An eight-unit Sunday 2000 press and saddlestitcher will double production output at Sandhills Publishing in Lincoln, Nebraska.

The US company has announced the investment with Goss International - which includes a Pacesetter 2200 saddlestitcher - will enable it to produce a greater proportion of its requirements in-house.

The eight-unit, two web, 16-page press scheduled for delivery in May 2016 is almost identical to one installed in 2007 and will also be configured in a stacked layout. The line will include a Goss Contiweb FD splicer and Ecocool dryer with integrated pollution control. Its new 545 mm cut-off will enhance the paper savings already achieved through gapless blankets and pinless folders.

A policy of advanced environmental responsibility has led to a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) gold rating for its Data Centre, and purchasing manager Chris Lee says the overall "comfort level" of press operators with the equipment was equally significant. "Our pressmen know this technology inside out, not only how to get the very best print quality and productivity out of it on a daily basis but also through handling all the routine maintenance and servicing in-house."

The facility prints 24/7, five days a week, producing an average of 912,000 magazines per week on the existing Sunday 2000 press. Average makeready waste stands at six per cent with the average lifespan of each gapless blanket at more than 60 million impressions.

The Pacesetter saddlestitcher, scheduled for delivery in March 2016, will also be Sandhills' second, and is capable of delivering up to 22,000 stitched books per hour.

Founded in 1978, Sandhills Publishing serves the trucking, agriculture, construction, heavy machinery, aviation, and technology industries with a range of products including trade publications and websites as well as hosted technology services. Its 20 different titles are published in a variety of localised editions, distributed principally in North and Latin America.