Because the soaring price of newsprint concerns newspapers in both North America and Europe, NAA is collaborating with IFRA, the international newspaper-technology association, to identify best practices used by newspapers on both sides of the Atlantic to control newsprint waste.
IFRA developed the study's initial scope and assembled a group of newspaper-industry executives to assist in establishing its direction. VTT Information Technology of Finland was contracted to conduct the research.
VTT sent questionnaires to European and North American newspapers considered to be among the best at controlling waste. The returned questionnaires contain details on newsprint specifications, printing-press configurations, waste-control targets and data-collection procedures. They also describe how to motivate and educate employees about waste control.
The daily circulation of the participating newspapers ranged from under 50,000 to over 500,000 and represented offset, letterpress and flexographic printing processes.
Information gathered from the questionnaires and subsequent on-site interviews is currently being analyzed. Preliminary results should be available in January, and the final report will be published in multiple languages in the April time frame.
Dave Beck is NAA's manager of media technology. E-mail is naanetwork!naa!beckd@naaatt.attmail.com ; phone is (703) 648-1315.
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