Birmingham-based Birbeck & Sons took on the additional press in response to the burgeoning demand for short-run book publication.

Managing director David Rollason said that the investment had enabled the company to undertake inline mail merge and open up new markets.

He said: "We have done work in the past for publishers, but had to go with high-volume work and this press has enabled us to produce short-run books for single and specialist authors."

Rollason added that the company had been using internet forums for aspiring authors to promote the business and the service had spread by word of mouth.

The company has complemented the investment with a new in-house perfect binding Horizon BQ 150 from GAE.