Located in the Indian Ocean, just east of Madagascar and 6000 km west of Perth, Réunion Island has had its own newspaper since 1773, but it has taken until this year for locals to read the rest of the world’s papers on the day they are published. Now printer RotOcéan is using a Kodak digital inkjet press to bring internationalk newspapers to the French outpost. The new VL4200 press joins an array of equipment which includes conventional offset technology, CTP and tober-based digital printing. Director and joint manager Hubert Pédurand says RotOcéan is putting an end to 20 years of outdated newspapers on the island, and will introduce number of prestigious titles, which will distributed by Presstalis subsidiary ARDP in formats similar to those in mainland France. “Printing newspapers digitally is already a reality in New York, Dubai and Malta,” he says. “It’s the ideal way to provide local areas with renowned national and international titles, and respond to the immediacy of electronic media.” The Versamark VL4200 has been installed with two finishing lines – one for newspapers and another for books – and prints full colour on stocks from 45-160 gsm at 128 metres/minute. “It enables us to achieve outstanding print quality in the right quantities, with practically no waste or rejects and with very fast reprint times, which makes us a more environmentally friendly company,” Pédurand says. “And because newspapers are printed on the island using the VL4200, they no longer have to be transported by air, which means carbon dioxide emissions are dramatically reduced.” Support for the system comes from Kodak and local partner Papeco. “The press will be in operation 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, so maximising uptime is crucial,” Pédurand says.