Old Gazette press headed to South America
Photo
Juan Figuaroa, left, and Mario Flores with Copesa, a Chilean publishing company, disassemble a walkway on the former Janesville Gazette printing press
Photo
Hector Munoz, an electrician with Copesa, a Chilean publishing company, sorts though the wiring in the control panel of the former Janesville Gazette printing press.
Photo
Workers from Janesville's J.P. Cullen & Sons and the Chilean publishing company Copesa, carefully lower a web roller module from the top of the press towards the basement. The nearly three story tall printing press is being dismantled and packed for shipping to South America.
Photo
Jerry Talley, left, and Scott Eick of JP Cullen and Sons manipulate a heavy web roller module into position in order to load it onto a semi trailer at the downtown Janesville Gazette loading dock.
JANESVILLE — The three-story behemoth that has printed millions of copies of The Janesville Gazette will soon crank out newspapers in Chile.
Bliss Communications, the Gazette's publisher, has sold its Goss Metro press to Copesa, a Chilean media conglomerate.
Crews from Copesa and Janesville-based J.P. Cullen & Sons are disassembling the press for packing and shipment to Chile.
The Gazette installed the press in what was then its new downtown building in 1967. It printed the Gazette and a variety of other publications until October 2007, when the company opened its new printing facility on Janesville's east side.
The Chilean crew will be in Janesville for three or four weeks to take apart the massive press. Each part is labeled and loaded into a semi-tractor trailer that is taken to Cullen's lot. Cullen crews are loading and securing the heavy loads, which will make their way to Baltimore before boarding a ship for Chile.
"Everything is being labeled and strictly inventoried," said Chuck Flynn, Bliss vice president of technical services.
Taking the press apart is a game of puzzle moves. Floors are being removed so pieces can be disassembled and moved in relatively tight quarters. Each of the press' four printing units weighs 22 tons.
"The whole idea for us was to sell the press and get it out without destroying our building," Flynn said.
Earlier plans called for a hole to be punched in the Gazette's east wall.
When finished, Cullen will have 14 or 15 trailers ready for shipping. In Santiago, the Gazette press will be added to a much larger, 100-meter long press that prints a variety of newspapers.
After months of sitting idle, the Goss Metro was fired up in January by the Gazette's press crew and again for the Copesa crew.
"It worked just fine," Flynn said.
Flynn said that when the Gazette installed the press in 1967, it provided more capacity than the newspaper needed. But the Gazette soon started printing regional editions of a Chicago newspaper that helped pay for the press.
"There are a lot of Goss Metros on the market right now," he said. "We're getting about one-tenth of what we paid for it, but the value to us in getting it out of our building."
Flynn said the former pressroom would eventually be remodeled for other space-starved Gazette departments.
Jul 24, 2009 at 11:54 a.m.
Suggest removal
The old press is gone. But out here at the new plant when the new press fires up it's just as exciting, I have seen the new press run a thousand times and it will wake you up every time.
Jul 24, 2009 at 10:39 a.m.
Suggest removal
I remember that old press from when I worked in the mailroom back in the late 80's / early 90's. I too drove many of the city delivery trucks. It was always great to hear that old press start rumbling. It meant the day was starting!
My big question is what happened to the massive paper cutter in the basement near the press? I remember that thing could cut a 6 inch thick stack of paper at a time. It was a huge metal thing on a wood base. We used it to cut the coupon books that used to be in the paper once a month.
Jul 24, 2009 at 10:32 a.m.
Suggest removal
Looking around, SRK, it's hard to judge comparing age of equipment and all, but I would suggest thinking in the price range of a new SUV.
Jul 24, 2009 at 10:10 a.m.
Suggest removal
I still work here and every day at 10:30 that big old press would fire up and we could hear it rumbling from every corner of the building. It was with a sense of pride and job security that we heard the next edition go to press.
It was always the goal of the newsroom and the press guys to get that press rolling by 10:30! I still miss that rumbling every day. The teamwork that got the daily edition to that big press was amazing! I'll always cherish the memory of having been a part of the icon of the old press!!
Jul 24, 2009 at 9:31 a.m.
Suggest removal
I think it sold for a buck two eighty and some change.
Jul 23, 2009 at 10:37 p.m.
Suggest removal
Check E-Bay.
Jul 23, 2009 at 9:04 p.m.
Suggest removal
Just curious, how much does a three story used printing press sell for?
Jul 23, 2009 at 8:34 p.m.
Suggest removal
That was such a great, impressive thing to see as a kid (and later, as a college student in Mitch Bliss's journalism course).
Jul 23, 2009 at 5:54 p.m.
Suggest removal
I've outlived the fancy color printing press. I remember the first paper the Gazette did in color, I think it was the Sunday addition with color comics just like the big city Milwaukee Journal. Do'h, I feel so old.
Before you post a comment, consider this:
Note: GazetteXtra.com does not condone or review every comment. Read more in our User Policy AgreementPost Comment
Commenting requires registration.