The Portsmouth-based business, which currently turns over £4m annually, is focusing on growing sales to between £5.5m-£6m by next year.

Phil Payter, managing director at PPG Print, said the 45-staff company had not taken its first steps into the sector lightly.

"Our Komori presses have really good makeready times so we've taken longer to move into digital because of that," he explained.

Payter added that the company looked at the HP Indigo but claimed that "the quality was not always consistent and you would need a minder to man the press".

"We decided on Xerox and the DocuColour 7002 and we're already doing some short-run jobs that are proving more profitable than our litho work," he added.

According to Payter, while digital is still only a small aspect of what the company does, PPG Print has been able to capitalise on digital work from its existing client base.

With the new press in tow, Payter also believes that the company can benefit from enabling its repro staff to turn their hands to running a digital machine.

"The beauty of the Xerox machine is that our repro guys can run it. I don't have to put over-paid prima donna press minders on it," he said.

The Xerox DocuColor 7002 can print at speeds up to 70ppm and features a new low-gloss toner that is claimed to help produce a smooth matte finish to prints. It can print onto stocks up to 300gsm in weight.