New printing press rolling at Rust Communications

$2.5 million press expands color, speed capabilities

Business Today

Readers of the Southeast Missourian, Business Today, TBY and a host of other publications are noticing increasingly crisper photos, more vivid colors and, in the daily newspaper, more color pages as Rust Communications continues exploring the capabilities of its new press.

In addition, the company is recruiting new full-color commercial printing accounts to maximize its $3 million investment in the press and the 6,000-square-foot addition constructed late last year at 500 William St. in Cape Girardeau.

The new press, a Dauphin Graphic Machines 430 made in Elizabethville, Pa., started rolling last month. Southeast Missourian readers immediately were treated to a color weather section on Page 2A and higher quality printing.

The four-color press, which means it can print any color, is 18 feet high and 80 feet long with a catwalk along the higher points. The 16-unit press was installed in early January and training began.

"The press itself is the first step in higher quality, and while readers should be seeing a significant improvement already, it's going to get even better," said Jon K. Rust, co-president of Rust Communications, the newspaper's parent company. "First, after allowing some time for the new equipment to settle, we will optimize all the settings and 'fingerprint' the operation.

"We're also in the process of investing in faster, more precise and higher quality pre-press machinery. This equipment is critical to the final product, and our new press capabilities are above what our current pre-press equipment can do. So while we hope readers and advertisers are pleased with the major changes so far, it's going to get even better throughout the year."

The former press, a Web Leader installed at the Southeast Missourian in 1983, is being sold.

Advertising director Donna Denson said the DGM 430 will allow advertisers to use full color on more pages of the newspaper, including Page 3A.

"That has been a very popular spot for advertisers," she said. Current customers who choose color advertising are going to see cleaner printing, she said.

Editor Joe Sullivan said the new press will allow newsroom employees' work to shine.

"With the new press, we hope to show readers the high-quality work of our photographers and graphic artists," he said. "The Southeast Missourian is proud of its news design. The new press will help us show off this award-winning effort."

Glenda Mayberry, director of Targeted Publications, said Business Today, TBY and the dozens of other special publications produced by her department will benefit from the new press.

"We will be able to offer our advertisers color on more pages," said Mayberry. "The photos will be crisper, and the overall product will be of higher quality. Our entire sales staff has looked forward to the new press with great expectations."

The $500,000 building addition was necessary due to the new press' dimensions. The press takes up about a quarter of the new building, with the rest used to store rolls of newsprint and for a work area.

There are several features that will make actual production of the paper more efficient, said Rich Bauman, production manager.

"Mechanically, presses all work fundamentally the same way," he said. "The quality of the workmanship and automation is the difference in the DGM and what we had."

For instance, the DGM 430, which cost $2.5 million, prints 35,000 newspapers an hour, whereas the Web Leader printed 20,000. The DGM monitors its own ink levels and keeps them level, which means a press worker doesn't have to step in and fill ink trays. The DGM plates can be adjusted to line up to a fraction of an inch while the press is still running, which means less down time.

When one roll of newsprint ends, another starts up automatically -- less waste of paper and less time spent changing rolls.

"It's a good, solid press," Bauman said. "It is configured so you can do a lot of color work."

Rex Rust, co-president of Rust Communications, said the new equipment is going to allow Southeast Missourian staff members to work to their full potential.

"The key to high quality is our people," Rust said. "For the past few years, the Southeast Missourian's staff has had to work creatively and extra diligently to produce a consistently good product. Even with hard work, however, consistency wasn't always possible, because the old press simply couldn't be locked down throughout a print run. Now we don't have to fight that battle, and our production focus can be on great quality for every single newspaper, every single day."

The construction of an addition to the production plant also serves as a commitment to the facility on William Street, which Rust Communications officials had considered relocating at one point.

Publisher Wally Lage said the new building and press will most likely lead to additional employment opportunities in the future.

Rust Communications owns 16 daily newspapers and 35 weekly newspapers in seven states. It is headquartered in Cape Girardeau.

PULL -- The four-color press, which means it can print any color, is 18 feet high and 80 feet long with a catwalk along the higher points. The 16-unit press was installed in early January and production began in February.

PICS -- Southeast Missourian production manager Rich Bauman, left, and Rust Communications co-presidents Rex Rust, center, and Jon K. Rust look over a page produced by the company's new press. The press provides a higher quality product for advertisers, commercial customers and readers.

Business Today

-- A Dauphin Graphic Machines 430, made in Elizabethville, Pa., started rolling in February at 500 William St. in Cape Girardeau.

Business Today