ArtisJet UV Printer FAQs – Printing, Materials, Braille & Embossing

A UV printer uses specialist UV-curable inks that are cured almost instantly by UV LED light during printing. Unlike many traditional printing methods, UV technology can print directly onto a wide variety of rigid and flexible substrates and materials. This is why UV printers such as the ArtisJet range are often described as direct-to-object or direct-to-substrate printers.

ArtisJet's professional range of UV printers can print directly onto a huge variety of materials and finished products, including acrylic and Perspex, wood, metal, aluminium, plastics, PVC, glass, leather and leather-effect materials, card, board, packaging, notebooks, binding covers, promotional products, signs, plaques, awards and industrial components. Adhesion can vary depending on the exact surface or coating, so we at Elmstok can help test your own products and substrates to help determine the best printing method.

Yes. ArtisJet UV printers can use white UV ink when printing onto dark, coloured or transparent materials. White can be printed as a visible colour or used as an underbase beneath CMYK inks to help colours remain bright and vibrant.

Yes. Acrylic and perspex are popular materials for direct-to-object UV printing. The Artisjet pro range can combine CMYK colour with white ink to produce vibrant graphics on clear, coloured and transparent acrylic.

Applications can include signs, plaques, awards, display panels, QR and NFC stands, point-of-sale displays and personalised products.

Because acrylic surface finishes can vary, Elmstok are more than happy to test your own material before you commit to production.

Additional primers are also available for hard to print substrates, if required.

Yes. UV printing can be used to print full-colour graphics, text, photographs and branding directly onto many wooden products.

Applications include wooden signs, promotional products, personalised gifts, plaques, presentation products and branded items.

Natural wood can vary in porosity and surface finish, so some untreated woods may absorb more ink than others. Elmstok recommends testing the actual wood you intend to use and, where necessary, preparing or sealing the surface before printing via a suitable primer.

Yes. The ArtisJet Trust & Dive models include BEC1GO technology, which can produce raised Braille dots and tactile effects alongside full-colour printing.

This makes the printer particularly interesting for businesses producing accessible signage, wayfinding signs, room signs, information panels and other tactile products.

For UK accessibility projects, the finished signage should always be produced to the appropriate specification for its intended application.

Yes. UV ink can be layered to build raised textures and embossed effects that can both be seen and felt.

This can transform ordinary printed products into more premium tactile products and is particularly effective for logos, lettering, patterns, signage, packaging, book covers, awards and personalised products.

The ArtisJet BEC1GO technology workflow is specifically designed to combine tactile effects with colour and other print effects

Yes. Transparent acrylic, Perspex, glass and other suitable clear substrates are particularly interesting applications for UV printing because white ink can be printed alongside CMYK colour.

The ArtisJet Trust also supports Colour-White-Colour (CWC) sandwich printing, allowing layered graphics to be produced on transparent substrates in a single workflow. This can create graphics designed to be viewed from both sides of the material.

Yes. Compatible ArtisJet rotary equipment (ROT-360 Rotary Jig) allows suitable cylindrical objects to rotate during printing, enabling graphics to be printed around products rather than only onto a flat surface.

Potential applications include bottles, tumblers, containers, jars, tubes, candles, cosmetics, and promotional products.

Yes. Many suitable metal products can be printed directly using UV technology, including aluminium and stainless-steel items.

Applications can include machine components, control panels, plaques, signs, identification plates, promotional products and branded industrial components.

However, coatings and surface treatments vary considerably between metals, so adhesion testing and suitable surface preparation are important. Elmstok can test customer-supplied samples to establish the most suitable process.

Suitable primers can also be applied to difficult metals to help achieve improved adhesion. Contact us for more details on these.

Yes. Direct-to-object UV printing provides an excellent way to personalise suitable hardback notebooks, binding covers, presentation books and report covers.

Full-colour photographs, logos, names and graphics can be printed directly onto suitable cover materials, with additional possibilities including white ink and tactile effects.

This makes UV printing suitable for personalised notebooks, corporate presentations, reports, event books, portfolios and premium branded products.

We at Elmstok have supplied many customers with customised printed products such as these, via our own stock of various binding covers (both soft and hard-back).

Not always, as it depends on the material/product.

Many substrates can provide good UV ink adhesion without additional treatment, while others may benefit from cleaning, and/or applying a suitable primer.

Two products described as the same material can have very different coatings and surface characteristics. For this reason, Elmstok recommends testing the actual product or substrate that you intend to print rather than relying solely on the material description. Contact us for more details.

UV inks cure during the printing process and can provide a durable printed finish across many applications.

However, durability depends on the substrate, its coating and preparation, as well as abrasion, chemicals, handling, moisture and UV exposure during use.

Where durability is particularly important, Elmstok recommends producing a test sample using the actual substrate and assessing it under the conditions in which the finished product will be used.

The ArtisJet 'Trust' is the most popular system in its range of UV printers. It is designed for businesses requiring a versatile production system for signage, personalisation, promotional products, packaging, awards and specialist printing.

