The closure of the deal will bring a raft of investment in new products, which AB Dick (UK) will announce in the coming weeks.

AB Dick (UK) managing director Quen Baum said that the decision, taken yesterday in a court in Cleveland, "takes away all the uncertainty that has surrounded the business for the last three months".

"We know where we stand, who our owners are and what they want, and it allows us to drive forward the business and to make the investment necessary in product development and customer service," he said.

Baum said that there would be additions and changes to the product portfolio, as well as new R&D programmes, announced "over the coming the weeks".

"Presstek have bought a very large company with many thousands of loyal customers. It's essential that we completely modernise and bring new products into the range, to make sure we've got the products we need to satisfy our customer base," he said.

He added that he was happy that AB Dick had been bought by a technology company rather than an investment group.

The acquisition will pull AB Dick (US) out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which it fell into in July this year.

Story by Josh Brooks