Sign Builder Illustrated September 2012

Graphics

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www.signshop.com

Protect and Serve

DER ILLUS IL

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September 2012

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Humorous HDU

BY ASHLEY BRAY

This hand-carved dimensional sign is no laughing matter.

32 42

Color Jam is On

BY JEFF WOOTEN

The story behind how a sign shop helped Downtown Chicago get a lot more colorful.

The Right Electronic Message

BY TODD HELLER

Advice for successful EMC sales and installations.

Sign Builder Illustrated (Print ISSN 895-0555, Digital ISSN 2161-4709) (USPS#0015-805) (Canada Post Cust. #7204564) (Bluechip Int’l, Po Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2, Agreement # 41094515) is published monthly

by Simmons-Boardman Publ. Corp, 345 Hudson Street, 12th Floor, New York, NY 10014. Printed in the U.S.A. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and Additional mailing offices.

Pricing, Qualified individual working in the sign industry may request a free subscription. Non-qualified subscriptions printed or digital version: 1 year US $105.00; foreign $197.00; foreign, air mail $297.00. 2 years US $149.00; foreign $267.00; foreign, air mail $497.00. BOTH Print & Digital Versions: 1 year US $158.00; foreign $296.00; foreign, air mail $396.00. 2 years US $224.00; foreign $400.00; foreign, air mail $600.00. Single copies are $36.00 ea. Subscriptions must be paid for in U.S. funds only.

Copyright Š Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation 2012. All rights reserved. Contents may not be

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Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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The Sign Art of Semi Graphics

BY JEFF WOOTEN

Script-style lettering or something bold and strong?

reproduced without permission. For reprint information contact: Art Sutley, Publisher 212-620-7247 or asutley@sbpub.com.

For Subscriptions, & address changes, please call (800) 895-4389, (402) 346-4740, Fax (402) 346-3670, e-mail circulation@sbpub.com or write to: Sign Builder Illustrated, Simmons-Boardman Publ. Corp, PO Box 10, Omaha, NE 68101-0010.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Sign Builder Illustrated, PO Box 10, Omaha, NE 68101-0010.

Instructional information provided in this magazine should only be performed by skilled crafts people with the proper equipment. The publisher and authors of information provided herein advise all readers to exercise care when engaging in any of the how-to activities published in the magazine. Further, the publisher and authors assume no liability for damages or injuries resulting from projects contained herein.

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How-To Columns

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OCTOBER 2012 OctOber 7-10: GRAPH EXPO 2012 graphic communications exhibition and conference will take place at McCormick Place South in Chicago, Illinois. (www.graphexpo.com)

The Front Line of Vinyl Graphics

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OctOber 12-13: The Midwest-ISA Sign Show features networking, education, and a tabletop exhibit hall at the Motor City Casino Hotel in Detroit. (www.signs.org/msa)

Get in Touch with ADA Creativity Departments

18 The Front Line of Vinyl Graphics

BY MARK K. ROBERTS

Creating a vinyl-enhanced tribute for the National Peace Officers Memorial.

22 Get in Touch with ADA Creativity

BY JAN FLETCHER

Even though the new ADA guidelines are less restrictive, there’s still a learning curve involved.

6 UpFront

As the political campaign season starts to heat up, Editor Jeff Wooten makes some suggestions for promises sign shops can keep.

8 Dispatches

The latest news from around the industry.

14 Sign Show

The newest products and services from sign manufacturers.

54 SBI Marketplace GRAPHICS

Design and Install

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Advertisements and announcements from the sign trade.

ADA

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SIGN BU I L DE R I LLUSTR ATED

At Piccadilly Signs, the hands are the most important tools.

Fine

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Agenda

> Color Jam > EMC Installs

On the Cover

OctOber 18-20: SGIA Expo, boasting the industry’s most innovative imaging developments, returns to the Las Vegas Convention Center. (www.sgiaexpo.org) OctOber 30-NOvember 2: The automotive SEMA Show is going to be happening at the Las Vegas Convention Center. (www.semashow.com)

NOVEMBER 2012 NOvember 29December 1: The annual USSC Sign World International Tradeshow and Education Conference is scheduled to take place at the Atlantic City Convention Center in Atlantic City, New Jersey. (www.ussc. org/main_signworld.html)

Go crazy over this sign for The Laughing Loon, courtesy of Piccadilly Signs in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

signshop.com

速

Up

by jeff wooten

September 2012, Vol. 26, No. 207 Sign Builder Illustrated (ISSN 0895-0555) print, (ISSN 2161-0709) digital is published by Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation

Speak Loudly and Carry a Big Sign

executive offices

President and Chairman Arthur J. McGinnis, Jr.

Campaigning for more sign content.

M

y fellow (North) Americans, I can tell you from experience that the trouble with living in a swing state during an election year is that one gets bombarded with political ads non-stop—they seemingly running since the end of the last election. It feels “And now a word from our sponsor” has been replaced by “And now a word from our political party.” For those living in non-swing states, forgive me this month, as I already feel like I’m behind the times in bringing up elections.

Of course, an election year here in the U.S. means that some attention somewhere is probably going to be shined onto sign-related issues (or at least, small- and large-business issues and the economy and whatnot).

Now’s the time you’re going to hear whether or not those politicians running for office really think electronic message centers are a blessing for communities or whether they believe them to be an attack to transform small towns into “mini-Las Vegases.” These days, he or she will more likely take a stand (and a tape measure) related to on-premise sign height and visibility or make an illuminating statement about sign brightness.

So I thought now would be as good a time as any to do some campaigning of my own here— not only for our magazine but also for your shop.

My first campaign pledge is to let you know that, once you’ve finished reading our magazine this month (and any month), if you’re interested in reading more news, product announcements, and exclusive and expanded articles and photos on topics as varied as ADA,

6

Publisher Arthur J. sutley 345 Hudson Street, 12th floor New York, NY 10014 212/620-7247; fax: 212/633-1863 editorial editor

Jeff Wooten

323 Clifton Street, Suite #7 Greenville, NC 27858 252/355-5806; fax: 252/355-5690 jwooten@sbpub.com

dimensional signage, and vinyl graphics (and that’s just the tip of the iceberg), we have more for you at our Web site, www.signshop.com.

There you’ll find all the content organized easily in a wide variety of host channels. (Note: And be sure to stop by and participate in our monthly poll regarding feedback about our industry.)

And speaking of “expanded,” I endorse the platform of the “after-sales” concept, especially for shops that focus only on the design, fabrication, or install processes. For instance, have you considered exploring content management (especially for the EMCs and electronic displays you’ve put up), sign repair, or sign cleaning?

“We do recommend to our customers cleaning the sign,” says Jerry Sterling Jr., of Pasadena Sign Company in Baltimore, Maryland. “A lot of people neglect their signs after they’re up, but I stress to people that, if they want their sign to last for many years and maintain their image, it needs to be washed at least once a year.” For sign shops with the bucket trucks and the know-how, why not follow-up consistently and let your clients know that you can perform this service for them as well?

My final push this month is asking you to consider getting more involved with your local government or Chamber of Commerce and letting them know what you do and what you can do (something that’s proven successful on the larger stage with organizations like ISA).

Maybe they’ll even be more inclined later to ask for your input when it comes to sign issues.

My name is Jeff Wooten, and I approve this message.

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

associate editor

Ashley Bray

345 Hudson Street, 12th Floor New York, NY 10014 401/722-5919; fax: 212/633-1863 abray@sbpub.com contributing writers

Butch “superfrog” Anton, Mike Antoniak, Jan Fletcher, Jim hingst, Peter Perszyk, Mark roberts, lori shridhare, randy Wright art

Corporate Art Director Wendy Williams Associate Art Director Phil Desiere production

Corporate Production Director Mary Conyers circulation

Circulation Director Maureen Cooney advertising sales east coast regional sales director

Jeff sutley 212/620-7233; fax: 212/633-1863 jeffsutley@sbpub.com west & midwest regional sales manager

Kim noa

212/620-7221; fax: 212/633-1863 knoa@sbpub.com buyer’s guide rep

Vanessa Distefano 212/620-7263; fax: 212/633-1863 vdistefano@sbpub.com For reprint information contact Art Sutley 345 Hudson St 12 Floor New York, NY 10014 212/620-7247; fax: 212/633-1863 Circulation Dept. 800/895-4389

signshop.com

Dispatches

A Sign for the

Sign Shop Baltimore, Maryland—It’s always important to keep your customers first, but what about your own shop's signage needs? After years of thought about it, that question was finally addressed and answered by Pasadena Signs of Baltimore, Maryland.

