Promotional, personalized, and on-demand printing applications have opened new revenue streams
Mimaki’s UJF Mk II Series printers, showcased at SGI, are the next generation models in its UJF Series line developed for on-demand, direct-to-object printing. The UJF-3042 Mk II and UJF-6042 MkII UV flatbed printers replace earlier models UJF-3042HG and UJF-6042, respectively. Applications of these printers include printing on promotional items, specialty and personalized items, such as pens, key rings, small format signs and point of sale, awards, smartphone covers, bottles, USB drive decoration, magnets, prototyping, packaging and component pieces.
Mike Horsten, General Manager Marketing of Mimaki EMEA, observed that because marketers and brand managers are increasingly seeking to differentiate themselves, they continue to push the boundaries of what can be done to add value to promotional products, including textiles.
“We’ve seen a growing number of our UV-curable printing systems being installed in fabrication laboratories, shopping malls and hardware/DIY stores to enable the creation of customised items. These new printers will ensure the ultimate customer experience in these locations by delivering requested products faster. We also expect to see eager reception for these new printers in sign and display companies, who are always seeking more productive and profitable ways to conduct business,” said Mike.
Mimaki is making its popular Kebab option available for the UJF-3042 MkII and UJF-6042 MkII printers. Using rotary rollers, the Kebab option allows printing directly on a wide range of cylindrical objects. The UJF-3042MkII is compatible with the Kebab MkII model, while the MkII L model is needed for the UJF-6042MkII. It enables printing with high quality on cylindrical products with diameters from 10 mm to 110 mm, including wine and water bottles, seals, candles, cosmetics bottles and more, making it possible and affordable to produce on-demand original products in runs as small as one.
“Our customers have been very creative in their use of the Kebab option. And for many, it has opened up new businesses and new revenue streams. Cosmetics bottles are a good example. With the many different regulatory requirements from country to country, short runs of cosmetics bottles are becoming more common. In addition, the Kebab option makes it very affordable to produce one-off direct-print labelling. This could be a personalised bottle or a bottle memorialising a special event to be used as a gift item,” said Mike.
