The flatbed printer world has been dominated by a variety of well-known Japanese, European, and US suppliers. But the range of Chinese alternatives is growing, challenging the status quo, and expanding sign-makers’ choices. Michael Walker looks at a new contender A Platinum Contender? If you’re on the lookout for a productive flatbed UV printer to work with a variety of rigid media, and perhaps with roll capability as an option to boost its flexibility, there are several familiar vendors you might think of. One brand that might not perhaps be at the top of your off-the-cuff shopping list however is Platinum Technologies LIYU. Newly appointed UK distributor, Soyang Europe, would like to change that. Following a visit by Soyang chief executive officer, Mark Mashiter to APPPExpo in China earlier in 2026, Soyang Europe became distributor for China-based Platinum Technologies LIYU (formerly known as Liyu Technologies) in Great Britain in May 2026. Prior to this, there was a LIYU UK operation, under which Platinum was a brand name for the range of wide-format machines supplied and supported. According to Soyang Europe, LIYU sells around 1000 machines globally each year, so it’s an established player, even if not so well known in the UK. The distribution agreement is part of a plan by Soyang to raise awareness of and grow its hardware division which supplies wide- and superwide- printers from Ricoh, Mimaki, and Inktek Jetrix, as well as Fujifilm, until the latter discontinued most of its wide-format offering earlier in 2026. While many know the company for the range of substrates it supplies, the hardware side is a growing part of the operation and has a dedicated demonstration facility at the company’s site in Accrington, Lancashire, which features several of the Platinum Technologies LIYU models. One of these is the LIYU Signature Flatbed, a LED-curing UV printer that can run at up to 445sqm/hr in two-pass High Productivity mode and offering 225sqm/ hr in Production mode. Officially launched in Europe at FESPA 2026 in Barcelona, alongside a 5m roll printer and a 3.2m hybrid that complete the Signature range, and making its UK debut at The Print Show, the flatbed has a bed size of 3,300 x 2,500mm, as large as any competing model can offer. It can handle media up to 100mm thick which facilitates printing on glass, acrylic, wood, and metal in addition to all the more usual rigid display and signage substrates. It can also Michael Walker is a trade journalist, technical writer, and editor with over 37 years’ experience in the print, prepress, photography, and digital imaging sectors, with a particular interest in the digital transformation of processes. In addition to editing Desktop Publishing Today and Digital Printer magazines, he is co-author with Neil Barstow of Getting Colour Right (Ilex Press, 2004) and Practical Colour Management for Photographers and Digital Image Makers (2009, self-published e-book) and winner of a Communicators in Business Gold Award. Maximum Format 3,300mm x 2,500mm flatbed/single 3.2m or 2 x 1.6m roll Maximum Resolution 2,400dpi Maximum Speed 445sqm/hr Ink Set CMYK, white, clear plus ‘neon’ yellow, magenta, orange, and green Statistics 24 email: editor@signlink.co.uk Issue 267 - October | November UNDER THE HOOD | PLATINUM SIGNATURE FLATBED It can handle media up to 100mm thick which facilitates printing on glass, acrylic, wood, and metal in addition to all the more usual rigid display and signage substrates
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