Pasadena Signs is a family-owned business established in 1965 in Pasadena, Maryland by Jerry Sterling. They’ve built a reputation as the “premier manufacturer of electrical signage in the Baltimore area” based on a simple, family-bred ethic of hard work and technical knowhow. In 1985, they moved from their initial two-car garage set-up into their current, fully automated 20,000-square foot building in Baltimore. There are now sixteen people employed by the sign company.

After using a plain, pylon-mounted sign outside its storefront for years, son Jerry Sterling, Jr., decided it was time to upgrade to a brand-new sign—one that would serve as an example of all the company's work (channel letters, pylons, sign cabinets, EMCs, etc.). The new, all-aluminum cabinet sign is based on the company's starburst logo. It’s internally illuminated with 8

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

signshop.com

all photos courtesy of pasadena signs.

TriLight Max™ T8 fluorescent lamps from Voltarc. Red, orange, and yellow 3M vinyl striping adorns the cabinet. The doublesided clear polycarbonate face features exposed white neon outlining and red and white SloanLED V Series reverse- and front-lit LED channel letters attached via standoffs. “We had always planned to put up a nicer sign, because that’s what we do and what we sell,” says Sterling, Jr. Pasadena Signs painted the polycarbonate with various colors of Akzo Nobel GRIPGARD® paint and applied a clear coating.

Because the letters are back-lit with red LEDs, they painted the outline behind them burgundy. “This gives a nice shadow effect,” says Sterling, Jr. (Note: The power supplies are located inside the sign and can be accessed via a built-in hatch.) signshop.com

The sign was constructed in bits and pieces over the past year, depending on how busy the shop was at the time. “I wanted everybody in the shop to also have a part in its creation—whether design, build, or install,” adds Sterling Jr. Last June, the old sign was taken down and the pylon poles were cleaned with a soapy solution and repainted white with GRIP-GARD. Pasadena Signs then used two of its crane trucks to lift the new sign up onto the pylons and weld it into place. The sign rests forty feet up in the air and about twenty yards from the I-695 Baltimore Beltway, so it generates good visibility. “It really pops at night,” says Sterling, Jr. The second phase (starting in six months) involves adding an LED EMC underneath it, as well as pole covers.

—Jeff Wooten

ISA: Industry Report Alexandria, Virginia—The International Sign Association’s 2012 State of the Industry survey shows that the signage industry continues to rebound, with most participants anticipating growth and planning to hire in the coming year. The survey polled more than 200 ISA International Sign Expo 2012 attendees and covered all segments: sign supply manufacturers, distributors, sign shops, and end-users.

Some key findings: u Nearly all—96 percent—anticipate growth in the coming year. u Almost 75 percent said they’d add staff in 2012. Approximately 47 percent said they’d hire in existing departments, while 24 percent said they’d hire for new lines of business. u Economic uncertainty remains a worry, with 74 percent saying that it would impact their businesses in the coming year. Approximately 70 percent believed technological changes would have an effect.

“While those surveyed have concerns about the economy, fuel prices, and technological changes, it’s clear that most feel extremely positive about the direction of their business in the coming year,” said ISA President and CEO Lori Anderson.

ISA members can find the report for free at www.signs.org/2012survey.

September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

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Dispatches +

photo courtesy of nccco.

Fairfax, Virginia—The National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO) is now issuing separate CCO certification cards to CCO-certified crane operators who have also been certified in the CCO Rigger and/or Signalperson categories.

The new cards will also reflect the full five-year certification period for each category. Previously all certifications had a common expiration date, regardless of when the candidates passed the test(s).

“This major policy change will make it much easier for employers— as well as state and federal authorities such as OSHA—to determine the qualifications of those working onsite,” said NCCCO Commission Chairman Kerry Hulse.

CCO certification cards are nationally accepted as official proof of certification, and the new cards have been designed to meet all federal OSHA and state requirements. Operator CCO Cards continue to have a black band across the bottom, while Rigger and Signalperson cards now feature a green band.

NCCCO currently has nine crane operator designations, three crane inspector designations, two rigger designations, and a signalperson designation. New certifications for digger derrick operators and lift directors are currently in development for launch before the end of 2012.

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A “Believable” Winning Wrap Baltimore, Maryland—The winner of Signs

By Tomorrow, 3M, and UASG’s online contest, “Imagine It…We Can WRAP it!,” made a believer out of those who voted the wrap idea as the best.

The “Believe in Beating Cancer” entry from the Believe In Tomorrow House at St. Casimir (operated by the Believe in Tomorrow Children’s Foundation) was crowned the winner after nearly 1,000 votes were tallied. The idea beat out more than 100 entries to receive the free, full-color exterior wrap valued at $3,500.

The Believe In Tomorrow House at St. Casimir provides long-term housing to pediatric bone marrow transplant patients and their families. The new building wrap features the non-profit’s logo and words that include “Comfort,” “Hope,” and “Healing.” Baltimore brand marketing firm Opus Media donated design services to develop the graphic.

“The design requested by the Believe In Tomorrow House at St. Casimir was unique and really showcases the latest w ra p t e c h n o l o g y, " s ay s S i g n s B y Tomorrow CEO Ray Palmer. "Signs By Tomorrow is very pleased to have been able to support this effort for what is just a really good cause.”

Believe in Tomorrow was excited to win the contest because the non-profit viewed

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

the wrap as a way to raise awareness.

“We really wanted to get the word out about what Believe In Tomorrow does and what we're doing here in the community,” says Believe In Tomorrow Founder and CEO Brian Morrison. “We think the wrap is going to help us do exactly that.”

With donated materials (including 3M™ Scotchcal™ Graphic Film IJ8624 with 3M Overlaminate 8524), the wrap was printed out on an HP Designjet L26500. AB Installations of Sykesville, Maryland installed the wrap in just five hours, and it is expected to last up to five years.

“The images on the sides of the b u i l d i n g t r u l y p o r t ray B e l i e ve I n Tomorrow’s mission of supporting families in the midst of a medical crisis,” says Patrick “Scunny” McCusker, owner of Nacho Mama’s and Mama’s On the Half Shell, which has donated services, support, and over 100,000 meals to families within Believe In Tomorrow’s hospital housing facilities. “Families come to the house in desperate need to find this hope, comfort, support, and healing, so what better way to explain that to the community?”

To view a time-lapse video of this installation, visit http://bit.ly/MWxbuC.

signshop.com

photo courtesy of signs by tomorrow.

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“EZ” Signage

12

Exhibiting New Equipment Chantilly, Virginia—At a tradeshow, the booth appearance is crucial. After twentyfive years of specializing in custom, quality, and modular exhibits, Atlantic Exhibits (www.atlanticexhibits.com) knows the ins and outs of the industry and what it takes to set a booth apart from the competition.

Atlantic uses a variety of equipment to creates its displays, including a 3.2-meter EFI™ VUTEk® QS3200, an AGL 6400 laminator, and a 10-foot G3-L3200 Zünd flatbed cutter/router. However the company was looking to add a grand format printer to its lineup.

This past May, the company settled on P r i n t e r Evo l u t i o n’s Evo33, which takes the chassis of an EFI VUTEk 3360 or FabriVu™ printer and fully upgrades it.

“We’ve been very excited about the image quality,” says Doug Winn, director of Graphics Manufacturing at Atlantic Exhibits. “We did a lot of testing with Global Imaging and PrinterEvolution, as far as output and quality goes. So once we determined that the quality was there, then it became a much easier decision.”

