　　At ifraEXPO 2003, Leipzig/Germany, MAN Roland is presenting a concept for the use of digital offset technology in newspaper publishing. Whether as a single DICOweb installation such as the one in daily production at Nussbaum Medien in Weil der Stadt/Germany, as a combination of different DICOweb configurations together with conventional newspaper presses, or as a DICOkit that is integrated in the newspaper press line: The DICO process of imaging and de-imaging in the press is an important step towards content-oriented newspaper production.
　　The current economic situation demands new concepts from newspaper editors in order to maintain their position in the market. Two common ways of facing this challenge are cross-media strategies and the target-group oriented or micro-zoned newspaper. Both ways require a high level of inte-gration of data flows and the mastering of the total value chain.
　　Content Orientation Enables Full Cross-media
　　The major asset of newspaper editors is their local or regional knowledge, the content. While in the past, content was transported to the reader exclusively via the newspaper, nowadays publishing houses should handle their content in a way enabling output on different devices without additional design efforts. For data exchange across system borders, world-wide standards such as PDF or XML are ideally suited. They also make the whole value chain from editorial and advertising department via pre-press, press, mail-room and distribution to the reader transparent and workable.
　　In MAN Roland view, print media and media automation is the major driver for the digitisation of the whole value chain. In the future, output devices that cannot directly use image data will be ignored more and more.
　　These are the major reasons why MAN Roland has pushed forward the development of DICOweb as an image-data driven press. Not only the DICOweb but also the current range of newspaper presses from MAN Roland is being prepared for image-data orientation in the machine and therefore opened up for the future of newspaper production.
　　The DICO Process: Basis for Digitisation in Newspaper Production
　　The unique DICO (Digital Change Over) process from MAN Roland is the only one in the market enabling imaging and de-imaging in the press and therefore eliminating plate change completely.
　　Within the DICOweb machine platform, the process is already established in the market in two installations: a coldset press for printing short-run weekly and local newspapers at Nussbaum Medien, Weil der Stadt/Germany, and a heatset press at Staempfli AG, Berne/Switzerland.
　　Four Levels of Digitisation
　　MAN Roland has developed a model of four levels of digitisation in printing forme production. These levels closely correspond with progress in automation. They can be defined as follows:
　　D1: CtPlate with CIP4 network and automated plate loading.
This level contains the connection of different platesetter and workflow suppliers and a highly automated plate loading function into the printing unit. It is currently being put into practice.
D2: CtPress with single-use plates, meaning on-press plate change and imaging.
　　At this level we see inline imaging solutions for process-free single-use plates as they are currently being used in DI sheet-fed offset. It is a step towards higher integrated workflows, but in a newspaper surroundings would contain principally longer change-over times than with automated plate loading devices and external imaging. Moreover, currently the plates used here are significantly more expensive than normal plates.
　　D3: external DICO imaging and de-imaging of sleeves or plates.
　　At this level, MAN Roland DICO process would be used externally in a sleeve or plate setter. Plates or sleeves could be de-imaged and therefore used again, but handling effort would be the same as in level D1. MAN Roland considers this level only as an intermediate step and therefore concentrates on level four.
　　D4: DICO process integrated in the press, i.e. in-press imaging and de-imaging.
　　This level contains the highest potential for automation and integration. It is already used in practice in MAN Roland DICOweb and represents the most important development in the printing press area according to many industry specialists.
　　Concepts for Digital Offset in Newspapers
　　Depending on applications, MAN Roland now offers three models of making use of the DICO process of digital imaging and de-imaging in the press for newspapers printers.
　　1. DICOweb Coldset
　　The DICOweb at Nussbaum Medien in Weil der Stadt/Germany has been producing short-run weeklies and local newspapers for the last two years. DICOweb is ideall suited for similar applications, such as church newspapers, advertising papers, city papers, and in international markets English add-on editions, or also for decentralized printing - due to its short change-over time, direct pre-press connection and high level of integration also with post-press.
　　2. Convoy Model
　　In this concept, different DICOweb configurations (coldset or heatset, different numbers of printing units etc.) complement conventional newspaper presses. As a system optimized for short-run printing, DICOweb prints target-group specific, locally diversified or changing sections that are integrated in the major product in the finishing line.
　　Another application of this model is decentralized printing of a newspaper at different locations. Where you have larges distances to be bridged under difficult conditions, also the major product can be printed in a decentralized way.
　　3. DICOkit
　　The integration of the DICO process in conventional newspaper presses such as the COLORMAN and all other MAN Roland machines is the next step in development. From the perspective of machine design, there are different variations to be considered. Discussions with customers so far show that the equipment of a full printing tower with imaging stations is the favourite possibility. Here, one can expect the highest gain in time saving as the change-over process is parallel in the whole tower, where it is sequential today.
　　An important point in the DICOkit concept is the fact that it not only comprises the integration of the imaging hardware, but, as in the DICOweb, also the pre-press connection and the whole PECOM control. Only by this, the automation potential can be fully used.
　　This concept can be used for diverse fields of applications. In particular, a deeper segmentation of newspapers (target-group oriented newspapers, micro-zoning) is made possible, but also updating latest news (title news, sports results, stock market results) or short-run add-on products being printed in the daytime can be thought of. Also, for these applications, content orientation plays the largest role.
　　These three models offer specific benefits for different applications. In all three models, the goal is to enable fast, cost-efficient and error-reducing change-over and therefore short-term updates or short-run newspaper productions.
　　At ifra in Leipzig, MAN Roland expects high interest of customers in these solutions and intensive discussions on their possible fields of applications.