The modern newspaper printing process is a cold offset method that uses aluminum plates and rubber rollers to transfer images onto newsprint. This process is gentle on the paper and ensures high print quality. Older heat-dated processes were slow and expensive, leading to the transition to more efficient cold-press methods. Most contemporary newspaper printing machines are large, complex single-pass machines that can produce up to 70,000 copies per hour. The process begins with compiling the edition on a desktop publishing program, creating photographic positives on aluminum plates, and transferring the image onto newsprint using rubber rollers. The completed edition is then cut and assembled before distribution.
The modern newspaper printing process is a cold offset printing method used to produce high volumes of printed material at low cost. The press run begins with a computerized desktop publishing version of the entire edition being transferred, page by page, to a photographic etching station which produces aluminum positive plates of each page. These plates are inked and mounted on a specialized printing press in such a way that they transfer the image onto a set of rubber rollers which, in turn, transfer the image onto the paper. The use of roller image transfer makes the process gentle on the paper and ensures high print quality. Most newspaper presses are large machines that combine all stages of the printing, cutting and assembly process into one unit.
Older newspaper printing techniques were based on heat dated, or Linotype, processes. These were slow, expensive and labour-intensive, which did nothing for the productivity of newspaper publishers, particularly during the 1970s when the demand for newspapers began to grow rapidly. During this time, the newspaper printing industry began to transition to more efficient, faster and cheaper cold-press processes. The average contemporary newspaper printing process is an evolutionary product of those early developments in offset printing and is, almost exclusively, a cold-type photographic engraving technique.
Most of today’s newspaper printing process installations are large, complex single-pass machines that often occupy several floors in a facility and can cost up to $40 million as of 2011. These machines print, cut and assemble the entire newspaper in one pass from continuous print runs of newsprint, often producing up to 70,000 copies per hour. Since newsprint is a fairly delicate paper, the machines and their internal processes are all geared towards the gentle handling of the paper during processing.
Typically, the newspaper printing process begins with compiling the entire edition on a desktop publishing computer program. From there, the completed edition is sent to the platemaking section, where each page is made into a photographic positive on a thin aluminum plate. These plates are then mounted in the press and inked with abrasion-resistant soy-based inks. Black pages require only a single plate, while color photographs and print require separate plates for color items. The mounted plates are positioned so that sets of rubber rollers pass over their surfaces during printing.
These rollers pick up the image from the plates and transfer it to the newsprint. This process is much gentler than pressing the plates against the paper, resulting in excellent print results. The facing pages are printed in sequence and passed to a different section of the machine which cuts and assembles the edition, completing the newspaper printing process. The complete journals are then bundled and released for distribution.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
