The former Alden Press building in Witney has been sold to a manufacturer and major Oxfordshire employer for an undisclosed sum. Ninety staff from Hydac Technology will uproot from their current base in Charlbury to the prominent 48,000 sq ft site on De Havilland Way in September, once it has been fitted out for the company’s needs.

Managing director George Muscat said: “We are expanding and we needed a building that was up to 50,000 sq ft.

“The support we have had from staff has been fantastic and everyone is looking forward to the move.”

Hydac is German-owned but has been in Oxfordshire for more than 30 years. It specialises in technology such as pumps, valves and filter systems for a range of applications including JCBs, tractors and the offshore industry.

It will manufacture products such as specialist filtration equipment from the new site, as well as operating a warehouse and distribution facility supplying the UK and Ireland.

The company, which Mr Muscat says is Charlbury’s biggest employer, is currently advertising for seven engineers to join its workforce.

“We are moving from premises that are 60 years old into a place that is almost new. It is a major step forward for the company, which will support our growth and expansion in the UK,” he said.

Alden Press, a historic Oxfordshire priniting firm dating from 1832, moved into the building, which cost £5.5m to construct, in 2006 and it was officially opened by Witney MP and Tory leader David Cameron.

In September 2008, the six-generation family firm was taken over by the HenDi Group, and by December that year, the company was taken into administration and eventually closed with the loss of 121 jobs.

Jon Silversides of Oxford-based marketing agent Carter Jonas, said: “After an extensive marketing campaign, I am delighted we have been able to sell the premises to Hydac, as it not only secures the future of this quality building, but also keeps this important production company within West Oxfordshire.”