A MAILING centre in east Durham has announced it is to invest £1.6m in printing equipment at its new premises.
Six new machines, which will be provided by Xerox, will increase the output of MetroMail, in Peterlee, by up to 50 per cent and will allow the firm to produce the equivalent of more than 1,000 A4 pages every minute.
The signing of the order with Xerox comes less than a month after Prime Minister Tony Blair officially opened the new MetroMail house.
Roger de Haan, the chairman and managing director of Saga Group, which owns MetroMail, promised Mr Blair that investment would create 40 new jobs this year, with the potential for more in future years.
The company employs 180 workers at the £6m mailing house, in Peterlee.
MetroMail managing director John Poland said: "This is another major investment, which will provide us with the very latest laser printing equipment.
"It is designed specially for the needs of the direct mail industry and will allow us to offer our customers increased volumes, better quality and much greater flexibility.
"Together with the new purpose-designed mailing house, it puts us at the forefront of the UK's direct mail industry."
The investment gives MetroMail the ability to produce 300m A4 pages a year.
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