The Evo33 features an advanced ink delivery system, a motion control system, updated electronics, and a new Windows®

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

7 computer with all-new interface. The printer also has new industrial-grade 10 picoliter versa drop greyscale printheads, which achieve quartertones, skin tones, and smooth gradations without the need for light colors. AquaSub33 water-based dye-sublimation inks or LoSol33 biosolvent inks with 60 percent natural, renewable materials can be used in the Evo33.

Atlantic Exhibits had the printer up and running almost immediately; so far, it has created its standard products using the printer—retractable banner stands and t e n s i o n g ra p h i c s .

Previously the company had to outsource its dye-sublimation printing, but with the Evo33, it has been brought in-house.

Atlantic is looking forward to the future, as it begins to use the printer to its fullest capabilities. Jobs will include silicon-edged graphics and large, seamless images.

“Our clients that have come in and looked at the projects that we’ve done on the Evo 33 have all been extremely happy with the way they look,” says Winn. “If my clients are happy, then I know that we’re going to be doing well with it.”

—Ashley Bray

photo (top) courtesy of printerevolution; photo (bottom) courtesy of AtlAntic exhibits.

photo courtesy of sign biz, inc.

Hermosa Beach, California— Sometimes what a client has in mind isn’t always the best option.

Robert Gutierrez of Avis Rent-A-Car visited 3V Signs & Graphics (www.3vsigns.com) looking for a scrolling LED sign system that would keep employees updated, but the shop knew there was a better option.

“A scrolling LED would be helpful for a while, but if you have to stand and wait for the message to play out, most people won’t wait,” says Stefanie Dacy, co-owner of 3V Signs and a Sign Biz®-trained LobbyPOP Pro distributor.

Instead Dacy recommended the EZSign system from LG. The system operates like a standard HDTV, but what makes it different is that users can create dynamic digital signage content using a PC and the free EZSign Software.

Users choose from a variety of templates that will display advertising, important messages, live television broadcasts, and even video clips. The content is transferred via USB flash drive, which is plugged into the port on the display unit and automatically shown on the screen.

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Designed to create the highest quality edge-lit LED signage, LuciteLux® acrylic from Lucite International is 10 percent brighter than the competition. Bringing innovation to light with vivid, eye-catching colors, styles, and shapes, the applications for LuciteLux are endless. For designers, fabricators, and artists, LuciteLux continues to be the preferred material, thanks to its clarity, strength, beauty, and ability to be fabricated using any color or texture imaginable. If you can imagine it, you can create it with LuciteLux acrylic. 800/4-LUCITE; www.lucitelux.com

Aw n i n g s & V i n y l coAt e d FA b r i c s Tri Vantage® Exclusively Offers Polyfab™ Triax Canopy Systems Tri Vantage® has become the exclusive source for Polyfab™ Triax Canopy Systems, which create fixed awnings and shaded areas without welding or custom steel fabrication. The system features canopy frames that support waterproof covers, as well as patent-pending aluminum cast fittings that connect in a cradle-like fashion with bolts or Teks screws to standard 2-3/8-inch steel tubing. Other hardware in the system includes Triax aluminum cast post caps, polyethylene tubing inserts, stainless steel threaded jaws, and eye tube hardware. The canopy is assembled using straps (assuring flexibility in critical dimensions and adjustments). Tension on the cover is held within the frame, thereby reducing stresses on the anchor structure. The Polyfab Triax Canopy Systems can be used with any Tri Vantage shade sail, canopy, or awning fabric. www.trivantage.com

b A n n e r s /M At e r i A l s / e Q U i pM e n t Tex Visions Introduces New T-Pole® Plus T-Pole® Plus is the newest addition to Tex Visions’s T-Pole® product line. T-Pole Plus is a simple advertising display that can be used indoors and outdoors. It requires no tools for assembly, and its fifteen-pound weight makes it portable.

With a four-part telescopic aluminum pole, the T-Pole Plus can be adjusted to any height up to 19.6 feet and can accommodate prints 3.9 feet wide-by-11.5 feet high. A rotating pole cap spins the banner arm and print in windy weather to ensure the advertisement is always visible. Base options for the T-Pole Plus range from water bases to car bases for above-ground installation. www.texvisions.com

d i g i tA l p r i n t i n g e Q U i pM e n t/ s U p p l i e s Epson Raises Industry Standard for Solvent Printing with New SureColor S50670 and S70670 Printers Joining the SureColor S30670, Epson America's all-new EPSON® SureColor® S50670 and S70670 solvent printers utilize Epson’s dual array EPSON MicroPiezo® TFP® printheads to deliver extremely small droplet sizes and four times the nozzles of Epson’s previous solvent printer for extremely fast print speeds. Featured on the SureColor S50670, EPSON UltraChrome® GS2 ink delivers up to five colors with a radical, new high-density White ink to accommodate a broad range of indoor and outdoor signage applications. The all-new EPSON UltraChrome GSX ink featured on the SureColor S70670 delivers up to ten colors (a technology-first for solvent printers)—including an optional White and Silver Metallic, as well as a first-ever standard Light Black for improved grayscale and reduced metamerism to deliver a level of image quality and color gamut previously unattainable in a solvent printer. www.proimaging.epson.com.

New X-Rite Color Management Tools are Now Available From Roland Roland DGA Corp., has expanded its line of inkjet printing accessories and supplies with i1Basic Pro 2 and i1Publish Pro 2—two powerful color management solutions from color science and technology leader X-Rite. X-Rite’s i1Basic Pro 2 allows professionals to calibrate their monitors to display accurate digital color while linearizing their Roland printers for consistent output. This solution includes X-Rite’s new i1Pro 2 spectrophotometer, Pantone® Color Manager software and the all-new, more robust i1 accessories package, including an ambient light measurement head, monitor holder, scanning ruler, backup board, and spot color positioning target. Users can also upgrade to i1Publish Pro 2, an expanded solution that includes the i1Basic Pro 2 package, as well as i1Profiler software, which allows users to develop their own custom media profiles based on the Roland printers in their production environment. www.rolanddgastore.com/xrite

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Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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led ModUles/tUbes/strips Outwater Introduces a Movable LED Wafer Puck Track Lighting System Have you ever wished that you could effortlessly relocate existing, permanently fixed LED puck lights or add more without having to run new wires? In response, Outwater’s Movable LED Wafer Puck Track Lighting System enables the user to create adjustable vertical or horizontal linear illumination by sliding the system’s puck lights into any position along its low profile track. Comprising Outwater’s integrated “LED Diamond Light Technology,” this system’s 2-1/8-inch-diameter, 1/4-inch-thick puck light operates by means of two very small protruding tabs incorporated on the puck light’s underside, which serve both to conduct power to the puck light itself as well as to permanently or temporarily affix it by means of a simple twist to its power source—an adhesive-backed track offered in three-, four-, six-, and twelve-foot lengths along with complementary jumper cables that enable shelf-to-shelf lighting connections. (www.outwater.com)

printweAr GO FlipIt 2.0 is an Amazing, New Solution for Transferring White and Full-color to Black Graphics One, LLC’s GO FlipIt 2.0 is the answer to printing beautiful white and full-color transfers to black, dark, color, and white t-shirts and apparel! Designed for the heat transfer of intricate graphics and color images (including white from the OKI pro920WT), GO FlipIt 2.0 will enable you to transfer to black apparel and more. The two-paper process helps provide opacity for transferring vivid images and bright white to black and dark-colored materials. FlipIt 2.0 is self-weeding (which means no background coating remains and there's no contour cutting to obtain the weeded results). Decorating your apparel with FlipIt 2.0 will ensure full-color and white reproduction, improved stretchability, ease of use, a low-cost of entry, durability, and the ability to transfer to a wide range of substrates. (www.graphicsone.com/go-flipit-2-0.html)

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

15

SignSHOW roUters/engr AVers Vision Adds New Red Laser Pointer to 25 Series CNC Routers & Engravers Vision Engraving & Routing Systems has now added a red laser pointer to its 25 Series CNC routing and engraving machines. This red laser pointer allows customers to define their engraving area and preview or “dry run” the application prior to engraving. The new pointer is ideal for serious production shops as it enables quick, accurate, and easy job setup. Other features of the 25 Series include Vision’s Series 4 Controller with hand-held pendant and the graphically advanced Vision Pro software. The 25 Series has the ability to rout, mill, drill, contour, and engrave on a 25-inch-by-25inch-by-50-inch work area. www.visionengravers.com

screenprinting prodUcts/sUpplies New Additions to JUMBO Super Smooth Screen Products Top Value Fabrics has expanded its line of JUMBO Single and Double Sided Super Smooth Screen Printing Media.

