The kit cost around £300,000 and replaces a 13-year-old Sherwood Vega folder-gluer and can process paper and cartonboard at speeds up to 450m per minute. Other features include a reduction in set up times and a Cube box that rejects non-conforming boxes without stopping the production. 

Technical works manager Mark Ashforth said the spend was part of a continuous investment in the group's Pura packaging business worth £3m for clients in food, toys, giftware and hosiery sectors. He said Bobst's back-up, warranty and after-sales service pipped other rivals.

“The technology is great,” he said. “One of our contracts is for 280,000 cartons a month, which took six hours to make ready. Now it takes two. Running speeds don't make much difference because we can only run as fast as we pack. We may look at a £250,000 automatic Bobst Cartonpack GT.”

In the last two years Sherwood Press has boosted capacity with Kodak Magnus CTPsystem, a Komori Lithrone S640, and Heidelberg Easygluer purchased in 2011. A new Iberica Optima 105 die-cutting machine was installed last December and 11 iMacs were upgraded recently for £30,000. 

The company hopes to increase turnover from £11m to £14m in the next 18 months by expanding in the markets it already serves rather than branching into new sectors, Ashforth said. 

The group has also started a third phase of investment at the Semplice plant in Dongguan City in China, to develop its packaging offering in the Far East. This will include new gluing lines and pick-and-place window patching equipment installed by the end of January 2014.  

Group managing director Graham Garrod said: “Continuous investment and improvement in our production capabilities and staff expertise are pivotal to ensuring that we offer our customers the best printing and finishing solution available.”