He passed away in Stepping Hill Hospital, Stockport, on Wednesday 20 April of cancer.

Chamberlain began his career in 1953 at the Dunlop Rubber Company as a junior employee. He was with Dunlop for 33 years, working his way up the ranks and eventually becoming technical manager.

It was here that his friend and former colleague Bill Birch said he honed his expertise in offset printing blankets, collating samples from all over the world and becoming an expert in identifying them.

Chamberlain left Dunlop in January 1986 and became a technical manager for Charles Openshaw & Sons, a supplier of Dunlop's printing blanket products, based in Todmorden. The company went into administration in 2010.

He was with Charles Openshaw & Sons for more than 10 years, before leaving to set up his own technical consultancy in July 1997. He continued to provide consultancy on printing blankets for the years up until his death, although he had wound down in the last few years. Chamberlain provided consultancy for printing companies all over the world, including in Argentina, Venezuela, the Phillippines, Australia, South Africa, Finland and Sweden.

Bill Birch, former export sales manager at Charles Openshaw & Sons, said: “Nev Chamberlain was the eminent authority on offset printing blankets, a position that brought him worldwide respect. It is doubtful that there would have been anyone even close to having the knowledge that Nev accumulated on printing blankets and the aluminium or steel bars that were fitted to modern presses.”

Birch added: “He was a great guy to be around, he didn’t mince his words and he knew his stuff when it came to blanket technology.”

Chamberlain is survived by his wife Beryl and three sons Martin, Howard and Lloyd. His funeral will be held at Stockport Crematorium at 3pm on Tuesday 3 May. All family, friends and colleagues are welcome to attend.