The 3.2m-wide machine enables users to create large-format soft signage prints at 1,440x540dpi. It will be shown for the first time at the ISA International Sign Expo in Las Vegas later this month and will receive its European debut at Fespa in May.

Agfa declined to reveal the price of the machine, which is available for order immediately.

The Avinci features six channels, CMYK plus light cyan and light magenta, and uses a fixed 14pl droplet size that offers a wider colour gamut. Printing at speeds of up to 173sqm/hr for flag applications and 60sqm/hr in high-quality mode, the machine can handle a variety of polyester-based applications, such as banners, POS, outdoor graphics and flags.

Agfa product manager Reinhilde Alaert said: “The reason we bring this on to the market is that we have seen that many of our sign and display customers are looking for different technologies, especially one like this that brings soft signage.

“Soft signage typically has very vivid-like images in backlit or display, the softness of the fabric itself gives a different impression than what you have with paper or with typical media that you find in a UV printing environment. That is the reason why we started in this market segment and here our unique selling point would be low ink usage combined with productivity and excellent images." 

Agfa’s Asanti 3.0 workflow software, which was launched last month and is integrated with the machine, uses an algorithm to drive its low-waste colour management platform. 

It also has automatic pre-flighting and integrated tiling, which means oversized banners or billboards that extend beyond the maximum printing width of the Avinci can still be produced. It creates mounting instructions and adds necessary marks to tiled prints to help operators mount swiftly.

The Avinci is also integrated with Asanti PrintSphere, launched last Drupa, a cloud-based data-sharing service that allows files to be switched between customers and operators. 

Alaert predicted the Avinci will appeal to the UK market in particular.

“When I hear from my colleagues in the UK they are really interested in the machine because it fits nicely with the UV assortment,” she said.

“When you look into our UV assortment we have the mid-range and lower-end range of the markets, with the Anapurna and the Jetis, and typically those sign and display printers are also interested in adding a soft signage version to their equipment portfolio.”

Earlier this year, Agfa launched its new 3.2m-wide Jeti Ceres RTR 3200 LED.