web offset

1211

english

issue 69

M A G A Z I N E

Web Offset for PackagingReshaping the Debate

Mission Zero in Pursuit ofZero Waste16goss at drupa

seeing Things Differently

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From the earliest newspaper press towers, to gapless-blanket sunday™ presses, to Autoplate™, DigiRail™ and the world’s first 96-page web press, the name goss® has been synonymous with technologies that break through barriers and drive our industry forward. We take pride in being the first to introduce new ideas and innovations. More importantly, these ideas and innovations are developed in collaboration with printers and publishers. They reflect a vision of what they need to differentiate, strengthen their competitiveness and seize new opportunities.

We have also followed the “see things differently” philosophy in structuring our own organization. We are ‘local’ throughout Asia, europe and the Americas; in touch with requirements specific to each market and ready to respond with immediacy. We are also global; able to deliver the additional benefits of scale, resources and diversity. You can read more on how and why this works in europe, in particular, in this edition of Web Offset.

in fact, there are examples of how goss international and its customers “see things differently” throughout this issue of Web Offset: from new capabilities exploited on the sunday 5000 press in germany to AT™ productivity in the U.s.; from a multiple-press Universal® Xl installation in europe to the brand new Magnum™ hPs press en route for installation in China. And, with several printers in europe and north America building successful business models around goss web presses augmented by in-line inkjet capabilities, we even analyze the potential of inkjet in the web offset market.

As you will read, the goss products featured at drupa 2012 strongly support our overall theme. They all give printers and publishers the chance to take a new approach to how they print current and future products. The goss drupa portfolio demonstrates that, in a challenging climate, we are responding with new ideas and sustained – not diminished – R&D.

nowhere is the “see things differently” approach more evident than in our sunday Vpak™ packaging presses. We examined the demands that will confront the packaging sector, envisioned an expanded role for web offset, and developed an all-new press platform that presents an exciting alternative to sheetfed, gravure, flexo and previous web offset options.

Our drupa stand and the pages of Web Offset are limited, but examples of goss international and its customers around the world seeing things differently are virtually unlimited. They range from the large Colorliner® CPs compact press installation coming up at DC Thomson in scotland to dozens of aftermarket enhancement projects delivering major performance improvements and a fast return on investment.

Beyond being a drupa theme, “see things differently” is a challenge and an invitation. As always, we look forward to engaging with you in pursuit of new ideas.

“...See things differently” is the new Goss International theme for drupa 2012, but it is also the key to how we have delivered value for more than a century.

Jochen MeissnerPresident and CEOGoss International

issUe nO. siXTY nine

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sunday 5000 a Perfect Fit at stark Druck

As a full-service print and media provider, stark Druck gmbh + Co. Kg of Pforzheim, germany is continually reviewing and investing in technology to ensure its offering to customers is second to none. The company epitomizes the vast array of technical skills and capabilities required to address today’s diversity of modern media, through services covering digital prepress, web offset, sheetfed offset and digital printing, as well as converting and distribution.

Despite widespread emphasis on digital as the key growth area in print today, stark Druck represents the reality: that judicious investment continues to offer increased market share opportunities across many areas of commercial print. it was for this reason that installing germany’s first-ever 96-page web offset press was a logical step, and also the reason why the strategy has been successful. The long-grain goss sunday 5000 went into production on schedule in 2011 to the wide approval of stark’s customers – not only for the ability to print 96 A4 pages per cylinder revolution, but also the versatility to print lower page counts double- and four-up, delivering high volumes with extremely quick turnaround times.

As well as taking the title of first offset printer with a 2860 mm wide web in germany, stark also immediately became the first printer worldwide to have the capability to print 96 pages in both short-grain and long-grain format. The former was possible utilizing its two 48-page goss sunday 4000 presses.

“The press fit so perfectly into our portfolio that before we knew it, it was running at full capacity,” comments Reiner Wormitt, managing director of stark Druck. stark’s solution was to order a second, identical model which is due for imminent installation and will make stark the first company in the world to run two 96-page presses.

The new press will have a PCF-3 combination and PFF-3 former folder, both designed to run at up to 100,000 copies per hour for optimum product versatility. stark

Druck will also add a goss PFF-3 former folder to its existing sunday 5000 press. The features and ribbon configuration of each of the PFF-3 former folders will be absolutely unique in europe, allowing the company to offer specific products and very high copy output in low page count magazine format with very short makereadies to its customers.

According to managing partner Andreas Ruf, throughout its 65-year company history stark has a tradition of being innovative and agile: “Our strategy today is driven by the desire to ensure we are best positioned for the changing world of print and media. We aim to enhance the potential for added value across our entire product spectrum – first of all in conventional print offering and then focusing on new media. Our plan is well underway through investment in printing presses, in digital printing and in our continued commitment to the digital technologies.”

German printer doubling up on commitment to 96-page web offsetplatform as part of growth strategy.

A second identical Sunday 5000 press will soon make Stark Druck first in the world to run two 96-page presses.

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“Better Ways of Doing Things”

The Church of Scientology has a saying that Scientology is “not just something you believe in, it is something you do”. That mantra drove a new model for communicating with members and a new in-house print facility where a Goss® Sunday™ 2000 press with Automatic Transfer™ technology is the centerpiece.

The Church of scientology international (Csi) printing center in los Angeles, California (UsA) opened in 2010, serving the worldwide network of scientology followers and printing materials in as many as 19 languages and with up to 168 regional versions. The agility of the sunday press has improved how Csi senior project manager Jamie McClintock and his team manage the diverse product mix. The press has even opened their eyes to new and improved options.

“We print 1.8 million products every week, and the complexity, with all the languages and versions, makes efficient job scheduling and changeovers a must,” McClintock explains. “Adding to the challenge is the tight deadlines we have to meet, as 50 percent of our production goes overseas. The Automatic Transfer goss press system gives us the vital advantage of instant, on-the-fly job changeovers.”

Previously, all Csi print work was outsourced, but the Church took a bold step in 2010. McClintock’s team opened the new in-house facility and equipped it with state-of-the-art digital, offset, finishing and auxiliary capabilities, including the six-unit Automatic Transfer sunday press.

Automatic Transfer technology allows non-stop production at the Csi facility. Four of the six units are typically set up to print CMYK, while the fifth and sixth units hold different language overprint plates. While one of the units with a language plate is on impression and printing along with

the CMYK units, operators prep the idle unit using the Autoplate™ automatic plate changing feature. That unit then comes on impression while the unit printing the previous language simultaneously comes off impression.

This sequence of toggling between units can continue across multiple editions without stopping or even slowing down the press. Waste is minimal thanks to advanced goss ink presetting and closed-loop controls. As a result, short-run jobs that might have been printed using another process – or not printed at all due to the prohibitive cost – can now be produced with the speed, quality and economic advantages of web offset.

McClintock says Automatic Transfer technology was significant in the selection of the sunday 2000 press, but other features were also important in a web offset production environment where changing editions or entire jobs five or six times per hour is not uncommon. “gapless blanket technology gives high quality and faster blanket changes, and the overall

fast makeready and waste reduction package provides considerable cost and productivity advantages for the multi-faceted work we need to do,” he explains.

The sunday press with a PCF-1 pinless combination folder allows Csi to produce standard 16-page magazine signatures plus a wide variety of specialized folds and product formats at up to 55,000 impressions per hour. The gapless, pinless combination allows a shorter cutoff for considerable paper savings. A sheeter provides additional versatility for specialized covers or products requiring offline folding and finishing.

“We maintain the highest quality standards for all of our publications and accurate and pleasing color was high on the list of hard requirements,” states McClintock. “We opted for full closed loop color and register control on the press and a 100-percent visual inspection system which inspects at full press speed, comparing each impression against a master, thus ensuring high-quality products going to bindery and out the door.

Left to right: Jud Posner, Pressroom Manager, Nicky Byrne, Production Manager, Owen Varrall, Project Manager, Toby Updegrove, Plant Manager.


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A single source for printing

The Csi print center also features sheetfed and digital press capacity and a comprehensive portfolio of finishing and auxiliary equipment. The result is an ability to produce everything from posters, foil stamped covers, invitations, greeting cards, fliers and brochures to wide-format banners and screen or digitally printed garments.

The sunday press is a workhorse of the operation, turning out 80 percent of the print volume. The bulk of that web offset work is saddlestiched and perfect bound publications with up to 152 pages in run lengths that extend from 5,000 to 500,000 copies.

Utilizing the flexibility

“Our printing requirements like everyone’s have changed in recent years and employing our own technology to fulfill our requirements in-house has certainly put a new perspective on our production goals,” explains McClintock. “For example, we have made considerable cost savings due to the ability to manage our own workflow. But the wider capabilities of the sunday press have also opened our eyes to better ways of doing things, such as tailoring Church magazines to regional areas, as well as by language. something we would have never considered in the past when we outsourced the publications due to cost, time and complexity.

Unique Goss training opportunities

The all-new Csi print operation was up and running at high capacity much faster than McClintock thought possible. “Our training needed to be very thorough, particularly with the sunday press, as our operators had no previous web offset experience,” he recounts. “We had comprehensive help from our equipment suppliers and other industry professionals, and goss was particularly creative.”

Prior to the sunday press installation, goss international arranged customized offset lithography courses for Csi crews at top-flight colleges where goss web presses have been donated. The first session was at California Polytechnic institute, and the second was held at The Rochester institute of Technology. Crews then spent three months operating a similar sunday press on an apprenticeship basis at a commercial printing company.

“goss has honestly been a pleasure to work with. everyone involved in the project has been extremely helpful and went out of their way to ensure the entire training and installation process went without a hitch.”

