The investment by owners Karl Smith and Mark Foster follows the addition of a Heidelberg XL 75 five-colour plus coater two months ago, which replaced the Banbury-based company’s 10-year-old Speedmaster SM74. The company's latest purchase will join a Stahl folding machine and Polar guillotine in the bindery.

Technique Print Group, which also offers graphic design and web design services, aims to boost its turnover from £1.6m last year to £2.2m by attracting more customers and increasing its shift patterns.

Smith said: "We have been outsourcing our plate stitching for a number of years. We have had good suppliers, but recently one went into administration and there are not many close to where we are in Banbury. This will be our last purchase for a while but we are gradually becoming self-sufficient because we want to reduce the amount we spend with suppliers."

Foster added: "This investment will pay for itself purely in the savings we will make in no longer having to outsource."

The six-figure deal for the Stitchliner was signed at the Print Efficiently show, at Intelligent Finishing Systems' (IFS) Perivale showroom from 7-9 June and from 14-16 June. The Stitchliner includes a centre knife trimmer for 2-up production running at 11,000bph.