25 www.signlink.co.uk Issue 267 - October | November 2026 UNDER THE HOOD | PLATINUM SIGNATURE FLATBED ▼ [L to R] Erdem Yavuz, general manager of Platinum Technologies LIYU; Mark Mashiter, CEO of Soyang Europe; and Oguz Dincer, CEO at Platinum Technologies LIYU optionally be equipped with a roll feed and uptake winder, supporting single rolls up to 3.2m wide or two of up to 1.6m width simultaneously. Everything’s Fine Unusually the printer offers a top print resolution of 2,400dpi, which is delivered by Ricoh Gen 6 printheads. These can generate 5, 10, and 15pl drops, and are supported by a magnetic drive motor system which is said to provide greater stability and improved control during printing for accuracy and long-term reliability. These features should collectively offer very high quality for work that is destined to be viewed at close distances, both in terms of resolution of fine detail and small type, as well as subtle gradations in colour such as skin tones. Soyang says it’s particularly good for backlit applications, as might be found in beauty and healthcare retail locations, for example. The printer is configurable with 20, 40, or 60 printheads, and this can be upgraded on site. As well as allowing for increased productivity, this allows a wider set of colours to be supported. In addition to standard CMYK, light magenta, and light cyan, white, clear varnish, and ‘neon’ yellow, magenta, orange, and green are all possible. The white ink is described as offering ‘outstanding’ density, with a single pass/layer sufficing in many applications. Each colour channel has its own printhead so it should be possible to have almost any combination of the supported colours even in a relatively modest configuration of the machine. Double-CMYK configurations for greater productivity are also supported, so there’s quite a bit of room for manoeuvre when trading off flexibility against throughput at the specification stage. The 445sqm/hr top speed quoted is for the double CMYK configuration with 60 printheads; fewer heads can be expected to reduce the throughput figures roughly in proportion. A 12-section vacuum table with adjustable ‘piano’ switches allows for accurate matching of suction strength customised production, plus retail and exhibition graphics, in addition to glass, acrylic, wood, and metal printing. For very high throughput environments where the top speeds might be used, there are robotic loading and unloading options available both for the Signature Flatbed and for its hybrid sibling. The Signature Flatbed is operated via a tablet control system that does not require an external PC. On the software side, Soyang offers the Caldera, PrintFactory, or Onyx RIP/workflow solutions to drive the printer, with all the colour management, job preparation, ganging, queuing, and workflow optimisation capabilities that those include. The Signature Flatbed is supported through Platinum’s global technical service structure, which includes preventive maintenance programmes. Certified technical support will be delivered by Soyang staff (some of whom had already received the necessary training at the time of writing), remote diagnostics, and worldwide spare part accessibility. Soyang says the Signature Flatbed “is engineered for real industrial production environments where precision, stability, and dependable performance define productivity”. According to Soyang Europe’s commercial director Andy Webb, the pitch for the Signature Flatbed is based around its build quality and combination of features, flexibility, performance, and reliability. “It goes head-to-head with all of the top manufacturers. Everything is made to make the operator’s job as easy as possible. So, its unique selling point is its all rounded ability. There’s no compromise,” he says. Although the name may be new to you, it does come with an established pedigree and therefore merits consideration alongside the alternatives from some of the more established names in the UK market. Each colour channel has its own printhead so it should be possible to have almost any combination of the supported colours even in a relatively modest configuration of the machine and active area to the material to be printed. Independent cleaning for each colour channel is claimed to eliminate ink wastage, while optimising maintenance. The Signature Flatbed is said to be suitable for a wide range of applications that include industrial décor and interiors, architectural signage and display systems, packaging prototyping and
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