A view on the future

McClintock says print volume and quality are increasing. The new in-house facility and the organization behind it are driving this growth. “goss has played a big role in getting us to this level. They have been very supportive of any issues and continually worked with us to improve our processes and procedures,” he says.

As the complexity of publications and marketing collateral steadily increases, he projects that his team will be able to respond. “i see the future of print as increasingly customized publications, with perhaps personalized inserts that have a higher value to the reader and are much more relevant,” he concludes. “We’re excited because that is what we excel at with the sunday press.”

• 1.8 million products per week

• 300,000 products per day

• 35 makereadies per shift, two shifts per day

• 500 web press plates per week (average)

• 50 percent of output sent overseas

“We have increased the languages we publish in, and drastically increased the regionalization of some publications to make them more relevant and informative.”

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short and Perfectly Formed

Featuring the latest in automatic plate-changing technology, ergonomic benefits and high productivity its unique double- or triple-width press platform delivers the print quality, efficiency, operability and long-term production versatility to suit a continually changing publishing landscape.

Designed from the outset for coldset, heatset or mixed production, with fast changeover between these print

applications, the Colorliner CPs is a true workhorse for high-volume production. With a maximum straight running speed of 90,000 copies per hour it delivers key quality and operational benefits from its compact four-high tower configuration, employing the latest automation technology. it joins the Colorliner FPs™, providing customers with two versions of compact press platform. The CPs press incorporates many of the FPs design features, but in a smaller footprint, enabling it to be installed on existing press bridge structures.

This package is fitted within a 4.5 meter (14.8 feet) frame height and benefits from a 2.7 meter (8.9 feet) first to last impression distance, minimizing fan-out and producing excellent print quality. The low height, non-splitting design maintains excellent ergonomics for operation and maintenance through a patented and unique cylinder configuration.

shaftless drives, with one-motor per printing level, and cylinders with bearer-to-bearer design, as typically seen on commercial presses, provide proven print quality. Users can select press configurations offering double- and triple-wide output, depending on their publishing requirements.

Providing one of the most cost-effective printing systems available for a high-output press, the Colorliner CPs press benefits from a specialized air ducting arrangement that produces a natural flow of air circulation for optimum heat dissipation. This results in extremely low heat generation, removing the need for the additional cooling systems employed by other manufacturers. substantial reductions in power and energy costs,

as well as low waste between jobs and the use of proven, reliable technologies, contribute to lowering the overall cost of ownership of the press.

A host of modern features create a highly automated production environment including the goss Autoplate™ fully automatic plate-changing technology and automatic blanket washing. Pioneered on the goss M-600™ and sunday™ press units, Autoplate enables re-plating operations to be completed within minutes for fast edition or job changes, and caters for variable page widths. Combined with the optional goss DigiRail™ digital inking system, a number of additional automated features include ink and damp train wash-up, start-up and run-down sequences, automatic pre-inking and roller adjustment (optional feature). Cut-off options range from 45cm to 60cm (17.7 – 23.6 inches), and a choice of web widths up to 1,905mm (75 inches) enables a variety of print formats to be produced for newspaper and semi-commercial work.

The press comes with split-arm, reel tension pasters, closed-loop in-feeds and an efficient automatic web lead system. A versatile 2:5:5 jaw folder with twin or triple formers enables products to be produced with up to 96 broadsheet pages.

To optimize the control and automation of the press, a goss OPCs system provides fingertip control of all elements of print production, using large displays and intuitive screen dialogs and a press function keyboard. ink presets, store and recall job adjustments, self-learning procedures, job scheduling and

Announced at the end of 2011 with an order for DC Thomson in Scotland, the Colorliner® CPS press is the new Goss® compact press for high-volume newspaper and semi-commercial production.


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maintenance dialogs are all controlled from a single interface.

Theo Buchmeyer, managing director of goss international – France, comments “The Colorliner CPs is compact but extremely powerful – a ‘pocket sized’ press that packs a big punch. its unique design provides a shorter ‘first-to-last’ impression than most rivals, faster running speeds, and provides a level of automation that is hard to beat on speed of job changeovers.”

D C Thomson & Company Ltd.D C Thomson & Company ltd. is a family-owned publisher and printer based in Dundee. The eight-tower Colorliner CPs press to be installed at D C Thomson will print up to 90,000 copies per hour, driven by a full automation package including goss Autoplate plate changing technology and closed-loop controls. goss international will equip the system with goss Contiweb FD™ pasters, two goss ecocool® heatset dryers and two J2:5:5 jaw folders. installation begins in mid 2012.

As part of its investment in the future of its newspaper printing and publishing business, the company will also reconfigure existing goss Colorliner equipment into a seven-tower, two-folder system. “A major controls upgrade and other enhancements, combined with the robust design of the Colorliner press family, will extend the productivity and competitive efficiency of our existing equipment well into the future,” explained Chief Operating Officer David Thomson.

italian Publisher Competes on Quality

Family-run publisher Loghicon srl of Pordenone, North-East Italy, has gone on-editionwith a 16-unit Goss® Community® SSC press at its new print facility, Centro Stampa Friuli.

“We expect the new Community ssC press to help us claim a leadership position for our titles, differentiated by quality in a market that has become flooded with low-grade products,” comments company owner, simone saletti. “Our two key titles, Città nostra and la gazzetta immobiliare, are high-quality advertising newspapers for the north eastern region of italy. We plan to increase production by up to 30 - 50 percent in the

coming months, extending our readership further afield and possibly even looking beyond national borders, to slovenia, Croatia and Austria.”

The new goss Community ssC press, comprising four four-high towers, has an ssC 1:2 jaw folder with quarterfold capability and a 578 mm cut-off. For phase two of the project, goss international will add three mono units and a folder to the new press line, all existing equipment from another facility.

“We’re working hand-in-hand with goss international to produce the most productive press site in the region. From the first drawing to every milestone along the journey, we feel goss is helping us move towards a very positive future,” says saletti.

established in 1992 with the purchase of free newspaper Città nostra, loghicon is a family-run publisher with headquarters in Pordenone and its printing facility, Centro stampa Friuli, in nearby Zoppola. Total production and distribution of its main titles la gazzeta immobiliare, printed in magazine format, and the tabloid publication Città nostra reaches 8,000,000 copies per year.

Loghicon owner Simone Saletti (left) with Pivetta Luisa Saletti, director.

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Reshaping the Debate

Reinvigorating the debate about printing processes for packaging, Goss believes that changing requirements are creating the right conditions for a wider adoption of web offset for folding carton, flexible packaging and label applications.

new goss® sunday Vpak™ variable sleeve presses introduce an entirely new way to exploit the inherent print quality, cost and agility advantages of web offset, according to Peter Walczak, goss international director of product management for packaging presses.

Walczak says that, while packaging has not been directly threatened by electronic alternatives and remains a growing print sector, the pressures on packaging producers mirror those found in the other sectors. “Margins are tightening, brand owners and marketers are demanding higher print quality, and run lengths and turn-around times are coming down to achieve more dynamic, targeted and personalized packaging,” he explains.

Add in emerging environmental, product safety and security issues, and it is no wonder that current print production methods are being analyzed so closely with an eye on improvement opportunities.

“With new variable sleeve press technology available in web widths up to 1905mm (75 inches) to address these requirements, the time is right to consider, or reconsider, web offset alternatives to flexo, gravure or sheetfed offset for some applications,” Walczak adds.

in addition to the benefits of high productivity and comparatively low costs for imaging versus gravure and plates versus flexo, offset provides a more versatile and stable process for many

packaging requirements. simplified and automated makeready processes not only mean fast start-ups for new or repeat jobs, but also quicker and easier adjustments during production.

high line screens and sophisticated screening techniques, such as FM or stochastic screening, can also be accommodated easily via offset, improving print quality while avoiding screen clashes, moirés and other defects. The ability to print solids and screens for a particular color from one plate on the same unit further enhances simplicity and cost-effectiveness.

“Consumers and marketers increasingly expect the print quality and vibrancy of a product’s packaging to make it stand out from competitors and match the brochures, videos and other promotional materials for that product,” according to Walczak. “Offset is the proven print process for the highest quality at high speed and competitive cost.”

Powerful productivity complements the quality and cost advantages of web offset. The new goss sunday Vpak presses print at up to 457 meters (1,500 feet) per minute. The result is output capabilities up to 200 percent higher than those of a sheetfed press, along with reduced substrate costs, greater substrate range and inline converting.

Variable-sleeve sunday Vpak models are also preferable alternatives to cassette-style web offset packaging presses that rely on cumbersome and costly cassettes to achieve repeat variations. Available in

Peter Walczak, Goss International director of product management for packaging presses

The Goss Sunday Vpak packaging press – here outputting to 18pt SUS paperboard – is available in web widths up to 1905mm


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web widths up to 1905mm (75 inches) and 1041mm (41 inches), respectively, the sunday Vpak 3000 and sunday Vpak 500 press models feature quick-change blanket and plate cylinder sleeve adapters, which make ‘infinitely’ variable repeat lengths easier and more affordable.

Proven concepts and technologies from industry-leading goss sunday™ commercial web presses were incorporated in the new Vpak presses. sleeve experience and unique, proven goss technologies to manage presetting, ink, water, web tension, register, closed-loop controls, drying and other variables in the most demanding offset environments support the advantages of the packaging presses, according to Walczak. he notes that more than 2,000 goss sunday printing units with sleeve technology are in operation worldwide, printing at up to 15 meters per second

(3,000 feet per minute) and on webs up to 2860mm (112 inches) wide. “We have also demonstrated that we specialize in working with customers to integrate web offset lithography within advanced and highly-customized production systems, a key for packaging.”

