NEWSPAPER PRESSES -- Pressing Issues

Shaftless drives are continuing to gain in popularity, Heidelberg's Norris agrees. But, he touts the benefits of going a step farther—to gapless printing, especially in combination with the 1x4 straight printing format.

"The one-page-around by four-pages-across format offers the economic advantage of a 50 percent reduction in plates when compared to a traditional 2x4 double-width press," Norris explains. "It also offers the layout versatility advantages of two-page jumps and sections with unequal page counts. Because our exclusive gapless blanket technology eliminates gap-related vibration, Heidelberg's Mainstream press is the only 1x4 newspaper press that can deliver high-quality printing at up to 80,000 cph with a 1:1 plate-to-blanket cylinder ratio."