With thousands of newspapers being rushed through printing press’ each hour, being able to experience the factory production of such a huge part of journalism first hand through a different country, such as Japan, gives a unique perspective on how different cultures approach the same mission.
Recognized for their brilliant organization and systems, the Kyoto Shimbun News Printing Press is no exception to this level of perfection that they strive for. Especially in comparison to an American news printing like the New York Times.
Established in June 9, 1879, Kyoto Shimbun News celebrated 147 years of establishment the day before SJMC Japan students visited. Over those 147 years, they have changed various names and functions before eventually settling down on the modern version of The Kyoto Shimbun seen today.
The printing press has 70 employees working in their facility, a much smaller number than that of The New York Times. Despite having a fewer employees in the print shop, they are still able to publish and distribute impressive numbers.
The biggest difference between a Japanese news printing facility to an American one is that they commonly release two editions a day: morning and evening. The New York Times and most other American newspapers, for examples, publishe one daily newspaper.
Kyoto Shimbun News Printing Press publishes and distributes 31,000 morning editions and 90,000 evening newspapers. This is roughly the same amount as a big printing station like the New York Times which publishes an estimated 200,000. Essentially, the Kyoto newspaper has about half the number of employees but is printing the same amount, showing an admirable about of work.
However, the print shop employees are not alone. They work along side robotic drones that assist with the process.
Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) are carrier robots that are on the factory floors managing and feeding heavy materials into the printing press. The rolls of paper used to produce these papers weigh between 1.5 to 10 tons, a weight not capable for a human to carry.
The printing factory goes through about 15 rolls a day, so without these robots, the process would likely not run as smoothly, and their unique jingle — designed to alert employees to their movements for safety — is a bonus to the atmosphere.
Another difference between the two is the environment in which they work. With American news printing, it can become extremely chaotic at times. Many journalists and visitors talk about how hard it can be to focus in such a place and many American journalists are even trained to focus despite a loud newsroom.
In Japan, it’s much different. To start, their office spaces are remarkably clean with extreme organization. It’s contrasting to the very chaotic style of American offices. Workers move with synchronized precision almost just like the AGVs. Together, the workers and the robots create this unique environment.
American news print often does not go through the process of delivering papers, as with the modern generation most news is consumed online and if people wanted newspaper they’d sign up for the service or buy it.
However in Japan, this is different. They still deliver papers and not just that, but they also hand deliver them, meaning that they go and drop these newspapers to every home and and every mailbox manually.
While there are many differences between the two, there are similarities. Both of these news printing factories operate the same when it comes to the actual production of newspapers.
They both use only four colors, layered on top of one another, to create a colored newspaper. These colors are cyan, magenta, yellow and black. By isolating these four colors and stacking them on top of one another, they are able to create any image.
While both share the same end goal, the journey taken to get there reflects the different cultures of Japan and America. With The New York Times, there is an emphasis on mass production and adaptation to modern digitization. The Kyoto Shimbun continues to keep the integrity of the traditional process, only with robotic assistance.
Despite being separated by an ocean, both of these printing presses provide a pursuit to informing the public, with each newspaper given.
About The Author
