to the insides of the Phaser 7500 is through the front so that users don’t have to turn or move the printer to change out the toner or add paper. The front da ta panel gives information on toner supply levels, print job status, and troubleshooting. This data is also accessible on remote computers.
This printer’s built-in hard drive allows users to store files that are frequently printed for quick on-demand printing right at the printer. The Secure Print feature holds a job in the print queue until a PIN is typed into the printer. The hard drive overwrite can virtually shred data after every job if necessary. Each color toner cartridge has 25,000 page capacity, and each black toner cartridge has 32,000 page print capacity. The transfer roller capacity is 100,000 pages.
Dell is fairly new to the market for commercial color printers for newspapers and other media. The company has three models aimed at helping businesses increase productivity and decrease the cost of printing. While two of the commercial printers are for letter-sized paper, the Dell 7130cdn is an LED-based color printer that can print up to tabloid size with high quality Pantone-approved color reproduction. This printer has numerous features, including a range of paper handling options, generous on-board memory, and a fast processor. The first page print out time is as low as 6.5 seconds in black or color. This model costs under $3,000.
The newspaper’s role – Is it changing?
The newspaper’s role as the medium of record isn’t likely to disappear soon, if ever. Newspaper printing relies on a different process and retains a different aura than online journalism. Once something is printed on newsprint it wears the mantle of authority, whether that assessment is accurate or not. With online journalism, the process is much more transparent, and mistakes are more easily forgiven. After all, if a blogger writes on something as it happens and spells a name wrong or blogs something that was heard in error, then correction doesn’t have to wait until the next print run. It can go on the blog in a matter of minutes and the world move s on.
Because of the different perception of online news versus printed news, print technology is far from irrelevant. But the giant printing presses of earlier times are no longer required for small batch printing, particularly of publications of tabloid size or smaller. Commercial color printers are able to print at tabloid size at resolutions that are sufficient for newspaper printing as well as resolutions that are necessary for high quality photographic output.
Many of these printer models can print from rolls of paper and come with options like cutters, and high volume ink management systems. These commercial color printers for newspapers and other publications start at prices in the low thousands of dollars, a capital investment that could be very cost effective for smaller batch printing of publications on a less-than-daily basis.
So while online journalism is growing in importance, and has ecli psed some of print journalism’s capabilities in terms of timeliness, printed media in many places still retains the designation as the publication of record. The smaller print batches required are coinciding with a drop in price and increase in capability of larger format commercial color printers. Adequate cost savings from the use of these printers could help save some forms of print journalism from obsolescence.