The circa £65,000, four-clamp device, which was installed in January, replaces a much older binder of the same model and, according to production director Richard Woolmer, has increased production capacity by around 30%.

“We were looking for speed and reliability and it’s definitely doing a grand job for us,” he said. “We’re using it to bind various commercial jobs and short-run digital printed books and the fact that we can bind thicker spines means we can look after our customers better,” he added.

The device, which can bind up to 65mm thickness and offers speeds of 1,350 books per hour, handles output from the firm’s Komori, Sakurai and Heidelberg litho presses as well as its Konica Minolta digital kit.

Woolmer said the business had absorbed some short-run digital work from its former sister-company Berforts Information Press, which fell into administration in September last year, while the Hastings business has also taken on a number of its employees.

The business now has a 30-strong workforce with a turnover of £2.25m “and rising”, Woolmer said.

He added: “We had a slow start to the year but things are picking up quite positively now. We are certainly not standing still."