The StitchLiner 6000, which was supplied by Intelligent Finishing Systems, feeds sheets along the long edge for increased speed and paper stability.

The Printroom managing director Dave Mann said in a statement that the machine was very productive and enabled the printer to be more flexible.

"One of the first jobs we completed was a 40,000 A5 20pp brochure running at 6,000 per hour [and] the job was finished in eight hours," he said. "Before the StitchLiner it would have taken 40 hours on our old machine. The StitchLiner will provide us with significant increase in production capacity."

The StitchLiner replaced a horizontal MKW, and Mann said it was chosen over other machines because of how easy it was to set up and the difference its automation could make.

"When we first looked at the StitchLiner we liked the ability to access repeat jobs and interrupt longer runs, if we needed to, for fast turnaround jobs," he said.

"For each of the last three years we have increased our turnover by 10 per cent and we expect to do the same again thanks to the contribution the StitchLiner will make."

Mann told PrintWeek that the Printroom had also recently bought a wide format Epson 64 inch machine, and with the Stitchliner, these investments totalled £130,000.

He said one extra member of staff had been taken on, and the company had also recently upgraded its lighting to a more environmentally-friendly low energy system.