Specifically engineered for screen printers, this new collection of screen media provides a super-smooth finish, superior lay flat quality, and a consistent dye level. The JUMBO rolls are now ideal for indoor or outdoor applications, single- and double-sided projects, and high-end retail display applications. The media is available in standard stock widths, as well as custom widths for contracted repeat work. www.topvaluefabrics.com

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Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

17

HOW-TO

By Mark k. roBerts

Customization

The Front Line of Vinyl Graphics

Putting together a vinylenhanced tribute for the National Peace Officers Memorial.

18

I

n 1962, President John F. Kennedy signed a proclamation designating May 15 as “Peace Officers Memorial Day” and the entire week of the 15th as “National Police Week.” Over the years, National Police Week has grown into a series of events that attracts thousands of survivors and law enforcement officers to our nation’s capital each year.

Officer Trae Morris, who is employed by the Pasadena Independent School District police department here in Texas, recently approached me about decorating a couple of used riot shields. He wanted to send one of these shields to Washington, D.C., and the other shield to Austin, Texas for this year’s celebrations.

Officer Morris provided us with some artwork consisting of the Texas state flag and two badges with the Latin words “Nemo Me Impune Lacessit” (“No one attacks me without punishment”). Another logo featured on the riot shields represents the Concerns of Police Survivors, an organization based in Camden, Missouri that assists the families of those officers fallen in the line of duty.

The two riot shields were definitely battle weary. So in addition to a new paint job, we had to first sand the surfaces of each shield with 150grit sandpaper.

After all the rough edges had been smoothed, we moved up to 300-grit sandpaper for the final smoothing operation.

Then we gave them a standard water bath and thoroughly dried with lint-free towels.

For the masking of the window on them, we used common transfer paper to cover both sides of the window and sealed the edges with masking tape.

Next we sprayed both shields with matte black paint. Three coats made them look factory-new.

We then left them to dry overnight.

The following morning, we printed the “miniwraps” on our Roland VP-540 digital printer/

Sign Builder Illustrated // september 2012

cutter. The two prints came out flawlessly.

To adhere these graphics to the riot shields, we used a heat gun and a rivet brush to work the vinyl around the rivets. A little brushing here and a little heat gun there, and the prints were lying flat without any wrinkles or bubbles.

Next we installed a bumper sticker on the backside above the shield’s window. It featured the logo of the Pasadena Independent School District Police Department.

The district was so pleased with the riot shields that they also asked me to create “Police Parking Only” signs for them. I photographed

1 One of the refurbished shields with vinyl decals.

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one officer’s badge and enlarged it for use on the signs, which are used on each and every campus in the Pasadena Independent School District. The badges definitely raise the “cool” factor of the signs and attract a lot more attention than simple text-only signs.

I strive to create campus spirit among the schools I serve with my signs, banners, and graphics. The students and faculty are always impressed when we go the “extra mile” and incorporate any actual school colors and mascot images on these signs.

Uniqueness leads to additional sales, and additional sales lead to increased profits. When called upon to create the typical “ho-hum” parking lot signs, why not create truly customized thematic signs, which will look more at home than some generic parking signs that were purchased at a safety sign store?

When you take those extra steps, your clients know it and will be more inclined to say “no” to your competitors. Give it a try, and you’ll quickly see how custom signs can make a huge difference as you better serve your valuable clients.

20

Printing the riot shield decals.

2

Laying the airrelease vinyl on the riot shields.

3

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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4

5

6

4 Application of the riot shield decal. 5 Removing the transfer tape from the shield decal. 6 Heating the vinyl to conform over a large rivet on the shield. 7 The decal on the backside of the shield. 8 The shield(s) decaled up and ready for action.

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

21

HOW-TO

By Jan Fletcher

ADA

Get in Touch with ADA Creativity New ADAcompliant guidelines are less restrictive, but they still come with a

for Bell Company, Inc. (www.bellcoinc.com) in Trussville, Alabama, says, “A designer now has more freedom to choose any font or customized typography style for use on an ADA-compliant dual-message sign, as long as the sign also includes raised letters and Braille.”

Previous ADA guidelines clamped a lid on any creative typography for ADA signs, but today, sign shops have new opportunities to upsell consistent branding signage through the use of color and typography in a variety of venues. “Venues like [healthcare] and assisted-living facilities may now create a thematic visual theme deployed throughout the facility,” says Shelley Rosdahl, vice president of Sales for Star Signs, LLC (www.starsigns),

photo by syntech architectural signage.

learning curve.

S

ign manufacturers today have expanded options for crafting more appealing and effective signage through the U.S. Department of Justice’s Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), which now permits a dual-signage option. A dual-sign contains signage elements for both the visually impaired and non-visually impaired.

The 2010 ADA standards became mandatory March 15, and ADA’s dual-signage provisions have “definitely opened up the possibility for more creativity,” says Brad Harmon, president of Syntech Architectural Signage (www.syntech.com) in Burlington, North Carolina.

Tina Kirk, general manager of ADA sales

The 2010 ADA standards have opened up design possibilities.

22

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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As long as a sign includes Braille and raised letters, any

photo by bell company, inc.

in Lawrence, Kansas, “instead of relying upon generic ADA signage purchased at a home improvement store.

“A sign maker may also construct Braille and raised characters with transparent materials or color-match characters to the sign’s background colors, so it doesn’t ‘pop up’ at you.”

Harmony Martin, marketing manager for SignMojo.com (www.signmojo.com) in Chattanooga, Tennessee, says visual signs may now display serif fonts but not ones that are italic, oblique, or with an unusual form.

“Still that’s a major step forward for companies that desire consistent branding throughout all the company’s signage,” she says.

Yet the new options do come with a learning curve.

“There’s [already] so much to learn in signage, and then you throw in all these subtle little regulations,” says Jon Wooldridge, vice president of SignMojo. com. “What gets tactile lettering and what doesn’t? What’s a visual sign? What’s a permanent sign?

“I think if you polled the industry and people were really honest, you’d see a

font or typography can be used on it.

pretty high rate of confusion out there amongst a lot of the suppliers.”

Wooldridge points out that one of the things that tripped up a lot of people in the ADA business was the “70 percent contrast” between the visual characters and the background of the sign. “In the beginning, everybody thought, ‘Gee, all signs are now going to have to be black and white basically,’ but that’s not the case.

“The 70 percent contrast is a recommendation—not a mandate.”

There are more choices available for

installing ADA interior door signage too, says Wooldridge.

Under the 1990 ADA regulations, signs had to be wall-mounted on the left side of the door, sixty inches to center from the center of the sign to the base of the floor. Yet issues with compliance arose, particularly when sign installers had to accommodate existing architectural features (like sconces or molding).

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Sign Builder Illustrated // september 2012

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the option to install door signage directly onto the door—if the door has a compliant automatic closing device, doesn’t have a hold-open device, and the sign is placed on the push side. The door placement specifications also allow for a foot of wiggle room. “We spent the last ten years taking all signs off of hotel doors and putting them on the wall,” says Wooldridge, “and now, [this option] completely changes that back around.”

The updated ADA regulations provide a safe harbor provision for both sign manufacturers and their clients, if the sign’s owner is already compliant with 1990 ADA standards. “But if a facility undergoes a change in identity, as a result of a conversion, safe harbors for existing signage may be lost. “When they do a conversion or acquisition, they have to design the signs within the new parameters,” sa ys Wooldridge.

As a general rule, ADA regulations are enforced via lawsuits (not regulators), with the U.S. Department of Justice as the arbiter. Since the ADA was defined in part through the outcome of lawsuits in the courts, Wooldridge says that it can be pretty ambiguous. “Advocacy groups may focus a spotlight on certain facilities and businesses to ensure those places are compliant,” he states.