“innovative wide-web sunday press technology revolutionized commercial printing over the past two decades by dramatically improving the productivity, short-run efficiency and overall cost model of web offset,” concludes Walczak. “With the sunday Vpak presses, we are presenting a similar, game-changing path forward for the packaging sector.”

Concealed in a sleeve — the gapless secret Weapon for Offset Packaging

Extensive experience with sleeves and a unique new “white light” cylinder layer give Sunday Vpak presses unique advantages.

goss® sunday presses with gapless sleeve blankets revolutionized commercial web printing and have been setting – and resetting – industry standards for print quality, productivity and reliability for 20 years. More than 2,000 sunday printing units now operate worldwide at speeds of up to 15 meters per second (3,000 feet per minute) and widths of up to 2.8 meters (112 inches).

now, with packaging print requirements moving toward the leap-off-the-shelf print quality, shorter targeted run lengths, faster turnaround times, and absolute-lowest-cost-possible requirements of commercial printing, it is only logical that goss international would adapt its sunday press advantages and experience for specialized packaging applications.

For flexible packaging the Vpak benefits include finer line screens and fast, easy color adjustment.

20 years of sleeve press experience allowed Goss engineers to quickly perfect the air pressure and cylinder registration mechanisms for fast, simple size changes.

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Model Max Web Widthmm (in.)

Min Repeatmm (in.)

Max Repeatmm (in.)

Unit Design Speedmpm (fpm)

sunday Vpak™

3000

1905 (75)1625 (64)1400 (55)1120 (44)

850 (33.5)700 (27.6)700 (27.6)700 (27.6)

1400 (55.1)1400 (55.1)1400 (55.1)1400 (55.1)

457 (1500)

sunday Vpak™

500

1051 (41)850 (33.5)520 (20.5)

508 (20)406 (16)406 (16)

812 (32)812 (32)812 (32)

365 (1200)

goss is certainly not the first to envision the potential for web offset to provide packaging printers with a preferable alternative to flexo, sheetfed offset and gravure for folding carton, flexible packaging and label applications. solutions have come and gone, but barriers ranging from costly and cumbersome size-change systems to limited web widths to ineffective supplier support and execution have prevented web offset from making serious inroads.

A different reference point in terms of web offset technology and experience allowed goss international to take a unique approach. One with a stronger foundation and a higher prospect for long-term success, according to Peter Walczak, product development director for the company’s variable sleeve sunday Vpak™ presses.

“We recognized, of course, that we could not simply take a commercial web press, add variable repeat, and call it a packaging press,” acknowledges Walczak. “instead, we took the proven core principles of sunday™ technology and our experience with sleeve presses and started from the ground up to create a specialized packaging press.”

That effort included collaboration with Flint group / Day international, a longtime supplier of gapless sunday press blankets, and its Rotec division. The result is a breakthrough blanket and plate cylinder concept that reduces the cost and complexity of achieving multiple repeat variations with a sunday Vpak press significantly.

size changes with the sunday Vpak presses are achieved by sliding cylindrical bridging sleeves and plate and blanket sleeves of varying diameters over cantilevered mandrels. That is nothing new, and 20 years of sleeve press experience allowed goss international engineers to quickly perfect the air pressure and cylinder registration mechanisms for fast, simple size changes.

What is new is the goss and Flint concept of affixing a layer of lightweight material known as the “white light” layer under the blanket and plate sleeves. The thickness of this “white light” layer can vary from 0 to 0.25” (0 to 6 mm). The key benefit is a reduction in the number of blanket

bridging sleeve adapters a Vpak press user needs to buy and manage.

“For each set of blanket bridging sleeve adapters, a printer can vary the repeat within a range of 1.57 inches (40 mm) by using a new set of blankets with a “white light” layer of an appropriate thickness,” Walczak explains. “This is a far less expensive and complex alternative to buying and organizing separate sets of bridging sleeves for every single size requirement.”

surface compounds for the blankets developed for the Vpak press are available for UV and electron beam curing and heatset printing.

in parallel with the sleeve change and “white light” concepts, the goss team designed the sunday Vpak press cylinder stack so that ink train rollers and the plate, blanket and impression cylinders maintain a correct contact profile regardless of the diameter of the sleeves. The design work included automatic setting of the plate to blanket nip to ensure ease of operation and fast changeovers.

The result, Walczak summarizes, is a press design that merges the proven lithography, operability and productivity traits of the world’s most advanced sunday presses

with a size-change capability that is easy, reliable and cost effective. he says print testing in the goss international R&D lab has produced excellent results on a wide range of packaging substrates, from unsupported films of 12 microns in thickness to heavyweight board.

“We’re used to printing 200 lines-per-inch or stochastic screens and achieving precise web tension – a critical challenge with packaging substrates – at 3,000 feet per minute on 112-inch webs,” he explains. “so it is not surprising that we have been able to do this with the new Vpak 500 and Vpak 3000 units in our lab.

“The track record of goss international in introducing game-changing printing technology, executing large-scale integrated installations and supporting them over the long term with a solid company infrastructure should also give packaging producers confidence in the sunday Vpak presses,” he concludes.

The Goss “white layer” reduces the number of blanket bridging

sleeve adapters a Vpak press user needs.


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Packaging World First for Precision Press

Precision Press, an innovative U.S. packaging and label producer for the food, beverage and consumer markets, will be the first in the world to install the new Goss Sunday Vpak web offset printing system.

The new press will be configured for flexible packaging applications, with sunday Vpak 500 web offset printing units as well as a goss in-line flexo and coating unit. The press will also be equipped for UV and eB curing. The system will go into operation at the company’s 213,000-square-foot (19,800 m2) facility in north Mankato, Minnesota in late 2012.

high offset print quality, quick-change sleeve technology and the prospect of lower production costs were key factors in the investment decision. goss international support resources in the United states were also important, according to lee Timmerman, president of Precision Press. Timmerman says the sunday Vpak 500 press will accommodate a wide variety of film substrates, product formats and high-quality lithographic requirements, supplementing the company’s extensive web offset capabilities.

“We have made a deliberate decision to do something different,” explains Timmerman. “There is a lot of untapped potential for web offset in the packaging arena, and we’re excited about the new print quality, productivity and efficiency benefits the goss press technology will bring to our customers.”

Printing at up to 1,200 feet per minute (6.1 m/s), goss international will equip the system at Precision Press with a closed-loop color, registration and inspection system.

“Precision Press is a well-established leader in delivering differentiating packaging and label capabilities to its customers,” according to Jochen Meissner, goss international president and CeO. “We appreciate this opportunity to support the company’s ongoing commitment to cutting-edge offset technology.”

Timmerman notes that Precision Press has worked closely with goss international over the past year in development of the press configuration. “We had the chance to actually work with the high-caliber goss engineering team as the press was being developed and tested at their U.s. headquarters,” he explains. “As a result, our experience in printing on films and understanding of the challenges, as well as our vision of the capabilities that our customers will need going forward, are built into the new press technology.”

Precision Press produces a comprehensive range of flexible packaging as well as in-mold, shrink sleeve, roll-fed and cut-and-stack labels to help customers throughout the United states distinguish their food, beverage and consumer products. The company is part of the Taylor Corporation, one of the top-five largest graphic communications and commercial printing groups in north America.

Precision Press president Lee Timmerman (left) and vice president of technology Lane Gravley (right) confirm the order with Goss International sales director Tim Van Driessche (center)

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Mission impossible?

The achievement of zero waste is, of course, behind many of the press and prepress innovations that we take for granted today, especially in the field of digital print where “a print run of one” was the mantra that drove Benny landa to his revolutionary work on digital offset.

At goss international, development teams have been marching to the beat of a different drum. “in the web offset sector, our drive towards zero waste has delivered dramatic progress and benefits for our customers in recent years,” according to Jeff Upchurch, senior vice president of Research & Development and service. “Digital has some powerful applications and is forging several new avenues for print, but so is web offset. The speed, quality and economy of a web press are still preferable for a very wide and expanding range of applications that are an essential part of everyday lives: newspapers, magazines, advertising inserts, catalogs, direct marketing, and packaging. More importantly, for the future of print, many of our customers are using goss® innovations to harness web offset’s potential in new ways. so our focus

is on supporting them with continuous, incremental steps towards an ultimate goal of eliminating any wasted materials, labor, time or cost.”

This “Mission Zero” approach is a fundamental part of every printing solution goss international designs. All efforts are focused on developing products and process-optimized systems along with controls to create seamless integration throughout the print production chain, from reelstand to finished product.

A good example of this holistic perspective on waste can be seen in the new goss Colorliner® CPs compact-tower press launched in the fall of 2011 [see page 6]. As compact-tower presses become more compact, heat build-up within the units is becoming a critical issue in some models, with the close proximity of the printing couples preventing effective natural dissipation of the heat produced by the cylinders. This can adversely affect the print quality and overall reliability of the press. Competitive presses require complex, costly, energy-consuming extraction systems to remove the heat.

The goss Colorliner CPs, in contrast, has a specialized cylinder and roller arrangement that creates a natural flow and circulation of air within the printing unit for optimum heat dissipation. This eliminates the need for expensive additional cooling systems and allows users to avoid unnecessary power and energy costs.

elsewhere on a press, it can be the process sequencing software that makes a dramatic difference to waste levels. The goss trademark system is an open architecture CiP4/JDF-based workflow solution that helps target waste by addressing the chemistry and behavioral variables specific to each production run. “Apart from giving press crews ultimate control over all press operations, Omnicon takes ink and color control to a smarter level, focusing on the overall characteristics of the inker and dampener to get from one job to the next as quickly and efficiently as possible,” Upchurch explains.

Achieving target ink densities, to match the job with the proof, is in itself a challenging process which goss has improved with the Omnicon control system. Optimized for use

For many printers, zero waste is the Holy Grail. The ultimate goal. The obvious way to help drive the ‘lean, mean and green’ philosophy that they need to adopt to remain competitive.

