In-Depth Look At The New Collections: Translucent Backlit Panels & Gilded Brushed Series – A Practical Sharing From Longtime's R&D Team

By Emily Johnson
Senior R&D Engineer, Haining Longtime Industry Co., Ltd.

Dear Partners and Designers,

  I'm Emily, R&D engineer at Haining Longtime. Over the past year or so, our team has poured significant effort into expanding the pattern library and functional upgrades of our UV marble sheets. Today, I'd like to walk you through two new series we're launching – the Translucent Backlit Panels and the Gilded Brushed Series. This isn't going to be a dry product brochure; instead, I want to share the real challenges we encountered during development, client feedback, and actual installation stories as candidly as possible.

1. Translucent Backlit Panels: Letting Light Become Part of the Marble Veining

  This series wasn't a spur-of-the-moment idea. Over the last two or three years, at international trade fairs, we were frequently asked: "Can your sheets be backlit?" The question came from hotel designers, commercial space planners, and high-end residential owners alike. Natural translucent stone (such as White Onyx or Macchia Vecchia) is undeniably beautiful, but it comes with high costs, high transport risks, complex installation, and uneven light transmission that's difficult to control. We wondered whether we could replicate – and even improve – this luminous effect using UV sheet technology.

  The R&D hurdles were mainly threefold: uniform translucency of the substrate, clarity of the surface veining when lit, and compatibility with LED light sources. After dozens of formula adjustments, we optimised the substrate's density distribution and the UV coating's light transmittance to achieve even light diffusion across the sheet. The result: no visible LED hotspots, and the marble pattern isn't "washed out" by the light. In practice, when the LED strip is on, the veining appears to float above a soft glow, with a depth remarkably close to natural onyx.

  Real-world case 1: Lobby feature wall of a boutique hotel in Hangzhou
  The project used 5mm-thick backlit panels with an adjustable-colour-temperature LED system behind them. The designer programmed three scene modes:

• Daytime mode (4000K neutral white): crisp grey veining, clean and bright spatial feel;
• Evening mode (3000K warm white): softer ambience, ideal for casual socialising;
• Dynamic mode (slow amber gradient): used for special events or festive occasions, creating a memorable visual highlight.

  The hotel operator reported that after installation, guest engagement – especially photo-taking and sharing – increased noticeably, effectively offsetting some of their online promotional spending. In terms of cost, the total material and installation outlay was roughly one-tenth that of natural translucent stone for the same area, and maintenance is virtually zero – the UV-cured surface is moisture- and stain-resistant, requiring only a soft cloth for daily cleaning.

Technical pointers (from our own installation tests):

• Recommended panel thickness: 5mm. Below 3mm, the light is too piercing and may expose the LED dots; above 5mm, light loss increases and you'll need higher-power strips.
• Leave a mixing distance of 8–10 cm between the LED strip and the back of the panel for even illumination.
• If using coloured LEDs, we suggest choosing chips with a Colour Rendering Index (CRI) ≥ 90 to preserve the stone's natural hues.

2. Gilded Brushed Series: A Different Take on Metallic Texture

  Another major focus was metallic aesthetics. Many commercial interiors and furniture designs call for metallic elements, but real materials like stainless steel or copper have drawbacks: harsh glare, fingerprint marks, heavy weight, and high cost. We experimented with overlaying a fine brushed-metal texture onto marble patterns via UV printing, then sealing it with a high-gloss clear coat. The result is a sheet that looks like metal but feels warm and smooth to the touch – visual metal, tactile stone.

  This surface is not a simple metallic paint. Instead, we use precision transfer technology to apply a dense, uniformly oriented brushed finish over the stone pattern. The depth and spacing of the brush lines were fine-tuned through repeated trials to ensure subtle light-and-shadow variations at different viewing angles. The underlying stone texture softens the metallic edge, giving an overall restrained and refined impression.

Real-world case 2: Checkout area and fitting-room façade of a Shanghai boutique
  The store chose our antique-brass brushed panel. The owner initially worried that a metallic look might feel too cold, but after installation, the diffuse reflection from the brushed surface made the light softer, while the grey stone base added a natural warmth. Within the first month, this area became the most popular spot for customer selfies – the shop even added a ring light nearby to accommodate the demand. Importantly, the surface hardness reaches 3H on the pencil scale; despite heavy touching and rubbing from clothing, no visible scratches appeared – a critical advantage for busy commercial spaces.

3. Additional Pattern Updates and Customisation Options

  Beyond these two hero series, we've also released over 100 new standard patterns, including upgraded classic stone looks (e.g., Carrara White, Grey Armani), the currently popular Morandi low-saturation colour palette, and a few abstract artistic designs. All patterns can be produced in varying thicknesses (2.5 mm up to 18 mm), sheet sizes (max 3050 mm in length), and surface finishes (glossy / matte / satin) to suit different installation requirements.

4. Key Technical Specifications (based on our standard LT-UVMS-Pro series)

  For quick reference during your material selection, here are the core performance parameters:

5. Some Thoughts Behind the R&D

  Creating new patterns is relatively easy, but creating patterns that genuinely solve real-world on-site challenges is not. The translucent series was born from designers' persistent fascination with the interplay of light and stone; the gilded brushed series came from commercial clients' desire for metallic looks without the maintenance headaches of real metal. Our job is to translate these scattered needs into products that are stable, scalable, and installation-friendly.

  Both series are now in full production, and we have ample samples in stock. If you're working on a project that requires material selection, or if you'd like to test certain lighting effects, please don't hesitate to reach out for physical samples. You're also very welcome to visit our factory in Haining to see the production process first-hand – we'd love to discuss specific application details in greater depth.

Contact Information

Haining Longtime Industry Co., Ltd.

• Address: No.10-1 Lianhong Road, Yuanhua Town, Haining City, Zhejiang Province, China
• Tel: 0086 173 7761 1682
• Email: ltfriend01@jxlongtime.com.cn
• Website: https://www.longyuanpanels.com/