Kodak Announces Latest Newspapers to Enhance Production with its Non Process Plates, Names David Martin Newspaper National Sales Manager for United States and Canada

ROCHESTER, N.Y.- Harlan Newspapers and the Bainbridge Post-Searchlight each spent months researching vendors before selecting Kodak for their conversion from imagesetters to CTP systems. The Iowa and Georgia publishers, along with the Herald Press, Inc., in Long Island City, New York, and San Diego Web Offset, are among the latest newspapers to install thermal CTP platesetters, thermal digital plates and workflow software from Kodak.

“More than ever, newspapers need cost control and revenue generating solutions and we focus on providing leading edge products for helping achieve both business objectives,” said David Martin, newly appointed Newspaper National Sales Manager, United States and Canada, Kodak.

Martin, most recently the National Account Manager for Newspapers, joined Kodak in 2002. He reports to Scott Spagnolli, Vice President of Sales, Prepress Solutions, United States and Canada. Martin replaces Patrick DeRose, who most recently served as Newspaper Sales Director and now holds the position of Sales and Business Manager, Enterprise Solutions, for Kodak, and focuses on KODAK EMS Business Software.

Harlan Newspapers, a provider of multimedia services and member of the PAGE cooperative buying association, publishes four newspapers and prints more than 40 newspapers in Iowa and Nebraska. Staff attended trade shows and seminars to research CTP options before deciding on the KODAK TRENDSETTER NEWS 70 Thermal Platesetter with KODAK PF-N Non Process Plates, KODAK PRINERGY EVO Workflow, and KODAK PREPS Imposition Software. Environmental benefits of the non process plates and image quality performance helped place Kodak’s solutions at the top of the list following Harlan’s evaluation process.

“Readers and customers now see better color reproduction, an increased use of color, higher quality photos and an expansion of print services,” said Alan Mores, Co-Publisher, Harlan Newspapers. “We’re proud to serve as the first Iowa newspaper to utilize this non process CTP solution.”

Steve Mores, Co-Publisher, adds, “We anticipate the equipment will provide us with significant newspaper ink and newsprint waste reductions, a simpler workflow and better control of our final product.”

The Bainbridge Post-Searchlight installed a TRENDSETTER NEWS 70 Thermal Platesetter with PF-N Non Process Plates, PRINERGY EVO Workflow, and PREPS Imposition Software. According to Mark Pope, General Manager, the newspaper recognized the benefits such as faster speed, higher image quality and better efficiency from switching to CTP, but was initially concerned about throughput.

“As it turns out, the press has to keep up with the TRENDSETTER Platesetter,” said Pope. “With the system from Kodak, it takes an average of seven minutes to produce four plates for process color on front and back, to run through the system. That’s down from the 45 minutes it took with a single width film imagesetter, giving us much greater flexibility and productivity.”

The newspaper plans to add KODAK STACCATO Screening during the coming months, which Pope expects to further strengthen customer satisfaction with its commercial print customers. The Post-Searchlight, a member of the PAGE cooperative buying association and part of Boone Newspapers, Inc., is a paid circulation semi-weekly community newspaper serving Bainbridge and Decatur County, Georgia.

The Herald Press, Inc., in Long Island City, New York, added a semiautomatic TRENDSETTER NEWS Thermal Platesetter with PF-N Non Process Plates, PRINERGY EVO Workflow, and KODAK PREPS Plus Imposition Software. Herald Press publishes The National Herald, a daily Greek language newspaper, and The National Herald, a weekly English language, Greek-interest newspaper.

San Diego Web Offset added another TRENDSETTER NEWS 50 Thermal Platesetter with KODAK NS Digital Newspaper Plates, as well as a second copy of PREPS Imposition Software. San Diego Web Offset prints between 150-175 newspaper publications each month.

KODAK Products are backed by KODAK Service and Support.KODAK Service and Support is made up of more than 3,000 professionals reaching more than 120 countries. It is a leading multi vendor integrated services provider, delivering consulting, installation, maintenance and support services for the commercial printing, graphic communications, document imaging and data storage industries. KODAK Service and Support professionals are uniquely qualified to provide services that control costs, maximize productivity, and minimize business risk.