The new press, with its 2.86m web width, will be capable of printing more than 4.3m pages per hour.

Managing director George Weiss said: "With this investment, our company continues to grow its strategy of early investments in innovative technologies. [The new press] allows us to keep offering the highest degree of quality, flexibility and effectiveness."

The company handles newspaper and general commercial work at sites across Germany and employs 1,400 staff.

The XXL-class Lithoman S is set to rival Goss International's Sunday 5000, billed as the biggest press in the world.

Sunday 5000 presses have already been installed at Mazzucchelli in Italy and Altair in Spain with a further installation underway at Stark Druck in Germany, and have the same top speed of around 4.3m pages per hour.

According to Manroland, "more than 90% of the presses worldwide with a web width of more than 2m have been developed and constructed by Manroland".