For their new print production center in the city of Xiamen the Fujian Daily Group ordered a new GEOMAN press of manroland web systems. The contract has been signed in March and the press will be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2012.

The 16-page GEOMAN is a globally well-known and successful newspaper production press series of manroland web systems. With the new double-width, double-circumference press Fujian Daily Group will expand their printing capacity and make a big jump forward in production technology and productivity. The press will have a lighthouse effect for the company, the printers in the city of Xiamen, and in the region of Fujian.

Up to 150,000 copies per hour
The new GEOMAN consists of two eight-couple towers in blanket-to-blanket design, two reel splicers, and a PFN-23 folder in the cylinder ratio of 2:3:3. The press with a web width of 1,562 millimeters and a cylinder circumference of 1,092 millimeters can produce up to 75,000 32-page broadsheet newspaper copies per hour in excellent full-color quality. In tabloid format up to 150,000 copies are possible. The movable formers in the folder superstructure also allow production with web widths of 1,440 millimeters and 1,360 millimeters respectively. The main products will include the daily Haixia Doushi Bao and other major newspapers of the Fujian Daily Group.

Trustworthy longseller
The GEOMAN is a compact 16-page press in 4-2 design. With the performance-optimized design of its components and its highly standardized configuration and layout, it personifies a very efficient press system which guarantees short production cycles and quick installation. Thus, it is suitable for printing companies which would like to achieve optimal cost per copy. For hybrid production concepts special configurations are possible. The series was permanently improved in the previous years and in daily production at printing houses of various sizes in countries like Brazil, the US, and in Germany as well.

Confidence in quality
Fujian Daily Group purchased the new pressline via the usual tender procedure. Despite the challenging situation of manroland in the days of the tender opening, Fujian Daily Group trusted in the future of the vendor and thus contributed to the successful search for a new investor. The confidence in the high quality and performance of manroland’s equipment and service and the convincing support of the Chinese market organization of manroland in the project definition process were major reasons for the decision in favor of the German vendor.

Growing success
Fujian Daily Newspaper Group is a prosperous company in the South of China with a workforce of more than 2,000 main staff. More than 20 titles are produced at sites at Fuzhou, Xiamen, and Quanzhou. The dailies Haixia Doushi Bao (about 300,000 copies) and Fujian Ribao (about 180,000 copies) feature the biggest circulation.

The successful enterprise was able to increase their net profit by about 30 percent in the previous calendar year. With the new press further business improvement can be expected. The surplus capacity and the high quality and efficiency the GEOMAN of manroland web systems will offer fit seamlessly with the business development plans of the printer.