The core technology may be 1960s, but the press due to be commissioned for Jeff Bezos’ Washington Post is set to harness the latest updates to deliver sustainable, quality printing.
Management at the paper – owned by Bezos’ Nash Holdings since 2013 – say it hopes to start printing at a new smaller print centre near Dulles airport by the end of this year.
US-based supplier ImPressions Worldwide is set to install an all-colour 28-unit Goss Urbanite press with an array of technology including camera-based auto register and density from Swedish developer DCOS in the new 5,500 m2 building it is leasing.
The single-width press design, first introduced by the then Miehle-Goss-Dexter in the mid-1960s, has remained popular with publishers including several Lee Enterprises sites, and the Boston Globe, which installed almost 100 pre-owned Urbanite units at a site in Taunton in 2016.
The first of the Washington Post press units – sourced from various locations –are currently being refurbished at ImPressions headquarters at Burlington, Washington State. The press is to be configured in four three-high, and eight two-high groups with two folders in the middle and one at the end (pictured). There are no plans to modify units to a ‘three-wide’ system to increase pagination, the Washington Post retaining the simplicity of the two wide, collect format, to run its current 635mm-wide broadsheet format.
While it says much of the newspaper industry has reduced or abandoned print, the Post’s publisher says it “remains committed to this facet of its journalism, recognising print as a trusted, premium medium that continues to deliver value to readers, advertisers and shareholders.
“Print is not a legacy obligation for the Washington Post,” plant manager John Bratt said in the announcement. “It is a strategic choice to strengthen it through smart investment, right-sizing, and modern technology.”
The current 46,000 m2 print centre in Springfield, Virginia dates to 1980, its Mitsubishi colour web-offset presses among eight commissioned there and at a new plant in College Park, Maryland, in January 1999.
The Post had made the switch to phototypesetting in 1980, with Springfield opening as a satellite plant that year with four ten-unit offset presses, while eight city-centre lines were converted to photopolymer letterpress.
The latest move – from a facility “built for an era of far higher circulation and page counts, aligns its physical footprint with today’s demand while preserving quality, control, and operational resilience”.
The Dulles logistics centre (above), in which space is being leased for the new Washington Post print centre, is close to the airport and Loudoun Gateway Metro station.
Audited circulation of the paper – which was 1.3 million in 1980 – is reported to have fallen below 100,000 subscribers last year for the first time in at least 55 years. In 2023, it had 130,000 print subscribers and 2.5 million digital subscribers, putting both third behind the New York Times and Rupert Murdoch’s Wall Street Journal.
Post chief officer of print operations Gregg Fernandes says print continues to be an important medium to their readers. “It is a valuable, profitable way we offer our critical journalism to customers and a key market differentiator.
“We will be producing the same uncompromising, high-quality product with a more efficient and sustainable approach.”
ImPressions says the Urbanite will be configured to provide exceptional web-offset print quality. It consists of 28 printing units with a cut-off of 578mm, and will be able to print colour on every page. Three folders will provide redundancy (back up in middle) and versatility (right end folder to double out).
Sourced from multiple locations – pictured below is an Urbanite from Tupelo that ImPressions was offering earlier this year – the press will be delivered with new rubber rollers in ready to run condition, and with upgrades and added features such as DCOS auto register, auto density and cut-off control enabling reduced make-ready waste, improved colour consistency and optimised print performance.
The press has Perretta remote inking, motorised register, Inventor spray bars and Nela slot lock up inserts. There are five Bardac drives and five 150 HP motors. The web detection and ink levelers are supplied by US Automation, and eight Enkel Autoweb pasters are being installed at right angles to the pressline.
While the building – near Dulles airport – is still under construction, an ImPressions team is currently installing overhead ink and air lines, with local electricians installing overhead pipe, wire and raceways. Note the unit and folder positions have been marked on the floor of the building.
The press – measuring almost 50 metres long and 5.5 metres high – will arrive on 14 trucks over a seven-day period beginning later this month. Construction of the 5,400m2 building, along with full power availability, is expected to be complete in early June.
The press will be fully tested, the crew trained and in live production by Thanksgiving. The future of the building in Springfield, Virginia and its double-width presses has not been finalised.
GXpress hears that the press crew is excited about the shift in printing, and appreciative that the Washington Post has decided to right-size their print operation, rather than outsourcing. Fingers are cross that Jeff Bezos – whose final approval was required for the project – will come to the grand opening.
ImPressions sales vice president David Gilmore says the investment underscores a commitment to delivering outstanding print quality in a smarter, more efficient production environment: “By combining proven web offset technology with advanced inspection systems, The Post is ensuring its readers and advertisers continue to receive brilliant ink-on-paper results.”
Founder and president Tom Loesch (pictured with team members Ricky Ramirez, Gilberto Jolomna, Jimmy Easterly, and Kevin Nordquist in Dulles) said his company was built on, and remains steadfast in, supporting excellence in print production: “We too remain focussed on supporting ink on paper, and we are proud to partner with the Washington Post in its commitment to maintaining control of its print operations in an evolving media environment.”
Swedish technology specialist DCOS brings Urbanite experience to the project, with chief executive Mattias Andersson boasting in 2021 that his company was simultaneously working on 11 projects on Goss presses.
The Post company publishes metro-Washington Spanish-language paper El Tiempo Latino, which it bought in 2004, and the Slate online magazine which it bought from Microsoft the following year. Free commuter paper Express (launched in 2003) was closed in 2019. Its activities include the Arc Publishing and Zeus Technology offerings to publishers.
Peter Coleman