The Kendal-based firm said it had been able to cut hours off turnaround times with the machine, meaning a three-day job can now be finished in three hours.

Initially the company had intended to invest in a card cutter, which it planned to use for greetings card work. However, it wanted to be able to finish cards in one pass.

The DC-645 is a multi-finishing device that enables cutting, slitting, creasing and perforating  in one pass.

Cypher managing director Paul Calland said: "One of our biggest problems was aligning our creased cards, so being able to crease and cut in one pass was a major benefit as we could guarantee accuracy and consistency.

"The addition of perforating was a big plus, as we had not previously had this capability in-house. We are now offering customers folded, roll-fold or almost any other innovative variations."

Cypher currently offers a number of communications services, including web design, exhibition stands, vehicle graphics and other cross-media communication technologies.