Rochester, NY, September 11 -- Saving time and money, while increasing productivity, quality and reliability, serve as several of the key benefits achieved by five newspapers that recently switched to CTP with Kodak. The most recent customers to select Kodak's digital solutions for newspaper printers include The Bryan Times in Bryan, Ohio and Northwest Signal in Napoleon, Ohio; The Tribune Chronicle in Warren, Ohio; The Altoona Mirror in Altoona, Pa.; and Epoch Press in Patterson, N.J.

The Bryan Times and Northwest Signal, two newspapers printed Monday through Saturday from the same facility in Northwest Ohio, installed a KODAK TRENDSETTER NEWS 50 Thermal Platesetter, KODAK PF-N Non Process Plates, KODAK PRINERGY EVO Workflow System and KODAK PREPS Imposition Software. Circulation for the Bryan Times stands at 9,997, while Northwest Signal's circulation is 4,784. The newspapers are members of the PAGE cooperative buying association.

"The CTP system speeds up the entire production process, extending our deadline times and improving our efficiency," said Deb Dalton, Production Manager for both newspapers. "Another important consideration when we evaluated options was our commitment to serve as an environmentally responsible company. The ability to eliminate plate chemistry with the PF-N Non Process Plates gave us another reason to choose Kodak's system."

The Tribune Chronicle, part of the Ogden Newspaper Group, purchased a KODAK TRENDSETTER NEWS 70 Thermal Platesetter, PRINERGY EVO Workflow System and PREPS Imposition Software. The Warren, Ohio newspaper has a weekday circulation of 29,511.

"We're achieving higher quality and more consistent output since switching to Kodak's solutions," said Len Blose, General Manager, The Tribune Chronicle. "We also have greater flexibility and creativity across the board, from editorial to sales, because of the decreased production time. We've been especially pleased with the training and support that Kodak provides, helping us achieve a smooth transition to CTP."

The Altoona Mirror, a Pennsylvania daily newspaper, switched from imagesetters to a TRENDSETTER NEWS 70 Platesetter, along with KODAK NS Digital Newspaper Plates, PRINERGY EVO Workflow System, and PREPS Imposition Software. Also owned by the Ogden Group, The Altoona Mirror has a weekday circulation of 30,909.

Patterson, New Jersey's Epoch Press prints a number of broadsheet and tabloid newspapers, as well as booklets, books, real estate and auto magazines, supermarket flyers, coupons and more. The company added a KODAK TRENDSETTER 800 III Platesetter to support growth of its commercial sheetfed business. In addition to the new TRENDSETTER 800 III Platesetter, Epoch Press has two existing TRENDSETTER CTP Platesetters.

The TRENDSETTER NEWS Thermal Platesetter comes in six models, ranging in speed from 60 plates per hour to more than 240 plates per hour to suit newspaper printing facilities of all sizes. The TRENDSETTER NEWS Thermal Platesetter delivers fast, reliable imaging with a standard file format interface for newspaper production systems. It is available with semiautomatic or fully automated plate loading and unloading. The machine to machine accuracy of the KODAK SQUARESPOT Thermal Imaging Heads, combined with the binary nature of thermal imaging, achieves consistent and repeatable halftone dot structures.

KODAK PF-N Non Process Plates are processless thermal plates for newspapers. Compatible with most popular thermal CTP platesetters, the plates provide high quality, consistent imaging performance and easy handling. The plates develop on press, shortening the platemaking cycle and getting jobs to press more quickly. In addition, the plates can help eliminate the purchase and maintenance costs associated with plate processors and developer chemistry, while also reducing water usage.

KODAK NS Digital Newspaper Plates are the right choice for printers who require the high resolution printing of thermal CTP and the convenience of no slip sheets. The preheat plates process quickly and cleanly. NS Digital Newspaper Plates are durable on press and off, with run lengths up to 250,000 unbaked and 1 million baked.

The KODAK PRINERGY EVO Workflow System helps newspapers deal with last minute changes easily, without causing delays. Based on the latest standards and proven KODAK PRINERGY Workflow System technology, PRINERGY EVO Software delivers exceptional PDF processing capabilities. A flexible PDF workflow featuring proven color management, late stage editing and imposition, and advanced screening options to optimize output on TRENDSETTER NEWS Thermal Platesetters, PRINERGY EVO Systems help deliver the automation, speed, control, and flexibility that newspapers need to accommodate tight editorial and ad deadlines and output large numbers of pages more quickly.

KODAK PREPS Imposition Software supports POSTSCRIPT, PDF, EPS, DCS and TIFF source files. It works with all KODAK and many major third party workflow systems. KODAK PREPS Imposition Software helps prepress professionals remove even more manual steps from their preferred workflow by providing digital imposition. PREPS Software accepts more than 200 types of file inputs. PREPS Imposition Software enhances prepress efficiency and enables greater postpress reliability by automatically generating bar codes that can be read by WST and MULLER MARTINI Bar Code Readers.

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.