The device is due in the 22-staff printer in Lowestoft, Suffolk, in September and will replace its existing Stahlfolder for work including short-run brochures and magazines to long-run timetables and maps.

Partner John Richardson said: "We are very pleased with the present machine – it doesn’t owe us a penny – but we want more automation and the new kit offers breath-taking differences in set-up times.

"Makeready times will go from 25 minutes to five. It runs at around 10,000 sheets an hour but it’s not about running speed; it’s how quick you get running. This will cut down staff hours and allow us to put out less work."

Richardson said his team often had to switch between jobs and the Stahlfolder TH56 stored sizes and settings from previous jobs to enable staff to go straight back rather than "use levers and manual adjustments".

His company, part of the Micropress Group, decided it needed a six-plate rather than a four-plate first unit to enable it to tackle more multiple-fold jobs such as maps, which used to be parcelled out.

"The automation took my breath away. We are constantly changing formats and this will make it so easy and cut makeready times considerably. We run with one folder so it has to be robust and flexible."

The company runs a double day shift and finishing facilities include folding, die-cutting and laminating.