The Goss Omnicon™ system helps target waste by addressing the chemistry and behavioral variables specific to each production run.


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with closed-loop color control, the Omnicon system works in conjunction with the goss prepress interface to preset a job using area-coverage values derived from the digital file. self-learning algorithms using data from a predetermined number of previously run jobs automatically enhance the preset accuracies over time.

Putting the first few cylinder revolutions of a press run under the microscope has delivered another incremental step towards the holy grail of zero waste. even when the ink keys are correctly set for the upcoming job according to prepress data, the ink train still contains coverage volumes relating to the previous job. Omnicon again comes to the rescue. Utilizing ink coverage data from the upcoming job, ink is partially removed during the deceleration phase of the current job. The inker is then pre-charged based on the difference between the amount of ink remaining and the quantity required for the next job. Using this unique goss feature, printers can slash the time and waste necessary to get to good copies and steady-state operating, even when subsequent jobs have a dramatic variation in inking levels.

several other goss international waste saving features and options make an instant impact on any printer’s drive to reduce waste. gapless blankets – in addition to allowing high-quality, high-speed printing on wider webs – deliver a significant reduction in paper waste through minimal trim requirements and shorter cutoffs. Advanced goss reelstand technology delivers in excess of 99 percent splicing accuracy, and leaves virtually no paper on the core during a reel change.

The development of right- and left-handed commercial web presses, for use in multi-press plants, has brought reductions in press crew manning requirements. “likewise, technologies such as our Autoplate option, folder presetting, advanced imposition software and the Omnicon controls discussed earlier, have freed up operators to concentrate on the quality aspects of production, therefore reducing waste copies,” according to Upchurch.

And of course, savings on the power to run a press and reducing emissions have become more important of late as energy prices and environmental concerns escalate around

the world. here, energy-efficient goss dryers and low-energy servo drives both conserve resources and reduce emissions.

For printers desiring the latest advances integrated into a press which comes closer to zero waste than any other conventional press, there is Automatic Transfer™ technology. This automatically takes printing units off-impression and instantaneously brings other units on-impression, allowing, in conjunction with automatic plate changing, on-the-run job changeovers and non-stop running. less waste more production…

Many printers around the world operate Automatic Transfer presses, but perhaps none do it more effectively than Valpak in the UsA, which prints 25 billion targeted direct mail coupons per year for its national direct marketing program. Running two goss sunday™ 4000 AT™ presses around the clock, without stopping for makereadies, it completes four-color job changes every 12 minutes. integrated into a completely automated workflow, the presses contribute to the production of sealed coupon-filled envelopes without

Advanced Goss reelstand technology delivers in excess of 99 percent splicing accuracy.

Above: Goss DigiRail™ is just one tool in the pursuit of zero waste.

Left: energy-efficient Goss dryers conserve resources and reduce emissions.

continues on next page

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human intervention and with absolutely minimum waste. They have also taken the time-to-market from four days to four hours and reduced labor by more than 50 percent, while at the same time, doubling capacity.

“Recent goss advances in press design, digital workflow and control systems have made the goal of zero waste a real possibility for the future,” says Upchurch. “For example, our M-600™ press, the industry standard in the 16-page sector since 1992, has continually been enhanced with many of the latest features described

here. Over the years, we have seen its waste on job changeover fall consistently.

“Our mission of actually achieving zero waste in web offset production might be out of reach today, but it drives us to relentless innovation that is delivering real-world competitive advantages for our customers right now. Of course, we are not excluding the possibility that innovation may turn into true revolution one day, as we also continue to research future technologies.”

Five new Finishing systems in the U.s.

Big leaps in productivity and efficiency that are only possible with new technology have prompted five investments in Goss® finishing systems in the United States this spring.

The Chicago Tribune Company and newsday in the new York City area will each add a 42-station Magnapak® system to bolster their large metropolitan newspaper inserting operations. Brown Printing and Publishers Printing – companies that operate dozens of goss finishing systems – will install a high-performance goss saddlestitcher and adhesive binder respectively for publication and catalog production.

A new 16,000-copies-per-hour Pacesetter 1600 saddlesticher will be the first goss finishing system for a smaller, private publisher that was impressed with ease-of-use, job changeover and maintenance advantages as well as how crews at other facilities routinely hit net productivity numbers that are very close to the full rated speed of the system.

Joe sweeney, bindery manager at Publishers Printing in Kentucky echoes those sentiments. he says performance of two recently installed Pacesetter 2200 saddlestitchers prompted investment in a third. “Those stitchers are more than twice as productive as our older stitchers,” he confirms.

At Brown Printing, a new Universalbinder™ adhesive binder will join a large fleet of goss Pacesetter, Universalbinder, and sunday web press systems used by one of the leading catalog and publication printers in the United states.

For newsday and Chicago Tribune Company, the Magnapak investments are driven by steady or growing preprint advertising volumes and the business opportunities created when those inserts can be processed more efficiently and targeted more precisely. Both systems will be equipped for address-specific selective inserting and ink jet personalization.

The new Magnapak system at newsday will replace two older inserters to meet the high-volume and heavily zoned requirements of the sunday newspaper and the high-speed requirements for inserting into the daily paper.

The Chicago Tribune Company will install the new Magnapak system – its seventh since 2007 – at its Tribune Direct Marketing operation for its total market coverage (TMC) product delivered to non-subscribers. The company is also

enhancing two existing Magnapak systems to further increase inserting speeds and zoning capability for The Chicago Tribune and other daily publications.

“Our Magnapak systems provide exceptional quality and productivity, so the decision to add another to support our growing preprint business was an easy choice,” says Craig sipich, director of technology and engineering.

“Those stitchers are more than twice as productive as our older stitchers.”

Gapless blankets deliver a significant reduction in paper waste.

Chicago Tribune Company has ordered its seventh Goss Magnapak inserting system since 2007.


• Supporting Goss International’s web offset portfolio, the latest generation goss Web Center™ workflow system delivers advanced features to automate processes and maximize efficiency and press utilization.

• Following the recent acquisition of Vits Print, goss international will highlight its expanded portfolio of advanced goss® Contiweb™ and Vits splicers, pasters, dryers, folders, sheeters, and inline converting solutions.

The Newspaper Zone

• The Colorliner® CPs (Compact Printing system) press joins the goss FPs™ (Flexible Printing system™) press in the goss family of ‘true compact’ newspaper press solutions. Derived from the latest-generation Colorliner press model, it incorporates FPs technology features modified into a more conventional ‘non-split’ four-high tower arrangement. [see more on page 6]

• drupa marks the first global presentation of a new goss Magnum™ hPs single-width, one-around high-speed press [see page 19]. Designed for heatset, coldset or combined production, the press offers extended capabilities for producing a mix of magazine and newspaper work more flexibility and productivity.

“We have a history of introducing groundbreaking goss technologies at drupa and we continue that tradition in 2012. But beyond the introduction of specific technologies, our presence at

drupa conveys our long-term perspective and our focus on actively exploring new concepts with our customers,” comments goss president and CeO Jochen Meissner. “even in these highly competitive industry conditions, goss has continued to invest in its core markets and extend the advantages of its core technologies. Printers know they are collaborating with a strong, visionary supplier who can work with them to replace outdated equipment with advanced web offset solutions that will help them see things differently.”

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The Goss presence at drupa 2012 demonstrates how the latest advances in automation, formats, configurations and supporting technologies have the power to produce more impactful, immediate and cost-effective printed products.

The 1,820-square-meter goss booth is organized into zones including Commercial Offset, newspapers, and Packaging. With a focus on enhancements, service and support, a fourth lifetime support™ zone also demonstrates the unique goss commitment to extending the lifespan and competitiveness of existing press and finishing systems.

The Packaging Zone

• The Sunday Vpak™ 3000 and sunday Vpak 500 presses take center stage at drupa in a dedicated Packaging Theater, with a full presentation covering the technology, market applications and production advantages. Read more from page 8.

The Commercial Zone

• A ‘world first’ expo appearance of a 96-page sunday™ 5000 gapless blanket printing unit is the highlight feature of the commercial zone. With features including full Autoplate™ and DigiRail™ digital inking, the sunday 5000 is the most productive large format offset press ever developed. it capitalizes on its fast job changeovers, smart energy usage, and wide-web flexibility to cost-effectively deliver full tabloid and magazine down to slim-jim and digest formats.

• With nearly 2,500 units installed worldwide,– a new-generation 16pp M-600™ printing unit on display on the goss international booth highlights latest features for enhanced efficiency. [see also page 28]

seeing Things Differently with‘World-First’ Technologies

See next page for the booth overview.

The Colorliner CPS expands the Goss family of compact newspaper press solutions.

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goss international at drupa 2012

Lifetime Support™…

The Customer Relationship Center provides a quiet environment to discuss lifetime support packages as well as training and service needs. This dedicated area reflects the company-wide goss® philosophy of providing support for products from order to end of life. A display of parts and enhancements demonstrates the possibilities for optimizing the performance and competitive lifespan of every system along the way.

Wider webs...

The world’s first 2860 mm-wide web press, the sunday™ 5000, is now in operation at three plants in europe, with stark Druck in germany planning to run two presses side-by-side using the unit displayed at drupa. Results, both in terms of quality and productivity, have exceeded expectations - the gapless blanket technology minimizing cylinder vibrations even at high press speeds. The demonstration at drupa shows a blanket change and a fully automatic plate change.

The world’s most popular commercial press...

The latest-generation M-600™ web press, which goss international will feature at drupa 2012, introduces new improvements to the impeccable legacy of this 16-page model. Advances in automation, operability and integration are delivering industry leading short-run efficiencies that are in step with modern market requirements.

