NMG’s New Press to Lower Production Costs by 65 Percent

Nation Media Group (NMG) has today launched a new KES 2bn printing press purchased from Manroland Web Systems in Germany for its printing division to help improve product quality.

The new press is meant to enhance NMG’s papers’ quality as well their capacity to deliver the paper in time for their readers. The company is investing more on technology, which has been one of Nation Media Group’s main agendas since its start.

His Highness the Aga Khan who presided over the commissioning of Nation Media Group’s new press described the occasion as ”a great day for the Nation Media Group and the media community in Kenya”.

“The new printing press means a lot of things. For example, it means more attractive newspapers, faster printing…it means fewer delays, and quicker response when breaking news happens and more investment in the local economy,” he added.

Mr Khan reinforced NMG’s determination in searching for the best technology available to help them better serve their customers.

“We think today about our dreams of the past and our hopes of the future. Milestones are moments of celebrations and also moments for rededication.”

Joe Mucheru, Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary of Information, Communication and Technology said, “It is amazing that in this day and age we are investing in print. NMG is actually using data to know where to invest in.”

President Uhuru Kenyatta in a speech read by the CS noted that this was the largest investment any media house has made in East and Central Africa.

“Such developments justify the robust and conducive environment the government has made to ease business.”

The President also urged journalists to adhere to the code of ethics as ‘freedom of the press is the hallmark of a vibrant democratic nation.’

Machakos County Governor Dr. Alfred Mutua echoed similar sentiments by stating that it was important to promote and protect the ability of the media to tell the story in a fair and accurate manner.

“I hope the media can make our leaders accountable. The media should also look at the quality of the work that’s being done by the government”.

The Daily Nation is expected to expand from being a legacy newspaper and also be of better quality for advertisers and readers in general. It will also play a part in building the nation through defending and sustaining proper business environment. Through the paper, lives of communities, especially those that they will be working with will be improved. Lives of those who engage with the company will also improve in various ways.

NMG’s new press will see production of 86,000 newspapers in an hour, thus reducing the cost of production by 65 percent of what has previously been recorded.

30,000 copies of the Business Daily and 170,000 copies of the Daily Nation will be produced on a daily basis. These improvements will see an increase in the paper’s audience from the current 20,000 people. Furthermore, the press will enable the Nation Media Group to produce sharper images with quality prints thus increasing the advertising revenue.  

The Nation Media Group was founded by His Highness the Aga Khan in 1959. Aga Khan founded it for the purposes of it acting as a voice for the majority African population during a time when Kenya was clamoring for independence. After independence, the Daily Nation newspaper became an effective voice of the people. The business landscape keeps changing rapidly and only those who evolve to the rhythm of the digital revolution and related advances in technology will survive and grow. The Nation has been at the cutting edge of technology. The group was among the first to adopt modern printing in the sixties and similarly pioneered phototypesetting in this part of the world.

Article by Vera Shawiza.