The Tri-City Herald announced Thursday that it has reached a printing agreement with the Yakima Herald-Republic for production of its paper beginning the middle of August.

The state-of-the-art printing facility at Yakima will allow the Tri-City Herald to double its color capacity, improve reproduction quality, and provide efficiencies through economies of scale from the combined production operation.

"We're excited by this new partnership that improves printing quality for our readers and provides new color opportunities for advertisers," said Gregg McConnell, publisher of the Tri-City Herald.

The paper's current presses are more than 20 years old and would otherwise require substantial investment in future years. Advertisers and subscribers will see no changes in deadlines or delivery times, McConnell said.

About 14 full-time and 26 part-time employees will lose their jobs at the Tri-City Herald when the transition is completed, but some will have the chance to interview at the Yakima Herald-Republic as it adds staff to handle this new commercial printing job.

The Yakima Herald-Republic's Publisher Sharon Prill said, "We are proud to have been selected by the Tri-City Herald to print its paper and are committed to producing an excellent product for their readers."

The Yakima Herald-Republic, which also prints the Ellensburg Daily Record, the Seattle Stranger, and other publications, is owned by the Seattle Times Company.