The three-staff Norfolk business spent more than £40,000 on the used kit and added both machines last week to a FKS PrintBind KB-4000 binder bought around a year ago from Duplo.

Partner Nick Gorvin said: “Here in Norwich we've seen print and supply companies go down like nine pins and we are fighting for an ever-shrinking pool of print work.

"Following the closure of the last trade wire-binding finisher in Norfolk, the need for wire-binding seemed to be uppermost and we have taken the plunge following the advice of the team at Renz UK on these two machines to go along side our PUR binding capability."

Gorvin said the addition of wire-binding had been well recieved by local printers and he was hopeful that by adding it as a trade service to other printers, as well as his own clients, it would help drive sustainable growth and give Gowise a local USP.

His parents, Ken and Joyce, launched Gowise Print in 1983 and the company runs a Heidelberg GTO, a two-colour Speedmaster and a Xerox J75 digital machine. Turnover is about £250,000.

“Most of our work is short-run colour jobs, but in two years' time I would expect a 50-50 split between print and finishing. I want to keep turnover stable with good-quality work.”

“The two new machines are very versatile, do more or less everything we need without breaking the bank, and fit well with all the cutting and creasing on our litho presses.

“I'm not interested in going after other printers work,” Gorvin added. “I want to be a friend to local printers rather than a competitor.”