The press, which has the ability to run vegetable and alcohol-free inks, was attractive to the company because of its environmental credentials.

Managing director Ian Cooper had initially decided to buy a secondhand machine, but opted for the new Speedmaster during a visit to last year's Drupa.

He added: "Everyone is being forced to cut costs so we wanted a press which would run more efficiently. Paper costs are still rising, and in many cases they account for 40% of the job, so we have to do work more quickly but still to the same high quality.

"The new press will output significantly more work and will be a great deal more efficient than our previous 10-year-old press."

He said the company planned to collect realtime shopfloor data to help implement cost-cutting schemes.

To work in conjunction with the Speedmaster, Paton has installed a Suprasetter 75, which replaces a Trendsetter.

Last November, Paton Brown bought two secondhand Buhrs BB300 machines as part of a £1.5m investment.

Also see:
Review: Speedmaster 74