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Tera boosts subbing skillsat CIN

Central Independent Newspapers has successfully converted editorial production to Tera’s GN3 page make-up system.

The changes have been brought in at a time when the company has been producing some of the biggest papers in its history.

Just four weeks after editorial staff began training, three of the four core titles – Sutton Coldfield Observer, Lichfield Mercury and Walsall Advertiser – were fully converted to GN3 production and almost three-quarters of the flagship Tamworth Herald was also produced using the system.

CIN group editor Sam Holliday said: “The only reason we didn’t do it all was because we couldn’t release everyone for training within the same month – although by Easter we were fully on Tera.

“We have gone live at the time of the busiest and biggest papers of the year.

“It is always difficult moving on to a new system, but the subs and reporters have picked it up extremely quickly and, just as importantly, have shown genuine enthusiasm for the way the new system works.”

In the first week of GN3 going “live”, the Tamworth Herald notched up 152 pages, the Sutton Coldfield Observer 168 pages and the Walsall Advertiser 104.

“In that first week, Walsall and Sutton were produced completely on GN3: a tribute to the staff and the system,” the editor said.

“We also lost a server for six hours because of a hardware fault, but the new system allowed us to catch up far more quickly than our previous one would have done.”

The close links between the text editing and page make-up applications has been identified by Mr Holliday as an ideal chance to introduce reporters into the art of subbing.

“We are using the opportunity that the new system gives to train more subs as well,” he said.

There is a dearth of subs in the industry and this gives us the most cost effective and straightforward way of training our own reporters into subs.

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