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Annual Report to
Shareholders 1996
Review of
Operations
Printing Division
Bob Lockley, General Manager
 The
web-fed Printing Division produced a pleasing result for the
year under review. The Division was able to increase its
revenues, maintain its margins, and make a substantial
contribution to the group as a whole. More than 60 per cent
of the Division's work was conducted on behalf of external
printing clients.
The North Richmond printing site continued its record of
growth, with the gloss publications from the heatset press
proving popular with our printing customers. In addition,
the Ormiston and Ballarat sites gained market share.
Our ongoing schedule of press upgrades continued, with
additional investment in press capacity in Murray Bridge,
Maitland, Collie and Tamworth. At our printing plant in
Ballarat, the installation of an infra red drying unit on a
newspaper press was the first of its kind in Australia.
The new press capacity is part of a strategy to re-equip
and upgrade all major press sites, to meet the demands of
the marketplace - particularly more full colour - and to
provide the required level of service for external clients.
The dramatically increased price of newsprint from July,
1995, forced all publishers to focus on printing efficiences
with some external clients experiencing great difficulty
absorbing the higher prices for newsprint. It is pleasing
that newsprint prices have decreased marginally from July,
1996, as the supply difficulties encountered during the
1995/96 year lessened.
The company has introduced health and safety, and
environmental programmes to provide better adherence to
standards in these areas.
Rural Press now operates 22 web-fed printing lines at 19
sites across all States of Australia.
 Web-fed
printing plants
NEW SOUTH WALES
- North Richmond
- Maitland
- Tamworth
- Port Macquarie
- Cootamundra
- Queanbeyan
- Dubbo
- Bega
- Orange
- Nowra
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
QUEENSLAND
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
VICTORIA
TASMANIA
Sheet-fed printing plants
NEW SOUTH WALES
- Port Macquarie
- Maitland
- Inverell
- Queanbeyan
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
QUEENSLAND
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
VICTORIA
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