The machine is an upgrade of the Canadian manufacturer’s previous UV flatbeds, the Pred8tor and Domin8tor, and features an increased number of printheads. It is available in both 2x3m and 1.2x2.4m configurations.

Gandy Digital chief executive Hary Gandy said: “The system that we use for the printheads is called the ‘blade’. It is an assembly of printheads pre-positioned on a blade so that it’s all pre-aligned and you don’t have to do a lot of vertical alignment.

“We had four colour and white on our previous models and we’ve increased that to a maximum of eight colours on the Gladi8tor. There are two options: the first is the six-colour configuration, which would give you better quality and smoother colour. And with a sixth colour you can go with a double white, which is a big advantage.

“With the second option you can go with eight blades, which is double CMYK. By doing that we double the speed.”

The Gladi8tor prints at 900dpi at speeds of up to 160m2/hr, which Gandy said was 40% faster than the maximum speed of the Pred8tor.

The machine, which uses Ricoh’s Gen 4 6pl printheads, can handle substrates up to 50mm thick. An optional loading and unloading system is also available.

The Gladi8tor is commercially available immediately. Pricing starts from €450,000 (£322,000), depending on the model and optional extras required.

“We’re excited about Fespa as we have a lot of machines at the show and we’re poised to do some pretty good business in every aspect of the market. We feel that we will be able to more than double our business this year with the launch of the Gladi8tor,” said Gandy.

Also on show for the first time in the EMEA region at Fespa is Gandy’s new Pred8tor+ high-adhesion UV ink, which the firm said will enable increased productivity and the production of a wide range of durable indoor and outdoor wide-format applications.