With newspapers around the world opting for centralisation of operations and outsourcing to reduce costs, Australian newspapers are joining the trend as well. Following the success of sub-editing hubs in Queensland and South Australia, News Limited plans to centralise sub-editing and design operations of its New South Wales newspapers and create a sub-hub called NewsCentral NSW at its Sydney headquarters on Holt Street, Surry Hills, Panpa.org.au reported.

Aiming to be "a centre of excellence,'' allowing integrated production for both print and other platforms, this move by the publisher is based on making sub-editors more capable of handling varied content on mobile, websites and other digital platforms, according to a report by The Australian last week. The centralised production unit is scheduled to launch on February 13, 2011.

This seven-day production hub will bring together more than 100 sub-editors and designers to provide editing, layout and design for The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph, Carsguide and more than 20 titles in the Cumberland-Courier community newspaper group, as well as sub-editing for some sections of The Australian, the news site reported.

This centralisation would certainly involve minimal restructuring with "a handful'' of staff losses and some new recruitments as well, according to News Editorial Director Campbell Reid.

"We will consult with staff extensively to see what works best. I assure you, if there are any staff cuts, they will be minimal and most of them, if not all, are likely to be voluntary,' he told The Australian. "In creating NewsCentral NSW, we will be able to move directly to sub-editing live newspaper editions as well as less deadline sensitive publications. This allows us to establish the most creative working environment for our sub-editors from day one of the new operation."

In an another report, the company is also planning to create a sub-hub for its Victorian newspapers after the Sydney launch, according to a news spokesman, The Australian reported yesterday. However, the launch date has not been decided yet.