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New packaging presses unveiled…

shown for the first time at an exhibition, goss Vpak™ presses provide an alternative to gravure and flexo for the printing of packaging products ranging from cartons to flexible packaging. The presses use proven sleeve technology, pioneered on sunday presses, to provide repeat-length change and also printing cylinder size change. The result is a highly productive and versatile technology which also offers lower production costs.

Single-width newspaper production...

The highly successful Community®/Magnum™ press range is now available on an entirely new platform that delivers higher speeds and lower cost-per-page printing. The new Magnum hPs press has a two-page across, single-around format and is available at speeds up to 70,000 copies per hour. Productivity and quality are delivered through an ergonomically designed h-frame configuration, equipped with the very latest printing cylinders and controls, to dramatically improve plating access and hence job changeover times.

Compact quality forvolume newspapers...

On show for the first time, the new Colorliner® CPs compact press, features the latest in automatic plate-changing technology, ergonomic benefits and high productivity for fast, efficient newspaper and semi-commercial production. The unique new double- or triple-width press platform delivers the print quality, efficiency, operability and long-term production versatility to suit a continually changing publishing landscape.

Automated workflowsolutions...

goss international continues to lead the transformation to automated print production. goss technology and software innovations, including the goss Web Center™ for newspaper and commercial applications, are cutting waste, time and run lengths.

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Web Offset standards Research Base’. in this role the company employs its goss presses in print tests aimed at developing optimum standards for the commercial web offset industry in China.

Universal appeal at Guangming Daily

Beijing based newspaper publisher guangming Daily has ordered a new goss Universal® press to increase color capacity and to pursue more sub-contract printing in the Chinese market. The new single-width, double-circumference (2x2) press will be mainly used to print the 150,000 copies a day of the guangming Daily and 250,000 copies a day of the tabloid Xin Jin Bao.

Mr. Zhao Ping the deputy general secretary and factory director at guangming Daily, comments, “We have established ourselves as an influential newspaper in China in the fields of science, technology, education and culture with a high reputation among academic institutions and state agencies. it is therefore imperative that we meet the demands of our readers by employing technology of the highest print quality to match our impactive journalism.”

The new goss press will include three four-high printing towers, three reelstands and two 2:3:3: jaw folders. The system will also include closed-loop color registration controls, an ink leveling system, blanket washers, two counter stackers and an in-line stitcher. Rated at a maximum of 80,000 cph, the press will generate higher productivity and more color pages for the national daily central government newspaper.

Growing requirements for better print quality and greater productivity are fuelling orders for Goss® technology across both the newspaper and commercial sectors in China. Two recent investments for the Beijing area have been driven by the desire to ensure a differentiated service.

Eleventh Goss press for C&C

One of the leading suppliers of high-quality commercial and magazine printing in China and forerunner in raising printing standards, C&C Joint Printing Co., has ordered its ninth goss M-600™ 16-page web offset press and its eleventh new goss web press since 1998.

The latest order was primarily driven by the growing demand in the Beijing area for the production quality and efficiencies that differentiate the multiple award-winning C&C service offering. in addition, the company’s strong focus on ‘green’ issues was a key factor in the specification of features designed for low waste and low energy consumption, according to Jackson leung, CeO of C&C. “We are highly committed to providing a sustainable solution that will ensure print maintains its profile within the media mix for many years to come. Today’s goss M-600 technology package supports this objective with efficiencies that improve productivity and reduce waste.”

Rated at up to 61,000 impressions per hour, the new 16-page press with 598.5mm cut-off and 965 mm web width will feature goss Autoplate™ automatic plate changing. For added versatility the company has chosen a JF55 Plus folder with quarterfold capabilities and a four- and eight-page module. it will also be equipped with a goss Contiweb sh™ splicer and ecocool® dryer with integrated afterburner, closed-loop controls and goss Web Center™ technology for automated makereadies, presetting and control.

As well as satisfying high-end commercial print requirements for both domestic and international clients, C&C Joint Printing Co. also serves as China’s designated ‘national Commercial

China invests in Productive Technology

(Left to right) Wen Hong Wu, chairman, and Jackson Leung, CEO, of C&C Joint Printing sign the contract for the company’s ninth new Goss M-600 web press with Tim Mercy, vice president of Goss commercial web sales in Asia, while other officials from the two companies look on.


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The first two Magnum hPs presses have already been delivered in Asia.

“The new Magnum hPs model builds on the features of the existing Community/Magnum, the bestselling goss® newspaper press series ever, as well as the current world market leader in the single-width newspaper press sector,” says Jacques navarre, goss international senior vice president of sales and marketing. “Our development objective for the new hPs version was to harness the experience gained from over 40,000 installed units to make a positive impact on the bottom-line performance for printers looking for single-width versatility in combination with higher speeds.”

The new Magnum hPs press has a two-page across, single-around format and is available at speeds up to 70,000 copies per hour.

“We are always striving to provide higher value from our products. Often the

improvements are incremental, but this new Magnum platform has the potential to make a fundamental difference in how our customers approach their newspaper and semi-commercial operations,” confirms navarre.

To achieve a high performance-to-cost ratio with the Magnum hPs press, the goss international development team drew from the strengths of the entire goss portfolio of newspaper and semi-commercial presses. Modifications of the standard Magnum platform included such improvements as an ergonomically designed h-frame configuration to dramatically improve plating access and hence job changeover, and the latest design of printing cylinders with triple race bearings, through bearers and narrow gap, reel-rod lock-ups.

Other performance-enhancing technical features include optimum web tension control with synchronized shaftless drives for infeed and outfeed as well as on the printing towers; and centralized control

of all essential press operations such as adjustment to ink keys, spray barsand registration.

“Automation is the key to press utilization, which in turn optimizes a printer’s capital outlay,” states navarre. “For that reason, in parallel to the engineering improvements, we have included a new version of goss press controls for the Magnum hPs press, which reduces job set-up and recall, as well as giving quality control down to page level.”

The new Magnum hPs press will initially be available with 546mm, 560mm and 578mm cut-offs and two jaw folder options – J1:3:3 suitable for production speeds up to 50,000 copies per hour and J2:3:3 for the highest speed production. Both folders have the usual array of advanced features and quarter folder or double parallel options.

Magnum Reaches 70

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With the market for single-width presses maintaining pace and evolving, particularly in Asia, the Middle East and Africa, Goss International has expanded its highly successful Community®/Magnum™ press range with an entirely new platform that delivers higher speeds and lower cost-per-page printing.

Myths of green — separating Fact from Fiction

1. Recycling is good.

Recycling media, silver and aluminum is generally recognized as a good thing. But there are some studies that have shown that the environmental impact of paper recycling processes may not be altogether positive. Consider, for instance, the collection of polluted waste which must then be discarded. Recycling is definitely a good thing, but it must be managed effectively.

2. Recycling is bad

This is, of course, a nonsense for materials that can be reused such as the aluminum in plates. The reuse of aluminum means a reduction in the amount of bauxite that must be mined and processed into aluminum. Recycling old aluminum requires only 5% of the energy required to produce new aluminum. Aluminum is one of the few infinitely recyclable materials because its quality doesn’t degrade with reuse.

When it comes to papers however, it may not be such nonsense, depending on the processes involved. Paper and its production are part of the planet’s carbon sequestration processes, so there are some who would argue that recycled papers sequester no new carbon, which makes virgin fiber a preferable choice. it is certainly worth considering particularly in regions where methane is captured from landfill and reused as a fuel. in Malmö, sweden, for example, the city’s buses run on natural gas processed from methane captured from landfill waste sites.

3. Print on paper is more harmful to the environment than digital media.

This is the myth most commonly touted as a reason not to use print. The argument that digital media have less impact than print is not easy to disprove, however there are a number of isolated studies that have compared the impacts of electronic and print media. There are difficulties with proving the question either way. For instance, how are emissions allocated in a media supply chain, or how long is the media kept? Books stay on the shelves for decades, quietly but effectively storing carbon and having no negative environmental impact unless they are read using artificial light. An e-book on the other hand requires a digital infrastructure to support and access it, plus upgrades to the technology required to deliver and use it.

But how do we compare production scenarios for the two alternatives? This is one of the goals for isO 16759

With environmental messaging today becoming a sophisticated marketing tool, misconceptions proliferate and differentiating myth from reality can be a tricky task for the uninitiated. In the interests of helping printers to better understand the issues, the following extracts from an article prepared by the Verdigris* project (www.verdigrisproject.com) take a look at some of the myths affecting the business of web offset printing today.

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(Calculating the carbon footprint of print media products) which is currently under development. Conducting a carbon footprinting study is complex and requires a standard framework, in order to produce studies that can be reasonably compared. This framework is what isO 16759 seeks to provide. however with comparable frameworks it should be possible to use carbon calculators compliant with isO 16759 to compare the carbon footprint of different media across geographies and market sectors. This includes electronic and paper-based media.

4. Paper and print destroys trees.

For every tree harvested for paper in europe, three are planted. Paper is made from a sustainable and commercially viable crop. Forests and plantations capture carbon and provide amenities that benefit wildlife and local citizens.

When it comes to environmental impact reductions in manufacturing, the pulp and paper industries have led the rest of industry because their raw material is a harvested crop that can also be recycled. They have made tremendous improvements over the last couple of decades. Waste has been considerably reduced and recycling is commonplace. The industry has consolidated to become far more energy efficient.

