(Courtesy Topeka Capital-Journal)
The Topeka Capital-Journal has entered a long-term contract that will move printing and some post-press operations to The Kansas City Star’s state-of-the-art Press Pavilion, Capital-Journal publisher Gregg Ireland announced Wednesday.
The targeted date for printing to start in Kansas City is with the May 14 edition.
“Our industry is changing rapidly,” Ireland said. “This move is historic and, in some ways, very difficult. This move is in no way a move away from the printed product, which remains a large and extremely important part of what we do. But it is a move away from printing. We’re not in the printing business; we’re in the information business.”
The Capital-Journal will be the fourth newspaper owned by Morris Publishing Group to outsource printing, following the St. Augustine (Fla.) Record, The Athens Banner (Ga.) Herald and the Conway (Ark.) Log Cabin Democrat. Throughout the industry, print consolidation is a growing trend.
“It’s more important than ever that we focus on the best, most effective ways to distribute information to our community however and whenever each individual wants it. This change is part of an overall strategy that is positioning The Capital-Journal as an industry leader in that mission,” Ireland said.
While the newspaper’s print circulation declined by about 3 percent in 2011, digital access to The Capital-Journal’s content is skyrocketing. CJOnline served more than 9.6 million page views in January, its highest month ever. More than 1.25 million of those pages were accessed on mobile phones, an increase of more than 500 percent from the previous year. And after a little more than two months, The Capital-Journal iPad app now is installed on more than 1,600 devices and serves an average of 12,500 pages per day.
The printed edition of the Capital-Journal will look better and offer readers and advertisers more color and page configurations than ever. Waste will be reduced by half.
The Star’s glass-walled Press Pavilion, opened six years ago, cost $200 million and took three years to build. It houses four KBA Commander presses, the same type of presses used to print all U.S. currency and 90 percent of all currency in the world.
The press capacity at the Star will cut printing time in half, so the newspaper’s deadlines won’t change.
“It’s incredible. It’s mind-boggling,” Capital-Journal production director Ron Beavers said. “It’s all automated. Kansas City is the most modern printing facility in the world.”
By contrast, The Capital-Journal for the past 10 years has rolled off a Goss press that was produced in 1992 and that, for its first 11 years, printed the Indianapolis Star. Maintenance needs have grown in recent years, while parts to facilitate it have grown more difficult to procure.
The change will directly affect as many as 34 Capital-Journal employees. All affected employees are being offered a severance package.
“For all the advantages this transition will offer our customers and our business, it’s not easy to do,” Ireland said. “The people part is the hard part.”