NAA has formed two task forces to report by this fall on the ramifications of reducing the industry's standard web width from 54 inches to as little as 50 inches.
An NAA questionnaire found that more than one-fourth of the responding 80 newspapers are narrowing their page widths to conserve newsprint, and another 21 percent plan to do so by year's end. Overall, 53 percent supported a narrower page width, 32 percent did not, and the remaining 15 percent were undecided.
The NAA Web Width Task Force was formed to study the overall implications of reducing SAUs and web widths, including possible effects on advertisers and newsprint manufacturers. The task force will be chaired by John Madigan, president and chief executive officer of the Tribune Co. of Chicago.
The NAA Web Width Technical Advisory Task Force will provide a feasibility report to the first task force, including mechanical and economic analyses of all technical issues. It also plans to produce a guide for newspapers considering web-width reduction. Eugene Falk, executive vice president and general manager of the Los Angeles Times, was appointed chairman.
During its first meeting, on July 24 at NEXPO, The NAA Web Width Technical Advisory Task Force agreed on the following objectives:
NAA representatives at the meeting said revising the SAU measurements to accommodate a narrower page width is not out of the question. They also noted, however, that establishing the original SAUs was a long and arduous task. The original SAU standard was driven by advertisers who desired a single measurement for which to provide ads. Proposed revisions could be interpreted as passing along significant newsprint price increases to the advertisers.
Participants agreed that plans to reduce web widths would also send a strong message to newsprint manufacturers. A reduction from 54 inches to 50 inches would represent an 8 percent to 10 percent reduction in costs.
Several attendees noted that Canadian newspapers had already converted to a narrower page width several years ago. In the United States, however, the accepted SAU measurements for advertisements are a potential roadblock to reducing web width. The current page-width limit, in order to accommodate SAUs, is 53-7/8 inches.
One participant noted that some newspapers are using anamorphic camera lenses to "squeeze" ads into pages narrower than the SAU limit. While some newspapers said they were having excellent success with this approach, others debated the practicality and effect on quality of such "shrink lenses."
Several attendees expressed concerns about what effects a narrower web width would have on quality. Some pointed out that quality is already being affected by nip and trolley marks caused by reduced margins. Others argued that quality would not be affected if the SAUs were revised. Doing so, they said, would relieve the problem of trolley marks and the possible adverse effects of shrink lenses.
Some participants were also concerned about how quickly equipment manufacturers would be able to adjust their equipment to narrower web widths. Some attendees suggested that in the case of older presses, conversions could take as long as a year, depending on availability of parts.
To help accomplish its objectives, the task force created three work groups to study the ramifications of web-width reduction in the three traditional operational areas: pre-press, press, and post-press. Each group is to identify the various processes in each area, analyze the impact of web-width reduction on each process, and assess the cost and technical feasibility of each.
The group also listed some of the issues in the various production areas:
For more information on the NAA Web Width Technical Advisory Task Force, call NAA Senior Vice President of Technology Eric Wolferman at (703) 648-1183, or send e-mail to wolfe1@attmail.com.
TechNews Volume 1, Number 4: July/August 1995
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