5. Print is not as effective as digital media.

This is the kind of generalisation that is often used to criticise print and justify low marketing and advertising spends. it is a myth because it is both true and untrue. For short or trivial messages electronic media can be far more efficient than print, because distribution and receipt of such messages are close to immediate.

however for information that perhaps is more complex or difficult to absorb, print may be more efficient: the subtleties and sophistications of high resolution typography, composition, colour, special effects and beautiful finishing are not yet available to digital media. All of these characteristics contribute to efficient understanding and absorption of ideas and complex concepts. Media effectiveness depends on the medium, the message and the nature of the expected response, so effectiveness is highly subjective.

6. Paper production wastes energy.

The days are long since gone when any manufacturing process was allowed to waste energy. since the oil shocks of the 1970s to current awareness of anthropogenic carbon’s impact on world climates, energy efficiency has been at the heart of all manufacturing processes.

The paper industry, as a traditionally high energy user, has made huge progress to reduce its energy usage and so its power bills. Paper companies have also come up with highly imaginative ways to reuse heat generated through energy use. M-real in husum sweden for instance heats the village school and football field with the heat generated from its pulp production processes.

7. Carbon dioxide is evil.

Carbon dioxide is a bi-product of metabolism in humans and a raw material for plant metabolic processes. if it is unavailable plants cannot grow or release oxygen into the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is a necessary compound for life on this planet so carbon management at least should be at the heart of any printing company’s business plan.

8. Print is bad for the environment.

The printed word has driven human progress since the first characters were scratched onto a surface. The mechanization of print production in the fifteenth century led to a massive and unstoppable flowering of knowledge, economic growth, creative expression and social development.

Print has made huge progress to reduce its environmental impact and continues to do so. Misconceptions about print media’s environmental impact can discourage printers from investing in a greener future for their business, and this is extremely damaging for the industry. Perhaps even more seriously, they also influence print buyers and end users’ perceptions of print, reinforcing false opinions with ersatz facts. Buyers and consumers need reassurance and to understand that, of all media types, print is the only truly sustainable one.

* This article is part of the Verdigris series of

stories about understanding the environmental

impact of print. The Verdigris project is

supported by Agfa Graphics, Canon Europe,

Digital Dots, Drupa, Fujifilm, HP, Kodak, Océ,

Ricoh and Unity Publishing, and associate

members Presstek, Xeikon and Strålfors.

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The inkjet Challenge

With high-speed ink jet sure to be a hot print topic at this drupa, Web Offset decided to ask leading industry consultant Andy Tribute just how much attention should web offset printers be paying inkjet?

At this time, high-speed continuous feed inkjet presses have mainly targeted the sheet fed offset market, particularly in book printing, however we can expect a number of developments at drupa that will also target other printing applications. These will specifically be faster and wider presses.

The current situation with high-speed inkjet printing is its excellence for medium quality work on uncoated or specially treated matt finish substrates. Up to this stage, these systems have not worked with gloss-coated substrates, however all indications suggest that progress will be shown in this area at drupa.

The current installed base of these inkjet presses is predominantly found in three market areas, these being transactional, book and direct mail printing. A smaller market is for newspaper printing of international editions printed by print service providers at sites in other countries. At this time, newspaper printers, while taking an interest in the technology, have not moved in any way to implement it. The same thing applies with magazine printers.

There are a number of reasons why we have not seen a greater level of acceptance of inkjet technology in these print markets. The main one is the cost of

the presses and their running costs. These are far higher than for offset presses once the presses are up and running. The main benefit of inkjet printing is quick production start-up with minimal makeready time and cost compared to offset. in terms of book printing it is considered to be economical at present against offset for run lengths up to 5,000 copies of a book. it also has the benefit that like other forms of digital printing every page can have different content. This is why it is attractive to direct mail and transactional printers.

in terms of running costs the two key items are the high cost of the inks, and

Digital label press units complement existing print technologies providing fast versioning


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the needs for special papers or paper treatments. With the one exception of the Xerox CiPress 500 press, inkjet ink is water based and unless paper is specially treated, ink will tend to sink through the paper fibers. This has the disadvantage of show-through on the reverse of the paper, as well as a diminished color gamut. The solution is currently to use higher priced, specially treated papers - of which few are available - or pre-treating the paper. This can be done by printing a special bonding agent where ink is to be printed, as with the hP inkjet presses, or using a

pre-coating unit, as is being launched by Kodak at drupa.

i have felt for a long time that it is wrong for the inkjet press suppliers to expect paper makers to adapt their papers for the presses, when it is possible by changing the pigment structure of the inks to work with many existing offset papers. i believe we will see a change in this area at drupa.

in terms of substrates i am expecting to see a number of the presses working with gloss coated papers, but probably only papers that are optimized for inkjet inks. Coated substrates are a key

requirement for many direct mail printers who are waiting for this capability before adopting the technology. We will also see a number of these press vendors offering post-coating solutions to coat uncoated or matt coated papers to give the effect of a gloss coat and also to protect the printed image in the finishing process.

For web offset printers one of the main areas of interest in inkjet technology will be in add-on overprinting inkjet systems rather than inkjet presses. This is where a battery of inkjet print heads can be mounted either on a web offset press or in a finishing line, to overprint offset printed pages with variable data. Kodak is the leading player doing this in many areas with its Prosper s5, s10 and s20 print heads. A number of other suppliers including hP are also offering such overprinting systems. The problem with this is getting print heads to run at web offset press speeds and with web offset quality. expect more developments in this area that will allow optimizing the use of existing press hardware.

The most immediate opportunity for web offset printers in the newspaper, magazine and direct mail areas is to work out how to build business models that allow for inkjet printing to work with their existing printing technologies. Will there be a market in the newspaper and magazine areas that will realize the benefits of using variable data? Perhaps micro zoning in newspapers will allow for targeted editorial and advertising to be printed in special supplements that can then be incorporated into the newspaper in the mailroom. in the B2B magazine markets where the details are known about the subscribers, will it allow for either much smaller circulation magazines or targeted sections for the recipients to be handled?

i believe that linking inkjet printing into a web offset environment opens up new opportunities for printers. it will be some time before high-speed inkjet printing is competitive with web offset for longer run print work, but when used together with web offset it will open up new business opportunities. i think that the opportunities are more in adding digital overprinting, either onto the web offset press or into the finishing lines. however, for newspapers there are good opportunities to use inkjet for

Andrew Tribute is an internationally known expert in the applications of digitization of the media, publishing and printing industries. he is also visiting professor of digital media at University of the Arts, london. he obtained a Degree in Printing Management in 1964 at the london College of Printing, and has specialized in the application of computers in printing and publishing since 1968. in 1984 he established Attributes, a specialist consultancy company in this business area.

Digital label press units complement existing print technologies providing fast versioning

micro zoning and personalization and to merge its output with offset printing in the mailroom. What printers must realize is that high-speed inkjet printing is still in its infancy, but it will become increasingly competitive in terms of both running costs and quality and will directly challenge offset printing for certain work.

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essential investmentsfor Cost and Quality(From an article by Luca Michelli, TecnoMedia magazine)

The new Financial Times printing center of the Colasanto Group in Italy has been fully up and running since August last year. Built in record time, it was part of a substantial investment aimed at offering quality services to the publishing industry at home and abroad, as well as to those in the market for semi-commercial print.

The project dates back to February 2011: the new, goss® Universal® Xl web offset press, arrived at the new plant in Villasanta di Monza, just outside Milan in May; and at the end of July the first copies of the Financial Times were produced. By August, the whole plant was fully up and running; and copies of the english financial daily have been leaving every night since, in two sections, averaging 36 pages each,

plus related daily supplements. These are generally two to three inserts per week printed on newsprint and focused on a variety of subjects, including home&house, FT FM, and supplements dedicated to specific business issues. With paginations ranging from anything between four to 30 full color pages, they may be produced both in broadsheet and tabloid formats. On Fridays the weekend edition is printed which, as is typical of British titles, includes content with less of a current affairs focus as well as a color magazine. This edition has a significantly higher circulation.

The Colasanto group’s new plant was devised to handle all the printing activities of the group in the Milan area – including distribution. The objective was to be able to offer high quality at rigorously competitive costs, thanks to an industrial policy, which the CeO of the group, Michele Colasanto, defines as “essential”.

Essential investments

“Why invest during such difficult times? Because our clients are asking us to,” explains Michele Colasanto. he shares management responsibilities for the Colasanto group with his father luca, president and founder of the group. The new printing center was not an easy decision. A project divided into several stages, the first tranche of which – the pressroom and press – amounted to 17 million euros; and there is more to come before completion.

“Our relationship with the english Financial Times group dates back to the second half of the 1980s, when we resolved a distribution problem for them in southern europe,” says Colasanto. From that point on, the Colasanto group has been the point of reference for printing the flagship publication in this strategic area. it was previously produced in the Paderno Dugnano plant, one of the first printing plants in italy to get isO 9001certifcation, according to Colasanto. Copies of the english daily paper are also produced at the group’s plant in nivelles, Belgium.

“We are working with publishers who are asking us to invest and believe in the daily newspapers they produce,” says Michele Colasanto and this decision to create a new plant – not easy in the current climate – is a consequence of this. The new goss Universal Xl press outputs up to 56 broadsheet pages, 32 in full color, with a 56cm cut-off.

“Our industrial set-up is crucial,” stresses Michele Colasanto. What publishers require is quality and a competitive price, not necessarily all the technological bells and whistles, he says, and these are objectives shared by the printer. Why change production equipment if it is still functioning perfectly well? According to Colasanto, the essential investments are those that can provide publishers with a guarantee of the production costs involved when they are entrusting their jobs to independent printers.

Michele Colasanto, CEO of the Colasanto Group.


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Publishing and Commercial Quality

Audi, BMW, Rolex and Rover are just some of the companies that place advertising inserts in the Financial Times – companies from the luxury brands sector. They make no allowances when it comes to the “quality” of their promotional images, in the same way as the publisher makes none with regard to the printing center. in order to produce the Financial Times and other international dailies that come off the Colasanto group presses, such as the international herald Tribune, the quality of the printed product is of crucial importance in relation to the order.