“Even though ADA 2010 regulations are less restrictive when it comes to signage, some clients still insist on putting visual design ahead of regulations,” says Kirk. If educating the client as to what the law requires doesn’t work, her company will make the sign only after the client signs a disclaimer that the sign isn’t ADA-compliant.

There’s another wrinkle in the issue of compliance, according to Wooldridge, as companies that don’t have outside visitors may assume installing ADA signage inside the workplace isn’t necessary. “The ADA, first and foremost, is an employment act,” he says. “The regulations were also intended to protect internal employees.”

Harmon says although the new regulations bring expanded opportunities, they also carry risks for signage contractors, since some local code enforcement officers haven’t yet caught up with the change. “We’ve already seen vastly different rulings from one jurisdiction to the next on what is is not compliant,” he says, noting that these officials may go well beyond what ADA regulations require. “On a local project, the code signshop.com

enforcement officer wanted tactile signage put inside the bedrooms of private apartments. It becomes completely subjective. It’s what they interpret it to be.”

Harmon advises sign makers to work collaboratively with the code enforcement officer heading up a particular project. This ensures that a sign maker isn’t surprised at the eleventh hour and has signs rejected for one reason or another.

Maureen Kalmykow, a sign consultant for AS&G Lettering Systems (www.as-

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glettering.com) in Toronto, Ontario, cautions sign makers to pay very close attention to the regulations. “In this economy, everybody is selling on time and price,” she says. “But to make a compliant sign, you cannot cut corners.”

Even though Wooldridge says there are “guardrails built around what the manufacturers and designers can do,” the 2010 ADA standards still allow “for a lot of design-driven products.” And that’s welcome news for signage designers.

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

25

Hand-carved Sign / By Ashley BrAy ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Humorous

HDU This hand-carved dimensional sign is no laughing matter.

A

t Piccadilly Signs (www.piccadillysigns.com), the major tools are the hands. Walking into the shop, you’ll find scroll saws, band saws, hammers, and chisels—but you’d be hard pressed to find a router or an engraver.

Opened in 2010 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, the shop specializes

in handcrafted, custom-carved dimensional signs. Owned and operated by husband and wife Paul and Kelsey Martin, the shop has found a niche “Some people love the fact that there’s no CNC involved,” says Paul Martin.

One recent client that loved the look was The Laughing Loon, a gift shop located in the Lake Falcon area of Manitoba. The shop requested a hand-carved, outdoor

26

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

ALL PhOTOS COurTeSy OF PiCCAdiLLy SigNS.

with those looking for a more unique, handmade look.

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//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

“People love the fact that their sign is one-of-a-kind.”

— paul martin, piccadilly signs

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

27

Piccadilly Signs chose thicker pieces of HDU for The Laughing Loon sign so that it would be sturdier and last longer. They assembled the sign with metal pins and a urethane adhesive and epoxied the hanging hardware into the two sign layers using a cross brace.

28

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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identity sign from Piccadilly Signs.

Over the next few months, Piccadilly Signs and the client went back and forth on the overall vision. A graphic design house put together the design file, which Piccadilly Signs used to produce the sign. (Note: Although this project was an exception, Piccadilly Signs typically handles the design process for its clients by drawing up a sketch in Photoshop.)

The design file called for a doublesided, circular sign with copy reading “The Laughing Loon” and “Falcon Lake” running along the outer rim on the top and bottom of each side of the circle. In the center, the Laughing Loon icon is pictured on both sides.

To start, Piccadilly Signs cut two thirtysix-inch-diameter circles from one-inchthick, eighteen-pound Coastal Enterprises HDU. The HDU is made from 25 percent recycled materials, which lends a green factor to the project.

Next, using the provided design, Piccadilly Signs created templates. “I printed it all out in sections, pasted it all together, and then literally cut it out by hand and made templates that way,” says Martin.

The letters were carved out with a scroll saw. Additional tools—such as band saws and hand routers—were used to cut out the other pieces. Wire brushes, hammers, and chisels provided the texturing effects. (Note: See page 30 for a list of commonly used tools.)

When painting the pieces, Piccadilly Signs used a variety of household exterior latex paints and high-quality artist acrylics to achieve the color matches they were looking for. The shop uses water-based rather than solvent paints.

The paint was applied with both regular paintbrushes and airbrushes, depending on the desired effect on certain pieces of the sign. For example, airbrushes were used on the Falcon Lake letters to achieve a gradient effect from dark blue to light blue. Airbrushes were also used on the center circle and outer bands to create a fade from orange to yellow for a sunset effect.

After the paint dried, four coats of exterior, water-based, UV clear-coat were applied for protection from the elements. The clear-coat protector was applied one coat a day over a four-day period. “The painting and the sealing is probably the most timeconsuming part because of the drying process,” says Martin. “You have to let it cure, signshop.com

For more information about Piccadilly Signs, see “Shop Talk” on page 56.

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

29

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come back and seal it and let it cure, and then seal it again.”

When everything had finished drying, Piccadilly Signs began to assemble the sign pieces using metal pins and PL Premium Construction Adhesive from Loctite® (a urethane adhesive). The sign’s hanging hardware was epoxied into the two layers of the sign using a cross brace.

With the loon, the text, and the other pieces securely adhered to the sign, it measured four inches thick. “You can hit this thing with a sledgehammer and it’s not coming apart,” says Martin.

Production on the Laughing Loon sign took about two weeks, because the Martins were working on other projects in-between as well.

The shop also handled the install. They gave a drawing and dimensions for the sign’s custom metal bracket to a friend, who welded it. They then drove to the lake and installed the hanging sign onsite.

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Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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Outdoor Vinyl / By Jeff Wooten ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Color is Jam on The story behind how a sign shop helped Downtown Chicago get a lot more colorful.

The Beginning Earlier this year, the Chicago Loop Alliance (CLA), a business-supported organization, was put in charge of making this project a reality.

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Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

all photos courtesy of bloomingdale signs by tomorrow.

T

his past summer, massive swatches of color could be found covering a portion of Downtown Chicago, as the intersection and surrounding buildings at Adams and State Streets were decorated with a bright plethora of reds, greens, and blues. This vinyl display was all part of “Color Jam,” the city’s biggest large-scale public art project...ever.

Color Jam was designed by well-known, local multimedia artist Jessica Stockholder as a way of showing “the imposition of colors interacting with the elements and daily chaos of a bustling city.” But not only was this artistic project a unique way of enhancing the city of Chicago and attracting visitors, it was also a colorful example of how to solve vinyl production and installation quandaries.

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///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

“I think it turned out great.

The colors are

really vibrant.”

— michael gillette, brand manager, asphalt art

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

33

“The creative vision of artist Jessica Stockholder with color bursts enlivening sidewalks, streetlamps, and buildings was inspiring.”

— Debra Liles, business development manager, Clear Focus

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Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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After interviewing a few firms across the country, CLA Program Manager and Curator Tristan Hummel recognized that Bloomingdale Signs By Tomorrow (www. bloomingdalesigns.com) in nearby Bloomingdale, Illinois, had the know-how and capabilities to handle every aspect of this project in-house, so he hired them this past March. (Note: The sign shop had already created large-scale vinyl images for the Vancouver Olympics, as well as other high-profile graphics projects.)

After the CLA agreed on a proposal that took him six weeks to draw up, Gary R. Schellerer, president/CEO of Bloomingdale Signs, brought along Director of Operations Alan Schellerer and Installation Manager Patrick Perralt to the contract signing to discuss further ideas. “Alan really loves Chicago and the arts,” he says, “and Patrick is an excellent motivator.”

The end-result: More than 70,000 square feet of four different vinyl materials was used horizontally, vertically, and diagonally. A foil-backed adhesive film was used for the streets and sidewalks; a perforated vinyl to cover glass surfaces; a vehicle wrap vinyl to conform around traffic lights, light poles, flower pots, etc.; and a banner mesh to enhance the masonry of abandoned buildings, as well as the concrete around a CVS store.

(Note: Stockholder originally intended to cover the entire intersection, but the city had some traffic safety concerns and limited this to applying color to crosswalks only and designing an oval pattern for the center of the intersection.)

