An apparatus is provided for positioning a roll in an inking or damping unit of a rotary press with respect to at least one adjacent roll. The axle of the first roll is mounted in at least one bearing arrangement that is movable with respect to a side wall of the printing unit, and means are provided for determining the position and the pressing forces of the first roll against the adjacent roll. The position and pressing force information is fed to a control device, by means of which the position and the pressing pressure of the first roll can be controlled by combined travel and force regulation.