“The new web offset press installed at Villasanta di Monza, like the industrial set-up itself, was specified to take into account the specific requirements of the

clients,” Tullio giovannini, director of the group, points out. The eight-page goss Universal Xl model has a very compact configuration, developed for high-quality semi-commercial products, with or without a dryer. in particular, the shorter distance between inking couples practically eliminates fan-out, according to giovanni.

The press features automated inking controlled via prepress data supplied direct from the FT’s headquarters in london. The folder also features automatic setting capability operated directly from the central control desk. Additional registration controls were not considered necessary for requirements at Colasanto. Overall, the group has acquired three such Universal Xl presses, with an additional two installed at its nivelles plant in Belgium. All the units are intended to support the group’s expansion

Founded in 1888 by James sheridan and horatio Bottomley, The Financial Times is the only UK newspaper to publish a daily report on the london stock Market and all world markets. since 1957, it has been part of the Pearson group. The printed version of the newspaper and the digital version have a combined distribution of a little over 592,000 (October 2011), of which around 344,000 are printed copies and 247,000 go to those who are subscribed to the paid-for digital version. The combined readership of printed and digital versions is around 2.1 million persons a day (May 2011). FT.com also has another 4 million registered users.

On January 1, 1979, the first copy of the newspaper to be produced outside the United Kingdom was printed in Frankfurt (germany). Today the FT is printed in around twenty different plants worldwide. in italy, the Colasanto group has been the preferred print supplier for southern europe since the mid 1980s, initially from the Paderno Dugnano (Milan) site and today from the new Villasanta di Monza printing center.

plans, dedicated either to daily newspaper publishing or semi-commercial work.

The group has a number of additional production facilities in italy – in Medicina (Bologna), Carsoli (l’Aquila) and at Benevento – all dedicated to daily newspapers. in the Milan area, “the competition is particularly tough,” concludes Michele Colasanto, both in terms of what is on offer and the quality available. nevertheless, with this new investment the Colasanto group is determined to consolidate its own position and expand by focusing on quality and a competitive, economic offer.

Production on one of the Goss Universal XL press lines in Nivelles, Belgium.

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Making the news in india

india has been central to the growth predictions of the BRiC economies and its newspaper industry has been notable for an explosion in color and capacity in recent years. so, Web Offset decided to investigate whether the current view from within the indian publishing industry matches the general worldwide perception. We asked naresh Khanna, editor of leading trade journal indian Printer and Publisher….

How would you characterize current market conditions in India’s newspaper publishing industry?

Naresh Khanna:Although the periodical publishing and printing industry has continuously outpaced the more than seven percent indian gDP growth over the past decade, it seems that there is a lull in the boom. it is true that english language newspapers continue to launch new editions and increase color pages, and established groups are even adding new dailies in yet more languages. however, in spite of continued investment in modernizing plants and adding new machines, many newspapers are rethinking their strategies for growth.

Although newspapers in india are facing numerous challenges they continue to

grow in number of editions, pages and color pages. But they are not nearly as profitable as they were five years ago and have to figure out new ways of remaining viable.

What are the biggest challenges to profitability?

For an industry that imports more than half of the newsprint it uses, the current price volatility of this essential raw material has been exacerbated by a 10 percent devaluation of the indian Rupee versus the Us dollar. Domestic mills are unable

to viably produce newsprint since only 20 percent of the newsprint consumed is recovered for recycling.

indian dailies are resorting to economies such as reducing cut-offs and page-widths. While the Berliner format has not really caught on, one newspaper is busy setting up five-tower presses with a 533 mm cut-off and while it is currently at a 685 mm width, it is actively considering going down to 635 mm web widths. With narrow gap cylinders, the shorter 533 cut-off has neither reduced the print area nor the legibility in comparison to the earlier 546 cut-off which is the current standard in the country.

The rapid economic changes and continuing growth potential of the BRIC countries is an enduring topic in the business pages of the world’s newspapers today and a pivotal dynamic in global economic recovery.

The front page of a Tamil broadsheet daily Dina Thanthi printed on a coldset 4 x1 being compared to a color managed inkjet proof.

The Goss M-600™ press at the Navi Mumbai facility of Thomson Press.


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in addition, the continuous double digit growth in advertising spend predicted by some of the media and entertainment futurologists is not currently materializing for newspapers.

What is the main competition for this advertising spend?

Cross media convergence is coming faster than many local pundits expected and the shift to television, outdoor, internet and even cellphones is pronounced. however, this has not yet led to any real shift or addition in revenues for publishers. in spite of a huge increase in local internet traffic on the websites of multi-edition regional language dailies, the media planners are not allocating budgets for websites of regional language dailies.

Ad rates are under such pressure that premium position full page ads are being heavily discounted by leading metro dailies, and newspapers are just trying to match their 2011 revenue levels. even the fattest 68-page broadsheets contain a large amount of central and state government and public sector advertising, in spite of their raucous criticism of their benefactors!

What measures are Indian publishers taking in response?

The indian newspaper industry is preparing itself for structural changes and consolidation as some of the smaller dailies close down or become targets

for acquisition. There is a huge pressure to increase color pages in order to be competitive, and while some simply cannot keep up, more dailies are looking at sharing printing plants and having deals with contract printers. even the bigger dailies are no longer able to go it alone by adding plants and new machines. They are increasingly tying up even with competitors in cities where they do not want to invest in new presses for the increased color pagination that is deemed essential.

About 10 years ago, everyone was predicting that the future of Indian newspaper publishing was 4x1 – have these predictions been realized?

That’s right. A decade ago, industry experts felt there was incipient demand for as many as 200 4x1 towers in india. The double-width, single-circumference design works well for the frequent single plate changes that newspapers make every night for printing as many as 20 editions on each press. Most of the english language dailies acquired 4x1 presses, and then some of the regional language dailies followed suit for at least their main centers. every european, Asian and Japanese manufacturer that makes these presses now has installs in india, and now a leading indian manufacturer has also ventured into this space.

however, while 4x1 towers approach the 200 mark and will possibly exceed this number over the next few years, another trend driven by the poor transport infrastructure seems to be forcing

newspaper owners to think of setting up smaller plants. To differentiate themselves from established players, some regional language publishers think it is essential to launch 20-page broadsheet dailies in full color. however, with circulations starting at 20,000 or 30,000 and hopefully rising to 100,000 or even 200,000, it makes sense for publishers to go back to single width presses. The quality of indian roads and the lower advertising rates for regional language dailies just do not support the import of a brand new imported 80,000-copies-an-hour press.

Are there any other growth opportunities driving investments by printers in this arena?

While news-magazine circulations in india are declining, niche magazines and B2B magazines are increasing in number. While some newspapers stopped printing their own supplements and magazines on heatset presses, other newspapers have set up commercial printing units where they print not only their own supplements and magazines but also those of other publishers.

Many international titles such as Vogue, Marie Claire, geo and Time Out have strong local editions. The education and text-book industry in india is also booming.

still, the vast majority of heatset work in india is produced on an aging fleet of presses. Only about 15 new heatset presses have been installed over the past decade – all in the 16-page format. When you consider the population, this is very low relative to the new presses installed in other countries. We have also not yet seen an investment in the wider, higher-capacity presses now prevalent in Western countries and that are now installed in the other so-called major developing countries – Brazil, Russia and China.

To sum up, i’d say that there is growth overall but, with its diversity and local flavor, it’s a typically mixed bag!

Malayalam and English magazines being sold on the roadsidein Thiruvanthapuram in the South Indian state of Kerala.

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The next-generation goss M-600 Press: Proven and Progressive

The latest-generation M-600™ web press, introduces new improvements to the impeccable legacy of this 16-page model. Advances in automation, operability and integration are delivering industry leading short-run efficiencies that are in step with modern market requirements.

“With close to 2,500 printing units sold since 1992, it may be easy to mistake the M-600 for older technology, but that would be a major oversight,” according to goss international product manager Jean-Pierre Moioli. “We chose to display a new unit at drupa to showcase the extremely progressive automation, integration and ease-of-use features we have added to this press platform and the reasons web printers continue to turn to the M-600 model for the most advanced print quality, flexibility and makeready features available from a 16-page press.”

The market needs 16-page presses

Wider formats – starting with the first goss® 24-page sunday™ press, all the way up to the latest 96-page model – have shifted market demand dramatically in the web offset sector. When the first M-600 system was shipped from the Montataire, France facility

that produces the current goss model, 16-page presses accounted for 60 percent of the commercial web market. Over the past three years, 16-page presses claimed only a 35-percent share of that market.

still, the once-standard four-pages-across by two-pages-around format remains the best choice for many applications, markets and operations, according to Moioli.

“There is no doubt that wider, faster presses have radically improved the value proposition of web offset, even in short-run applications, but these presses are for a dedicated medium- to high-volume segment,” he contends. “The market requires a wide range of products, starting with multiple fold possibilities, high-quality printed pieces in five to eight colors, varnish and inline perforations, plow-fold. Product possibilities as well as compatibility with existing presses and infrastructures are factors that continue to steer printers to

the 16-page format. Operator experience, capital investment capabilities and the competitive landscape in some regions are also important considerations.”

These market demands have driven goss international towards continuous investment in the M-600 platform, alongside its development of gapless sunday presses and enabling technologies like Autoplate™, DigiRail™, Automatic Transfer™ and high-speed folders.

Agility is everything

The world’s first Autoplate fully automatic plate changing system was introduced on an M-600 press in 1996. That visionary feature remains a core goss advantage, as the ability to change jobs quickly and with absolute minimal waste becomes an increasingly critical priority for printers evaluating 16-page presses.