Alan Schellerer admits everyone was a bit daunted when first hearing the details and scope of the project. “It was on a very large scale and very much in the public eye but with a limited budget and a tight timeline,” he says. “However at our first meeting, we expressed nothing but confidence in front of the client, while the ideas were being presented to us.”

Since the CLA was working within an already-tight budget, the organization also hired Gary Schellerer as general contractor on this project, where he not only rounded up vendors but also acquired signed release forms from property owners, management companies, and tenants in the area. “Originally they thought they would be printing and installing at multiple locations,” he says, “but since we color jam

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continued on page 38

September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

35

Sign Show Extra: Cooley Group

36

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

To increase efficiency and reduce material waste for many of Cooley’s large billboard customers, the billboard product is shipped in rolls up to 3,000 linear yards each.

Other strides in sustainability include modifications in the chemistry of some of its core products to contain increased levels of recycled re-grinds and the use of almost 25 million pounds of recycled product that would have otherwise ended up in a landfill.

The company has also reduced its gas energy consumption by 75 percent and its material waste generation during production by 70 percent.

To learn more about Cooley’s products and efforts in sustainability, visit www.cooleygroup.com.

—Ashley Bray

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photo courtesy of cooley group.

O

utdoor advertising continues to be an important communications and advertising medium, and Cooley Group keeps on making strides to improve the materials used in this corner of the sign industry.

A few years ago, Cooley introduced the new industry standard with its 5-meter-wide, 7-ounce seamless PVC billboard.

Most recently, Cooley took that innovation further by unveiling the sustainable Enviroflex PE, which is the first 5-meter seamless PE (non-PVC), 100 percent recyclable print media.

Enviroflex PE and the company’s other fabrics all begin as the pelletized virgin compounds PVC and PE, which are then extruded onto 5- and 4-meterwide knitted and woven fabric substrates.

They are pulled into an extruder screw and melted. As the film is released, it meets the fabric substrate and is then driven through a series of vertical calendar rolls that press the film into the fabric.

After traveling through a series of rolls, it is eventually reheated and slightly pulled to form the composite. The single-ply composite is brought back around to the front of the extruding line, and the process is repeated for the other side, producing a double-ply composite.

color jam

TOOlS

USeD fOr InSTallaTIOn n Two 135-foot JlG boom lifts n Sixty-foot swing stage n Scaffolding n large water-weighted rollers n Hand torches n Blow torches n Squeegees n Utility knifes n

38

“And a whole lot of Red Bull,” laughs Alan Schellerer.

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

continued from page 35

could do everything ourselves, there was no need for that expense.”

Hummel secured permits and worked with Bloomingdale Signs By Tomorrow to manage all the bond work necessary.

Meanwhile Bloomingdale Signs handled all the production, printing, laminating, painting (more on that later), and installing. “In total, we had approximately 180 hours of actual print time,” says Alan Schellerer. “Not only did [Perralt] coordinate the install, but he also oversaw the printing and production work and made sure everything was finished on-time.”

Building and Window Wraps For the red and green building wraps and glass windows along the intersection, Bloomingdale Signs printed fifteen 54-inch-by-300-foot rolls of Clear Focus® One Way Vision™ exterior-mount film using an HP Scitex XLjet 1500 printer. Clear Focus provided the film with a clear PET liner to accommodate the UV technology.

“When Gary mentioned the project to me, I was intrigued by the far-reaching

signshop.com

opportunities of ‘colorizing’ an entire intersection in Chicago,” says Debra Liles, business development manager at Clear Focus (www.clearfocus.com).

fringe much on the graphic/ad space,” says Jaime Giannantonio, marketing manager at UltraFlex (www.ultraflexx.com), “so they were able to maximize the amount of color and ink on the building façade.”

Banners To create banners that would cascade down the focal Color Jam buildings and give a true three-dimensional look, Bloomingdale Signs By Tomorrow printed ten 16-by-150-foot rolls of 10 oz.

Ultraflex UltraMesh Supreme material on its HP Scitex LX1500 wide format printer. With 25 percent air flow-through, this material allows wind to pass through panels without risking any tearing or loosening of the affixed banners.

Perralt and his team used their Miller Weldmaster Extreme 112 to weld sixteenfoot sections together to make five large building banners.

“Since this particular mesh has very small, slit-like holes, the holes don’t in-

Ground Level Bloomingdale Signs also wrapped light poles, flower pots, street signs, awnings, stone pillars, and anything else groundlevel that could host colored vinyl. .

To do this, Bloomingdale Signs printed thirty rolls of 54-inch-by150-foot General Formulations (GFI) Automark™ 230-54 conform vinyl paired with GFI’s gloss and matte cast laminate on their HP DesignJet 9000 solvent printer. “This material is generally used to wrap vehicles, but they successfully used it here,” says Mike Clay, president of General Formulations (www.generalformulations.com).

According to Alan Schellerer, “Since

THE MANY MOODS OF METAL.

Some of the installers and volunteers who worked on Color Jam.

Chemetal is a massive collection of metal designs ideal for signagebackgrounds, letters and more. Call or visit to see them all.

800 807-7341 chemetal.com

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

39

Your Direct Source for Sign Information 3 Easy Steps

Receive vital product and service information from manufacturers and distributors by completing the adjacent card or visiting www.signshop.com/infodirect

1. Choose up to 10 categories of interest and check off on card.

2. Select up to 28 suppliers and record InfoDirect # on card.

3. Mail card to start getting info!

InfoDirect # Company

Page

InfoDirect # Company

1 3M Commercial Graphics . . . . . . . 54

38 Outwater Plastics

2 Ability Plastics, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 3 ADA Wholesale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

39

4 Alpina Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . 55

40

5 Alpina Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . 55

41

6 American Biltrite LLC . . . . . . . . . . . 7

42

7 A .R .K . Ramos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

43

8 ASE Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

44

9 Bayer Materials Science LLC . . . . 53

45

10 Biesse America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

46

11 Brooklyn Hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

47

12 CAO Group, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

48

13 Chemetal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

49

14 Chemical Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

50

15 Clear Focus Imaging, Inc . . . . . . . . 35

51

16 Duxbury Systems, Inc . . . . . . . . . . 55

52

17 Formetco Powered By Ad Tech . . . C4

53

Page

Industries, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Pizazz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Roland DGA Corp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 SGIA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Sign America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Sign Fab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Sign Mojo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Signs By Tomorrow . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 SloanLED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C2 Small Balls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 superbrightLEDS .Com . . . . . . . . . . 54 Syntech of Burlington, Inc . . . . . . . 46 Tri Vantage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Trim-Lok . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 US LED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 USSC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

InfoDirect # Company

Page

Companies in the Sign Show 54 3M Commercial Graphics . . . . . . . 17 55 Epson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 56 Graphics One, LLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 57 Lucite International . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 58 Oracal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 59 Outwater Plastics . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 60 Roland DGA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 61 Tex Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 62 Top Value Fabrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 63 Tri Vantage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 64 Vision Engraving &

Routing Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

65 X-Rite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

18 Gemini, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 19 Graphic House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 20 Gyford Standoff Systems . . . . . . . 35 21 ITSENCLOSURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 22 Justin Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 23 Kern Electronics & Lasers,Inc . . . . 38 24 L&L Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 25 Lancaster Sign Company . . . . . . . . 54 26 LEDtronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 27 Magnum Magnetics Corp . . . . . . . . 47 28 Manitex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 29 Master Magnetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 30 Metal Arts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 31 Mimaki USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 32 Mimaki USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 33 Neo-Neon LED Lighting 34 35 36 37 40

International LTD . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Nova Polymers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Orbus Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 Orbus Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 Ornamental Post Panel . . . . . . . . . 55

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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the conform vinyl would be seen very close up, we refused to have any banding or visual imperfections on it. So even though it took four-and-a-half hours per roll, we made sure it was printed right.”

Streets and Sidewalks Since the intersection is subjected to 80,000 vehicles a day and power washings every other day, the CLA decided on Asphalt Art material for the crosswalks and sidewalks.

Asphalt Art is a peel-and-stick, aluminum foil-based floor graphic with inherent non-slip properties that’s designed for outdoor short- to medium-term use.

