Hawaii’s only metro newspaper, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser, has recently selected a suite of retrofits for their REGIOMAN presses, which were initially installed in 2003. This includes a full selection of electronic hardware retrofits and software upgrades to the printing units, one folder and numerous related systems.

Installation of these upgrades will begin in Q1 of 2017, and will initially include the planning system (PPM) and the Control Desks. Retrofits to the unit controllers, folder, and turner bar nests will be executed over time on the REGIOMAN press, along with other retrofits, such as Interbus LOOP, as a part of a carefully orchestrated phased approach, which will minimize production downtime.

Bill Reiser, consultant for manroland web systems Inc. in North America stated, “We are extremely pleased that we were able to offer The Honolulu Star-Advertiser not only the latest modern technologies available, but we are doing it in phases with high quality off-the-shelf, non-proprietary, and easily available components. These retrofits will breathe efficiency into their printing operations, and also allow them to improve diagnostic capabilities to reduce downtime.”

In partnership with the VP Production for The Honolulu Star Advertiser, the manroland web systems team determined a tailor-made retrofit plan which eliminates system obsolescence, and increases production efficiencies such as quality and waste management through the PECOM-X PPM-Server, Control Desks and PECOM-X software application, while improving troubleshooting and technological communication capabilities with an Automatic Diagnostic Server (ADS).

Marty Black, Vice President of Production at The Honolulu Star-Advertiser, explained why the retrofit was selected. “The main reason for purchasing these upgrades was to minimize the problem of obsolescence. There are a number of parts which were identified as no longer being commercially available, so we needed to develop a plan on a phased replacement. manroland web systems was the only company that could provide all the parts and services we needed in a phased approach. This will save us both time and money,” stated Black, “We expect the presses to run as well as they did when they were new. The upgrades should also reduce press downtime.”

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser, an Oahu Publications Inc. company owned by Black Press Ltd, is the largest daily newspaper serving the state of Hawaii. Oahu Publications not only prints its flagship newspaper, the The Honolulu Star-Advertiser, but approximately 25 other publications and commercial products each week for the Hawaiian Islands.