Goss DigiRail digital inking is a new option for M-600 presses.


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Moioli says cumulative experience in automatic plate changing gained through that head start over competitors is incorporated in the latest version. “We still call it Autoplate, but we have continuously enhanced the technology based on real-world feedback to achieve the highest reliability and repeatability levels across a wider range of operating requirements and operator skill levels,” he explains.

goss DigiRail™ digital inking is a new option for M-600 presses, and advanced workflow, presetting and “smart” inker technology have been enhanced in the latest model. These features complement Autoplate technology and give the press additional advantages in the race towards faster makereadies and lower waste.

The Omni Makeready™ software available on all commercial presses including the M-600 “smart” inker uses presets and software algorithms to get from one job to

the next faster, with minimal waste copies and minimal operator effort. As a new job is about to begin, software evaluates the presets and temporarily boosts the amount of ink delivered to the ink train, reducing the time and copies needed to reach good color quality. likewise, adjustments to prepare the inker in advance for the next form are made automatically, just prior to the completion of the current job.

The M-600 also offers an automated job change sequence option that allows job or edition changes to be completed without stopping the press. Using this facility, some M-600 press users are printing several jobs per day with an average of 35 - 45 full-color forms – an output comparable to that achievable on sunday 4000 and sunday 5000 presses.

“A lot of variables unrelated to the press itself can impact the waste copies between jobs, but customer expectation is to routinely get to good copy in less than 1000 impressions,” according to Moioli. “This type of low waste level, along with the possibility of continuous operation through the makeready process, can really change the entire approach to how an M-600 press is used for short-run applications.”

New advantages beyond the printing units

goss M-600 printing efficiency is a key factor, but automation and easy settings are also crucial. The goss M-600 folder provides full presetting, up to 18 product formats and automatic folder change. high output is achieved with the double-chopper JF-70 or with the JF-65 high-speed

single chopper design. Both folders feature automatic fold change, automatic nip roller and chopper adjustments that combine high output, simpler use and less operator intervention to achieve fast and efficient job changes. in combination with these folders, the goss PFF module produces four- and eight-page sections with up to 150 gsm paper.

sheeters, such as the Vits Rotocut model, are also common additions that increase versatility, and goss international’s acquisition of Vits Print in late 2011 provides further integration advantages for M-600 press users. integration at this level means that, from any console around the press system, any main component can be selected and adjusted ensuring maximum operability for achieving print quality and efficiency.

The latest goss Contiweb™ splicers and dryers complete the M-600 press system. seamless integration of these auxiliary components optimizes web dynamics throughout the production process. The goss ecocool®, ecotherm® or ecoweb™ dryers also minimize gas consumption and emissions. The latest dryer generation, goss ecoset™ has reduced the average gas consumption to an extremely low level.

high efficiency servo drives on all M-600 components further help to minimize the environmental impact of the press.

“it is essential for printers to be able to have full confidence in an efficient press system that will remain stable and reliable for many years to come,” concludes Moioli. “The M-600 has been proven worldwide, in every different operating environment imaginable. The new generation of M-600 shows our continued commitment to the legacy of an unbeatable press and to the 16-page web press market, which continues to evolve through investment in cutting-edge technology.”

The latest Goss Contiweb splicers and dryers complete the M-600 press system.

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goss is local in europeDeep roots and resources across the region bring holistic benefits to Goss® customers.

All eyes are on europe again this year as the printing industry returns for its quadrennial date in Düsseldorf. Visitors come to drupa from far and wide to see the latest in print technology, but the vast majority of attendees come from europe. goss international knows firsthand the importance of location in attracting interest and maintaining long-term relationships. With four goss manufacturing and support centers across europe, the region is a vital hub of product development, large-scale manufacturing and service for a company with a truly global approach.

ensuring timely support, service, parts and engineering expertise for the full portfolio of goss presses and ancillary products, goss international has close to 800 employees in europe. A facility in Montataire, France is a major manufacturing center for several goss press models, while goss splicers and dryers are manufactured in Boxmeer, The netherlands. engineering and support hubs in Preston, england and nantes, France round out the strategic network.

Along with these key facilities comes a raft of expertise from personnel, both

new and of longstanding, as well as a support network of dealers and agents with industry experience and relationships spanning decades.

goss international recently fortified this strong base yet further with the acquisition of Vits Print, a leading supplier of web-to-sheet conversion and in-line finishing components. Part of a long-term focus on providing more complete systems, this step expands the company’s portfolio of splicers, pasters, dryers, folders, sheeters and in-line converting solutions. With its common expertise in supplying auxiliaries, the goss facility in Boxmeer, The netherlands – just 120 km away from the former Vits Print headquarters – is assuming production of the Vits product lines.

This latest move typifies the goss approach, according to Antoine Chevalier, director of customer support for goss international in europe. “What makes goss so special is the fact that it’s a local supplier with global resources and a global vision,” he says. Offering a wide and complete range of products all from one supplier featuring innovative technologies like gapless presses, Autoplate™, Automatic Transfer™ and DigiRail™ digital inking, Chevalier asserts that goss offers some of the most reliable and highly efficient press systems in the world. “And many are made as well as supported from our manufacturing facilities here in europe,” he adds.

“After more than 20 years in the printing industry i am still discovering new applications and new ideas,” explains Chevalier. “The speed, sophistication and flexibility of the web offset printing process make our job extremely exciting and are what attracted me to the industry in the late 1980s. i am still amazed at the logistics, scale and continuous ingenuity customers apply to do things better, faster and more competitively.”

Based at goss international’s Montataire facility just outside Paris for over two decades, Chevalier previously held a variety of sales and product management roles. in his current role, he experiences daily the importance of local focus, “it’s a

Working in partnership, locally and globally (left to right): Frank Einzweiler, Ralf Engelhorn and Antoine Chevalier.


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goss is local in europe

demanding function but dealing with our customers and assisting them on a daily basis brings a continuous satisfaction,” he explains. “Printers and publishers appreciate that we are big enough to meet their requirements and also local enough to really appreciate the requirements that are specific to their business and to respond immediately.”

This view of both the web offset industry and the goss position within it is shared by eddie smelten, press installations manager. “The printing industry is always developing; it’s innovative and exciting, and you can always guarantee that goss is at the forefront of product development, working with customers to develop unique solutions. The high level of technology we see on the presses now is indicative of our innovative ethos and the fact that we know our customers and collaborate with them,” he asserts.

smelten takes responsibility for the installation of a press from the moment of contract signing right through to

commissioning. With a background as an engineer and technician, he says his latest role sees him doing what he loves best: “Being out in the field with customers is what i really enjoy. After all the hours, days and weeks of preparation that go into ensuring a smooth installation, getting on site is the climax of those efforts. The most satisfying part of the process is making our customers’ plans come to fruition and their production aspirations a reality.”

Working in partnership

Just one such example of the results achievable through working closely with the customer to maximize an innovative solution is stark Druck in Pforzheim, germany [see page 3]. Poised to install its second goss sunday 5000 press in just over a year, the company exemplifies the insight and vision it takes to realize the competitive benefits of innovative 96-page technology. Also running two goss sunday 4000 presses, the german pioneer is a

firm advocate of the wide-web technology that has transformed its business. “goss international shares our vision for creating new opportunities through innovative, high-pagination presses and they have stood behind that vision with their ability to execute and support these installations,” the company commented at the time of the second sunday 5000 press order.

“Working in partnership with the stark Druck team has enabled us to achieve both long- and short-grain systems that are among the world’s most productive and efficient printing presses,” states Frank einzweiler, area sales manager at goss international. “however, this sort of teamwork approach in developing unique production solutions is nothing new.”

According to einzweiler, adapting presses to new requirements and opportunities will continue to be a theme in the years to come, and with the consolidation trend in the printing industry set to continue, companies that reshape and position themselves to be stronger, will see themselves rise above those less able to adapt. “Those companies that invest in flexible equipment with higher efficiency and automation levels will put themselves in the best position to remain competitive, profitable and able to take advantage of future challenges and the ever increasing demands of their customers.”

having manufacturing and service capabilities for goss products based in central europe is a real bonus according to Ralf engelhorn, customer relationship manager for germany. engelhorn was appointed late last year to coordinate the goss international german-speaking service team in providing routine and emergency service for press systems in germany and surrounding countries. “Our central location enables us to provide a very good service for all of our customers with immediate communication and excellent transportation links ensuring fast and efficient continued support,” he comments.

A goss parts depository is being established in germany to expedite

For Eddie Smelten (left), the most satisfying part of the process is making customers’ production aspirations a reality.

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Published by Goss International Corporation, © Goss International Corporation Spring 2012.All trademarks identified are trademarks of Goss International Corporation or its affiliates, or their respective owners. All rights reserved.

www.gossinternational.com

shipment of frequently requested parts. This is further backed up by the central warehouse in France that stocks more than 27,000 different parts to provide around-the-clock fulfillment of orders.

“These recent developments and many more have enabled us to present a competitive advantage across europe: we can offer the benefit of global scale, resources and expertise in combination with local contact to ensure that the benefits of our unique technologies can be sustained around the clock,” concludes einzweiler. “Our holistic approach with a network of service personnel in europe close to our customers, means that goss is never very far away. By providing the tailor-made solutions that optimize production processes and lifetime support™ solutions for continuous improvement, we are able to secure our customers’ production tools not just for today but for the long-term.”

“Working in partnership with the Stark Druck team has enabled us to achieve systems that are among the world’s most productive and efficient printing presses.”

Frank einzweiler,goss area sales manager

The central spare parts warehouse in France stocks more than 27,000 different parts.

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