MONTREAL, June 20 -- Transcontinental announced today it has installed the first 64-page Goss Sunday 4000 press system with Automatic Transfer in the world. The high-speed book-printing press has been operational since June 10 at the Transcontinental Interglobe plant in Beauceville, Quebec. This $25-million investment in state-of-the-art printing technology and peripheral equipment gives Transcontinental a major competitive advantage over North American and overseas printers, particularly given the current trend among North American book publishers toward reduced cycle times and shorter but more targeted print runs. The press, which was made to measure by Goss for Transcontinental's specialized short- and medium-run book-printing needs, includes a number of revolutionary features. Its eight Automatic Transfer units allow for instant switch over between operating and idle units without stopping the press. With Autoplate, plate changing is fully automated and requires significantly less time and operator effort. Overall, impression quality is the best available, paper waste is reduced, and production times are shortened considerably, which means faster delivery times for customers. "Transcontinental is always looking for ways to become a more strategic partner to its customers by helping them make their operations more efficient," said Francois Olivier, president of Transcontinental's Printing Products and Services sector. "Whether that means helping them with their workflow or improving ours, providing them with more value-added services or industry insights, or investing in the best technology available, we are constantly re-examining our operations to give our customers the greatest possible advantage in their markets. The efficiency of this new press, plus that of our new book-printing plant in Louiseville, Quebec, together improve our North American position in this market niche. And as we export more than 50% of this niche's production to U.S. customers, these investments also enable us to counteract the effect of the strengthening Canadian dollar." Jacques Gragoire, senior vice president of Transcontinental's Book Group, added: "The features of this new press and related finishing equipment clearly put Transcontinental in the vanguard of the short- and medium-run book- printing industry. Not only is the print quality from this web press equivalent to that of sheetfed presses, but the on-the-run print transfer capability reduces press downtime, and our new binding equipment speeds up the process that much more. Our turnaround time for customers just got a lot shorter. "Transcontinental Interglobe in Beauceville, now measuring 280,000 square feet, celebrated its 20th anniversary in May," continued Mr. Gragoire. "This investment in the Beauce region is a great way to show our dedicated employees our confidence in their skills and commitment to success."