Meanwhile, German rival Arvato, part of the giant Bertelsmann empire, has reaffirmed its interest in setting up a UK gravure site of its own.

It is considering a 100m-plus investment in the UK if it can secure the right clients. "Our analyses as well as talks with potential customers have pointed to insufficient supply there," stated Arvato president Hartmut Ostrowski.

Arvato declined to comment on how Polestar's plans would affect its projections.

The Polestar project, codenamed "True North", will employ around 550 staff in its first phase, when six presses will be installed two 3.88m presses are on order with Cerutti, and Polestar has an option on a third.

But the site will be capable of expanding to take 12 presses. "Both potential sites are rail enabled so it will come down to grants and planning consent. Over the next few weeks we will find out about the grant money and that will be a big decision point for us," explained Mike Young, head of the gravure project.

Polestar has just appointed two key suppliers: Gazeley, a subsidiary of retail giant Wal-Mart, will be the group's development partner for the site and building; while Italy's Donau Carbon Siri will supply the solvent recovery plant.

"Gazeley specialises in very quick builds and were able to give guarantees that the building would be finished by mid-December," explained Young. "It will be six or seven weeks before we decide on the site, and having plenty of time is one of the advantages of going with Gazeley."

The deal with Donau Carbon Siri for the multi-million pound solvent recovery system marks a departure for the group, as Polestar's existing UK gravure plants all use Sutcliffe Speakman equipment.

"The Donau system offers savings in power consumption," said Young. "This is an expensive and critical part of the project."