It requires no overlaminate and can conform to cracks and crevices, as well as irregularities in concrete, asphalt, brick, pavers, etc. The product had already been used at finish lines for the Chicago Marathon and the Tour De France and even in pools (meaning it could definitely stand up to any wet conditions).

“They didn’t want any issues of someone slipping and falling on a material being used in this project,” says Mike Gillette, brand manager at Asphalt Art (www.asphaltart.com).

While graphic providers typically print UV inkjet images onto Asphalt Art, becolor jam

continues on page 53

correction

July 2012 Issue On page 22 (“Taking the Message Out on the Road”), the Rachael Ray Show bus wrap shown and credited to Graphitek was actually printed and installed by Sean Tomlin of Designer Wraps (www.designerwraps.com) in Millville, New Jersey back in 2010.

We apologize for this error and any confusion it may have caused.

Pictured below is the photo submitted by Graphitek of the 1963 Bristol London Double Decker bus mentioned in the story that was wrapped by their company for the Bettie’s Cakes mobile bakery.

4.56x4.875 Justin Sign_Jan2012:4.56x4.875 Justin Sign_Dec06 2/7/12 8:54 AM Page 1

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

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//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// ////

Back in the 80s, EMCs featured incandescent lamps that would only display one line of text.

42

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// ////////////////////// Electronic Message Centers / By Todd Heller

The

Right Electronic Message Advice for successful EMC sales and installations.

all photos by todd heller.

I

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have been in the electronic message center (EMC) business since 1984. Back in those early days, EMCs featured 30-watt incandescent lamps that would only display one line of text with a maximum of nine letters. These signs sold for over $25,000, burned over $1,000 per month in electricity, and typically featured a maintenance contract of at least $225 per month.

However even back then, I learned the most important value of an EMC—its advertising value.

I’ve never had one customer tell me that their EMC didn’t increase their sales.

Today your customers can get a full-color, animated LED EMC that’s a much more effective advertising medium than the old incandescent lamp EMC and for about their same price. Plus operating costs are now only a fraction of the old incandescent EMCs. So what does all of this mean? It means that today’s LED EMCs actually provide an even-better advertising value to your customers.

September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

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The Sales Effort

The Presentation Preview

But in today’s sales presentation, I’m concerned that everyone is getting caught up in two things: (1.) offering the lowest price, and (2.) the “nuts and bolts” of the technical details of why their EMC package is better than someone else’s. I believe this mindset misses a couple of key points.

In your initial meeting with clients, you should instead get an understanding of how they want to use the EMC sign. Find out what type of words, graphics, animations, images, and/or video they might want to display.

Also discover what products and brand names the customer offers. Investigate whether they’re going to be doing any co-op advertising with some of their suppliers, and if so, if these suppliers have any special requirements.

Get a copy of your EMC supplier’s software and load it onto a notebook computer. Develop a sample set of messages based upon the information you obtained during your initial meeting and show your customer what he can do with the size and resolution of the LED EMC that you’ve determined best fits his needs.

If your customer is going to be using photos or videos on the EMC display, then during this software presentation, you can show him how it will look. This will also help explain why you selected the product you did.

For example, if your customer wants to use a lot of photos and/or video, a LED EMC with virtual pixels will produce a much better image than traditional LED EMC signs.

You can get logos and artwork from the Internet as examples.

LED EMC signs can work with low-resolution files as long as they’re big enough. (Note: You do not want to enlarge images.)

The Upsell Once you get off the subject of selling “nuts and bolts” and focus on selling the advertising value, don’t be afraid to propose a full-color LED EMC. The cost is not that much more than a mono-color LED EMC, and the advertising impact is ten times greater.

Often when you start discussing the advertising value (along with the impact a larger or higher resolution EMC will have), upgrading said-customer to a more expensive display is sometimes possible and worth the time to at least pitch the concept.

The Resolution Once you’ve made the sale, realize that, when it comes to EMCs, size does matter. From your site survey, you can get the necessary information regarding how large of an LED EMC is permitted. Once you have that information, it’s time to figure out the appropriate type of resolution that will meet your customers’ needs.

Resolution is determined by the distance between light points (called “pixels”). We reference the distance from the

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Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

8/2/12 12:20 PM

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center of one pixel to the center of the adjacent pixel. The higher the resolution, the closer the pixels. This equates to better-looking graphics and video, as well as the ability to display more text. Factors to consider in determining the appropriate resolution would be minimum and maximum viewing distances.

Today 20mm and 16mm pixel spacings are the most common. If the customer wants to display a lot of text, 20mm spacing will work great. If they want photos, then they would consider 20mm with virtual pixel or 16mm pixel resolution. But if your customer wants really great-looking images, you can offer them 12.5mm.

Also consider the font size and the number of letters that can be displayed per line of copy, so that it will meet your customer’s requirements. There’s nothing worse than selling an LED EMC sign only to discover that the customer’s name won’t fit the screen in a font that’s large enough to be readable.

EMC resolution is determined by the distance between pixels.

The Hook Up Your initial site survey needs to gather more information for an LED EMC than a typical backlit sign or set of channel letters. In addition to determining the resolution, you also need to know the location of the computer where the software will be installed, as well as some hint of the operator’s computer skills.

Questions to ask: How are you going to connect that computer to the LED EMC sign? Where does the data cable need to be run, and will you need to access the customer’s network?

How are you going to get from the building to the sign with it?

Not addressing these issues during the site survey or not covering who’s responsible for what during the sales presentation is a very common mistake. This leads to on-site mass confusion during installation and an upset customer.

Advice Before the Install If you haven’t installed very many LED EMCs at this point in your career, I recommend turning on the LED EMC in your shop prior to delivery. Set up the computer, the dimmer, and the temp probe and get an understanding of the LED EMC power and data wiring schematics. Then review the LED EMC provider’s operator manual and run the software.

You should also know if your LED supplier has a photo cell dimmer. Often sign codes require a photo cell dimmer that will automatically adjust the brightness of the sign to the ambient light. LED EMCs without dimming capability can be too bright at night to be effective and readable.

If the end-user is going to be using a lot of text on their EMC display, 20mm spacing will work great. signshop.com

September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

45

Sign Show Extra: Gemini Inc.

S

ign manufacturers and installers are now able to remove fabricated stainless steel letters from walls without worry of damaging the mounting service, thanks to a new, detachable, patent-pending stud mount developed by Gemini Incorporated.

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46

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

This new hardware allows stud mounts with stand-offs to be detached after installation, when servicing is required. Installers can remove the cans of halo-lit letters for servicing without requiring visible mounting screws on the letter returns. Detachable studs can also be used with other letter products that require letters to be removed and serviced without having to pull studs out of the wall.

Gemini’s new detachable stud mount was developed in response to installation and servicing problems associated with fabricated letters.

Fabricated letters with LEDs are constructed with a clear polycarbonate back with LED lights attached with a bracket and set screw that go through the letter return. However many people have requested a different option that did not have a screw showing on the outside of the letter.

By using Gemini’s new detachable stud mount, sign companies can install the letter and come back with an Allen wrench and remove the letter without external screws or fasteners and without damaging the mounting surface.

For more information about this patent-pending product, call toll-free 800/LETTERS or visit www.signletters.

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Trouble to Avoid If you don’t understand how to get the computer to connect to the sign, your LED EMC supplier will offer technical support and network assistance. But don’t do this the day of the installation; do your homework and figure it all out before you travel to the job site for installation.

Always train the computer operator before you deliver the sign. Nothing is more embarrassing then installing the new LED EMC sign only to find out the person who will operate the computer is not in that day, and no one has any idea of what content they want to display. This leaves you trying to think of some interesting generic messages to put up on the EMC. And see if the LED EMC supplier will preload content that the customer would like to see as soon as the power is connected. This can be saved on the hard drive of the computer. When it is turned on, the owner can quickly see what a great-looking sign you’ve sold him. This will give you time to complete the rest of the installation in peace.

Todd Heller is president of Ad-Tech International. For more information, visit www.adtechintl.com.

If photos are going to be used on the EMC display, 16mm spacing is ideal.

