Gannett Co. on Wednesday sold the heat-set portion of its printing operation in Maple Grove to Quad Graphics Inc., the large Wisconsin-based commercial printer. The transaction resulted in 140 lost jobs at the facility, executives said.

Financial terms of the deal, which included customer agreements, equipment and supplies, were not disclosed. Heat-set printing is the type used for the glossy paper of magazines and catalogs.

Quad Graphics, based in Sussex, Wis., will move the heat-set printing work being done at the Maple Grove plant to facilities it has elsewhere in the region. It will move equipment out of the Maple Grove building by the summer, a spokeswoman said. Employees who lost their jobs will be eligible for open positions at Quad Graphics plants around the country, she said.

Quad Graphics operates several printing plants and related operations around Minnesota, including in Shakopee and St. Cloud.

Gannett said it will continue to operate a cold-set printing business, the type used for newspapers, at the Maple Grove plant.

Evan Ramstad