Mathrubhumi Printing and Publishing — the parent company of the Malayalam daily newspaper Mathrubhumi — has strengthened its printing capabilities with the installation of a new RMGT 920ST 4-color sheetfed offset press at its headquarters in Kozhikode (formerly Calicut). Installed primarily for magazine and book cover printing, the new press with a ccolor density measuring system is now fully operational at the plant.
According to P T Bhasi, senior general manager of production and maintenance at Mathrubhumi, the company evaluated several options before finalizing the RMGT 9 Series press to meet its evolving production requirements.
“The installation was aimed at magazine and book cover printing. We compared various options based on our requirements before deciding on the RMGT 9 Series,” Bhasi said.
The RMGT 920ST was ordered in January 2026 and installed by April 2026. The press was supplied and installed by Faridabad-based Provin Technos and is now up and running at the Kozhikode facility.
According to Bhasi, they chose the RMGT press primarily for its ability to deliver superior print quality, shorter makeready times, lower wastes, and operational flexibility in handling smaller print runs, which is a growing requirement in today’s market.
“The machine fulfils our requirement of better print quality, shorter makeready timing, and the ability to print smaller quantity jobs, which is the current demand of the market,” he said.
As the headquarters of Mathrubhumi Printing and Publishing, the Kozhikode plant is a highly automated facility equipped with advanced printing and post-press technologies for newspapers, magazines, and books.
The plant houses TKS web offset newspaper presses,TKS heatset press, Manugraph heatset press, and the newly installed RMGT sheetfed offset press. On the finishing side, the facility is equipped with Muller Martini post-press systems for magazines and Rima System bundle stackers.
Mathrubhumi’s production infrastructure is supported by an integrated mailroom setup across all its plants with Ferag systems. Bhasi said the company placed what was then the largest single order for Ferag mailroom solutions in early 2011, 12 lines in one go.
Ferag, a global leader in newspaper mailroom systems, is known for its conveyor grippers that ensure smudge-free transport of printed products. Mathrubhumi has installed Ferag Multisert drums across all its lines. These lines generally operate in 2:1 mode at higher speeds, wherein each gripper handles two copies simultaneously, and the 2C drum inserters insert into two copies at a time.
According to Bhasi, the Ferag drum inserters help optimize web offset press utilization, particularly during peak production periods. Additional pages can be printed in advance and inserted during night operations alongside the printing of the main newspaper section.
Mathrubhumi publishes 16 editions, 10 in Kerala and one each in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Dubai, and Doha, with a circulation exceeding 1.5 million copies.
Beyond newspapers, the group maintains a substantial publishing portfolio. Bhasi said the organization releases an average of more than 20 new book titles every month and has published over 7,300 titles to date.
Mathrubhumi Books, the group’s publishing arm, has established a significant presence in Malayalam publishing, with a catalog spanning fiction and non-fiction works by many of the language’s leading authors. The publishing house also operates bookshops across major cities in Kerala and regularly organizes exhibitions and book fairs — the most prominent of them being the annual lit fest known as the Mathrubhumi International Festival of Letters.
The Kozhikode facility is also equipped with a Hunkeler waste-management system for paper trim handling. According to Bhasi, similar systems are widely used by the Reserve Bank of India for secure disposal of paper waste.
On expansion plans, Bhasi said Mathrubhumi’s Print infrastructure is nearing saturation. The last major installation took place two years ago with the addition of a new press in Kottayam. However, the company is evaluating possibilities to expand its color printing capacity in the future.
