Swindon-based Highworth Press installed the Horizon StitchLiner with a VAC-Turbo PowerCollating delivery platform. It added the Autobond laminator, which was a year old when it was bought, following the administration of a nearby company in Birmingham.

Manging director Keith Nicholl said: "Sending work out increases administration costs and you want to keep those in-house – you don't want to be giving other companies your profit. We do a lot of quick turnaround work and sending work out can add a day to the schedule, which is unacceptable to the customer."

Highworth's new StitchLiner runs at speeds of up to 5,500bph and features fully automated makereadies, working from flat four-page sections. It has an icon-based LCD touchscreen.

The company primarily handles short-run leaflet and flyer work, as well as a lot of "awkward" hand finishing work, which Nicholl claims the company has a "good reputation for".

In March this year, Highworth Press bought a Konica Minolta Bizhub – its first move into digital printing. Combined with the finishing investment, Highworth Press has spent nearly £200,000 this year – cash raised partly through the sale of a Heidelberg Speedmaster.

Nicholl took over the 15-staff business two years ago, less than two years after selling his previous print company Lynx DPM and leaving the print industry. He bought into the company as a director, while two existing managers also took a stake in the business.

He added: "This year has been a year of consolidation, but we will not need to spend next year, we have the assets in place. We are currently turning over £1.25m, but if we can bring in more work we will be aiming to make that at least £1.5m."