The current Trust provides a maximum print area of approximately 610 × 915mm (24 × 36 inches), handles products up to 254mm (10 inches) thick and offers print resolutions up to 1800 dpi. It can also produce white ink, spot-varnish, embossed textures, Braille, sandwich-printing and compatible rotary applications (i.e. for cylindrical items such as bottles, candles, cosmetics, etc.).

Yes. Multiple products (depending on their size and printer model) can be positioned across the flatbed and printed as part of the same production job.

For products that are printed repeatedly, a dedicated jig or template could be used to position multiple items accurately and consistently. This can make direct-to-object UV printing suitable for both individual personalised products and batch production.

The Artisjet Trust is specifically designed to support both single-piece customisation and batch production.

For many applications, direct-to-object UV printing can provide an alternative to applying a separate label, sticker, vinyl graphic or transfer.

Printing directly onto the product can reduce production stages and eliminate visible label edges while allowing full-colour graphics, white ink, variable information and specialist effects.

Whether direct printing is preferable will depend on the product, quantity, required durability and application, so Elmstok can help compare the options for your particular job.

Yes, definitely! Digital UV printing is particularly well suited to personalisation, prototypes, samples, one-off products and short production runs because there is no requirement to manufacture conventional printing plates.

Names, photographs, logos, numbers, QR codes and other variable artwork can potentially be changed between products, opening opportunities for personalised gifts, corporate merchandise, awards, signage and promotional products.

Yes, with the Trust and Dive models you can. Spot UV varnish can be applied selectively to particular areas of a design rather than covering the entire print.

For example, a logo, photograph, lettering or pattern can be highlighted with a gloss or contrasting finish. Varnish can also be combined with raised textures and other effects to create premium products with additional visual and tactile impact.

Spot channels need to be created within the design element, either via Photoshop or InDesign/Illustrator.

ArtisJet UV printers combine versatile direct-to-object printing with innovative technology designed to help businesses produce more from a single printing system.

A major advantage is BEC1GO™ technology, which brings together advanced printing capabilities including full colour, white ink, Braille, embossed and tactile effects, and specialist finishing applications within an integrated workflow. This allows businesses to create everything from personalised products and promotional items to premium signage and accessible Braille applications.

BEC1GO™ received international recognition by winning Gold at the 2026 Edison Awards in the Commercial Technology – Immersive & Interactive Experiences category.

ArtisJet also achieved an EcoVadis Platinum Medal in 2026, placing the company among the top 1% of companies assessed by EcoVadis for sustainability performance.

For businesses considering bringing UV printing in-house, ArtisJet therefore offers more than conventional CMYK printing, with opportunities for white ink, spot varnish, raised textures, Braille, transparent substrate printing, personalisation and compatible 360° rotary applications.

Through Elmstok in the UK, customers can see ArtisJet technology demonstrated, discuss their applications and arrange testing and printed samples using their own products and substrates.

BEC1GO™ is technology that Artisjet has specifically developed to combine visual and tactile print effects within one integrated workflow.

It enables applications combining full colour, white ink, Braille, embossed textures and specialist varnish effects, BEC1GO reduces the need for separate processes and realignment.

This opens opportunities for accessible signage, premium personalisation, awards, packaging and other high-value printed products.

Yes. ArtisJet's BEC1GO™ printing technology won Gold at the 2026 Edison Awards in the Commercial Technology – Immersive & Interactive Experiences category, recognising its innovative approach to combining visual and tactile printing applications.

In 2026, ArtisJet also achieved an EcoVadis Platinum Medal, placing the company within the top 1% of companies assessed by EcoVadis for sustainability performance. The assessment covers areas including environment, labour and human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement.

These independent recognitions complement ArtisJet's focus on professional UV printing technology, including direct-to-object printing, BEC1GO™, Braille, embossing, personalisation and specialist finishing applications.

The world is your oyster!

An ArtisJet UV printer can open opportunities across many markets, including personalised gifts, signage, awards, promotional products, branded corporate gifts, notebooks, packaging, acrylic displays, plaques, industrial components and cylindrical products.

Rather than limiting the machine to one application, businesses can use direct-to-object printing to develop multiple product and revenue opportunities from the same printing platform.

This depends on the products you intend to manufacture, their dimensions and thickness, expected production volumes and the print effects you require.

Important considerations include print area, white ink, varnish, Braille and embossed effects, flat versus cylindrical products and future applications.

Elmstok supplies ArtisJet UV printing solutions in the UK and can discuss your products and production requirements to help identify the most appropriate machine and configuration.

Yes. Elmstok offers demonstrations of ArtisJet UV printing technology from our Cambridgeshire, UK premises.

A demonstration allows you to see direct-to-object UV printing in operation and explore applications including colour, white ink, tactile effects, Braille and printing onto different substrates.

We encourage prospective customers to discuss the products they actually want to manufacture so that the demonstration is relevant to their business.

Yes – and we definitely encourage it.

The best way to establish whether UV printing is suitable for your application is often to test the actual product or substrate you want to print.

If you have an item that is difficult, expensive or time-consuming to print, label, brand or personalise, contact Elmstok about providing samples for evaluation and a practical ArtisJet print test.

Email over your high-resolution design/artwork, which ideally should be in either a PDF or TIFF file format.