The successor to the maker’s ubiquitous and highly successful Community will deliver three-minute edition changes through standard auto plate changing and a range of ‘big press’ technologies.

Australian printers at the SWUG conference in Yeppoon last weekend were given a glimpse of the Magnum Compact, a complete tower which – at 2.15 metres – is almost half the height of a traditional ‘four-high’ and small enough to install in an industrial unit or transport in a container.

Using technologies from a variety of Goss presses – including the flexible FPS, with its slide-apart units – and as many Community parts as possible, it is a radical redesign of an industry favourite currently approaching its half-century.

Issues of accessibility to plate cylinders are addressed by the auto-loading systems – adapted from those for the M-600 and FPS presses – with the three-part separation of the tower needed only for maintenance.

And in a feature evocative of Goss’ heatset systems, plates can be changed while the press is running… a three-minute process which would allow a a complete two-colour edition to be changed without stopping the press, or (using two stacked towers) an entire four-colour paper.

The new press features narrow-gap lock-ups, standard spray dampening, and integrated infeeds to allow lower density stocks to be run. The units are shaftless and integrated, with no option of two-high or mono units.

Heatset and UV versions will be available with a variety of peripheral options. Presetting and sophisticated start-up and slowdown routines reduce waste, power and water consumption.

Above all, it is being seen as a challenger to inkjet webs in the short-run newspaper and book markets: A press of six towers (Goss calls them ‘units’) could print 5000 copies of a 48-page tabloid in 17 minutes, which might take two-and-a-half hours on a digital press, or 1000 in nine minutes, less than a third of the time for its digital equivalent. Even with two towers – and subsequent collation – there would be significant time savings.

All of which adds up to a radical change in the single-width segment: Big press sophistication in a small and potentially affordable package.

It is expected Goss will have the Magnum Compact running at ChinaPrint and will be ready to make first deliveries less than six months later.

• On rails: A Goss image of the new press, showing one closed and one separated tower