September 3rd, 2008 – The decision by one of Puerto Rico's top printing companies, Advanced Graphics Printing (AGP), to purchase a new M-800 press from Goss International was based on myriad factors, including market leadership, increased capacity, better quality and quicker delivery.

"Our customers who print shopping circulars want to be able to deliver their files to us as late as possible but still make their deadline," explains Joel Acevedo, senior general manager of AGP. "By waiting until the last minute, they can put in the most up-to-date prices for their merchandise. Obviously, the faster we can print the circulars, the later these customers can provide their files."

AGP will install the eight-unit, two-web M-800 press system in a stacked configuration in early 2009. Acevedo says print quality, a higher-pagination format and expanded in-house capacity were the key considerations in adding the 4x4 press to complement existing 2x4 16-page webs.

Shopping circulars are not the only products requiring a decrease in printing lead time for maximum impact. AGP's clients – which include such retail giants as JC Penney, Macy's, Sears, K-Mart, and Toys 'R Us, – produce a wide variety of print collateral on extremely tight schedules. The more time that AGP can allocate to these industry heavyweights for their creative and design processes, the happier they are.

Regardless of the print project, the M-800 press, a model that incorporates proven design elements and systems from the high-performance, gapless Goss Sunday presses will provide that increase in productivity and efficiency.

For example, running a tabloid-size, eight-page piece in a quantity of one million currently requires 35 hours on AGP's fastest press. The M-800 press will slash that time to a mere 18 hours, a reduction of almost 50 percent.

While the cutback in lead time is notable, AGP's purchase of the M-800 press can more accurately be attributed to a critical business challenge.

"We increased our sales dramatically over the last two years, to the point where we were running up to 90 percent of our capacity," Acevedo explains. "In fact, we were working around the clock to fulfill the market's needs. This was particularly true on our web press side, which accounts for close to 80 percent of our total sales.

"The M-800 press will allow us to run all of our jobs more efficiently, whether it is shoppers, magazines, books, calendars, brochures, annual reports or other projects.  As a result, we can stop working during the weekends and avoid extra overtime."

AGP, an affiliate of Grupo Ferré-Rangel, the holding company for Primera Hora and El Nuevo Dia, Puerto Rico's largest newspaper, will actually be achieving a loftier objective – that is, introducing a new capability that was previously unavailable to its customers in the Caribbean. Currently, the company has the ability to print up to 32 pages in a magazine format. The two-web M-800 press will increase that capacity to 64 pages – a first for a printer in Puerto Rico.

What is more, AGP will reach that goal while maintaining a common web width with existing single-circumference presses. This will provide flexibility in scheduling and shifting jobs among presses, and set AGP apart from competitors, according to Acevedo.

With the recent introduction of the 4x4 M-800 model, Goss International has expanded its range of double-circumference commercial web press options. The M­800 press, which includes features from the Sunday line of presses as well as the popular M-1000 model, complements standard 16-page presses such as Goss M­600 and M-500 systems, giving printing facilities the versatility of 2x4 and 4x4 production with a common paper supply.

Utilizing multidrive technology and equipped with a Goss JF-70 collect folder, the M­800 press is capable of delivering up to 35,000 32-page magazine signatures in collect production or 70,000 16-page signatures in straight production while printing at speeds up to 2,200 feet per minute (11 meters per second). Two-web configurations double these pagination and productivity specifications. Key features include an in-line 2:2 cylinder stack; 12-roll 3-vibrator inking and dampening system; conventional, flat blankets; and bearerless plate and blanket cylinders.

An Ecocool dryer with integrated afterburner, which combines a high-velocity, hot air dryer with a highly efficient air pollution-control system, will deliver superior drying performance while reducing energy consumption. Omnicon controls, Goss Web Center workflow modules and a Goss Contiweb CS splicer, will round out the system at AGP.

"We have an experienced and qualified press crew," says Acevedo.  "We anticipate a smooth transition and will provide our operators with instruction, particularly in the area of calibration, to ensure that we get the maximum efficiency from the machine."

Not to be forgotten in the roster of benefits that the M-800 press will bring to AGP's customers is the potential for dramatic cost savings.

"The new press will have a positive affect in so many areas," states Acevedo. "We will be able to decrease waste, lower run time, reduce makereadies, and be able to combine more products in the same run.

"But one of the most important factors is that we will be more efficient and able to deliver to our clients faster than ever.  Being able to increase our page count from 32 to 64 in the same run is not only a great complement to our existing presses, it will lower the production time substantially while maintaining the commercial quality our customers expect."