A viewing of the saddle stitcher in full flow will be available at the event by booking only and the company is visiting 150 companies over two days to hand deliver invites to some of the biggest companies in print.

Proceedings were kicked off today (19 April) by Duplo UK managing director Tony Lock, who arrived at MBA Group in North London in a tuxedo to hand the invite to MBA's head of corporate sales Jarred Green.

All Duplo reps will be similarly clad when they follow Lock's lead this week.

He said: "I don't know if anyone has tried this before, we thought a guy turning up in a tuxedo was more likely to get the chance to see a managing director.

"We are going to the top 100 companies in the PrintWeek Top 500 - companies that wouldn't have had any use for our machines in the past. The Alpha gets us in to those companies; we want to get them on our stand and show them there is a new alternative out there."

Invite packs are being delivered across the country, from Perth in Scotland, to Redruth in Cornwall.

Duplo launched the Alpha in Germany last year, and is installing the first two machines in the same country this May.

Ipex marks a major launch for the kit, Duplo's first step into a larger finishing sector, as well as its UK debut.

Lock said that he expected a couple of machines to be installed in the UK sometime around July.

He added: "I have a good feeling about Ipex, it is a cliché, but it could be a case of right place right time. There is still the fear of a double-dip recession, but I think there is a positive feeling growing out there and people will be spending money at Ipex."