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

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Truck Graphics / By jeff wooten ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The Sign Art of

Semi Graphics Never mind the brakes; they’re bringing back truck graphics no matter what it takes!

all Photos courtesy of diaz sigN art.

d 48

iaz sign art (www.diazsignart.com) of Pontiac, illinois is a familyowned, mom & pop-style sign-and-graphics shop that serves a wide range of local corporations and civic organizations. designer Joe diaz and his brother Ben currently work at the shop with their parents, Bill and Jane diaz (Note: see last month’s “shop talk” for more information.) the shop regularly creates custom contour-cut wall signs, murals, and window graphics. they also design and install vehicle graphics for motorcycles, cars, vans, and trailers. in this particular field, they’ve found plenty of success doing work for owner/operators of truck fleets, such as dibble trucking and hoffman transportation. in fact, Joe diaz is quick to point out that semi-truck drivers actually make up one of diaz sign art’s favorite niches, as they’re frequently active in creating, designing, and installing logos for these types of vehicles. “for the most part, truck drivers are the easiest type of client to work with,” he says. “they’re very easy-going. some will just drop off their truck, and tell us, ‘i trust you to make me look good.’”

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

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Diaz Sign Art has really built up quite an artful list of satisfied semi-truck clients over the years; in turn, this has led to even more of these types of customers for their shop, thanks to word-ofmouth spread at various truck stops and highway travels. “Through their conversations, [truck drivers] already have an understanding of how we work and communicate with them,” says Joe. The graphics for these semi-trucks are pretty much created thanks to today’s vinyl and inkjet technologies. However the shop will also add any requested pinstriping—which they still paint by hand.

Although the company has worked on pretty large graphics for these semis, requests for full wraps on them rarely come up. “These guys aren’t necessarily looking to advertise a big corporate brand or message,” says Joe. “In some cases, they’re required by law to have certain information on their vehicles.

“Many like simplicity, but some of these guys end up wanting something fancy and striking that will stand out, and we can do that for them as well.”

50

Diaz Sign Art currently occupies two buildings on-site (a shop/garage area and another structure that serves as an office and a space for vinyl production).

“But we’ve only got so much shop room, so we can’t schedule too many trucks at

Script-style lettering or something

bold and strong? a time,” says Joe. Still the shop has implemented a very successful system of handling these semi-truck graphics.

The first step involves finding out what the client wants to do. “We usually

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

have the driver drop his or her truck off early in the morning, and we’ll talk with them about designs,” says Joe. “We’ll then print out the graphics by noon.

(Note: Joe finds that larger truck fleets usually treat their on-board graphics as a branding exercise and will hire them to create that brand first, then schedule their fleet to be lettered after that logo or brand has been approved.)

While one member of the Diaz Sign Art team is talking with the customer, another is busy taking measurements of the semitruck. “One of us will also snap a photo of the vehicle when it first comes in and then import it into CorelDRAW,” says Joe, “We’ll next scale it up to ‘full-scale’ and design right over the top of that photo.

“Usually the truck driver isn’t picky about colors, so we’re not spending much time picking out specific PANTONE® colors. Sometimes it’s as simple as asking the customers what colors they don’t like, so we can avoid using them.”

Diaz Sign Art also avoids the use of Clip Art in most designs. “We’ll start with a font, then add color and effects

signshop.com

(contours, drop shadows, etc.) to it, and build from there,” says Joe. “We’ll also ask if they want script-style lettering or something bold and strong, to help us get a better idea of what they want.”

Another design tool they’ve used successfully happens to be their Web site.

The company will sometimes have customers take a look at the photos of other semi-trucks they’ve done that have been uploaded to their online portfolio. “If they can pick out two or three semis that they really like, that will give us an idea of the style, the colors, and the themes they’ll like on their truck,” says Joe, “and we can design based off of that.”

Once the design has been approved, it’s then saved and sent to their Roland VersaCAMM SP-300i printer/cutter via VersaWorks® RIP software for output.

“We do a little bit of everything, which is why the VersaCAMM is the perfect machine for our shop,” says Joe. Diaz Sign Art features a two-man install team (Bill and Ben), and depending on the amount of content going on the trucks, they can actually complete as many as three to four rigs in a day.

Most of the installs are performed dry with squeegees. They almost exclusively use Oracal vinyl with Rapid Air (3951RA) since it goes down really well. “It’s almost impossible to get bubbles in this film,” says Joe. “It’s a good, long-lasting material, and it’s very easy to work with.

“At our shop, we always laminate the graphics on the truck. In fact, we use Oracal Wrap-2-Go 290G for the laminate.”

Diaz Sign Art generally applies the graphics after lunch; then the customer can pick up his or her truck at the end of the workday.

If pinstriping is requested however, the shop instead schedules pick-up for the next morning. For pinstriping, Diaz Sign Art uses House of Kolor and DuPont Hot Hues™ custom urethane. “We use heavier automotive paint here, because they’re long-lasting,” says Joe. (Note: Joe points out that if any truck drivers would like to stick around and wait, Diaz Sign Art has a little area in their shop where the client can watch a movie while they print and install. “We typically don’t like anyone standing behind us while we work,” he explains, “but we’ll call the client in, if we want their input on something.”)

Even though Diaz Sign Art tells cussignshop.com

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51

steamPuNk desigN forever!

J

oe Diaz has also parlayed his creative design skills into a bit of fame.

He was named winner of the 2011 CorelDRAW® International Design Contest for his design titled “Steampunk Stella’s.”

As his reward, Diaz won a Roland VersaCAMM SP-300i inkjet printer/ cutter that he constantly uses in his shop.

Although he typically avoids design contests (especially those that tend to lean more toward crowdsourcing), Diaz was intrigued by the idea of being able to design whatever he wanted for this contest.

“When coming up with a sign idea for a fictitious company, I decided to [imagine] a really cool microbrewery where I’d like to hang out” he says, noting his design concept sprang from the sci-fiinspired alternative-Nineteenth Century Steampunk style. “So I developed the Steampunk Stella’s idea, submitted it, and sure enough, it won!

“I thought it was a really good design, but I had no idea it would win because there were so many other cool designs submitted. When they called and let me know, we were all freaking out here!”

And in some alternate reality somewhere, Diaz Sign Art was most likely celebrating at Steampunk Stella’s.

tomers to wash the vehicle if it’s not clean before it comes in and to avoid waxing it, they’ll still clean the truck by hand anyway before applying any graphics. “They may tell you they’ve cleaned it, but you don’t know with what,” says Joe. “So in addition to a special cleaning solution we make here in the shop, we’ll usually cut it down with some wax-and-grease removers.

“We also use rubbing alcohol to kill the static and then clean off any residue from any of the other cleaners. We want to make sure these graphics will stay on the truck a long time.”

Diaz Sign Art really likes the same-day print-and-install system they’ve set up.

“A lot of people say you have to make sure your prints outgas before you laminate and apply,” says Joe. “We’ve noticed that not allowing your prints to sit a day or more affects your ability to reposition the graphics if you were doing wraps, but we haven’t noticed any effect on the longevity of our prints through the use of an eco-solvent printer.

“And trust me, we want to make sure our graphics last longer than our competitors’ work.”

Consider this a sign. www.rolanddga.com/4

52

Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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color jam

continues from page 41

cause these were two of the busiest streets in Chicago, the CLA knew touch-ups were going to be necessary and thought this would be easier to accomplish if the material were painted instead.

Gary Schellerer knew Debra Lucas, his long-time representative at digital solutions provider Milano Digital (www. milanoinc.com), had experience working with Asphalt Art and contacted her. “I researched the paints, purchased and tested the paints, and then sent the material to the manufacturer for them to test to make sure that we were within safety specifications,” she says.

During this conversation, Gary also mentioned his need to find a facility that could host a production of this size.

Lucas immediately brought up the new large-scale contract warehouse her company had just moved into.

In this roomy warehouse, Bloomingdale Signs By Tomorrow employees unrolled thirty-one one hundred-foot rolls of Asphalt Art and, over three days, used rollers to apply the various colors of Benjamin Moore exterior-grade, epoxy-based paints onto the materials.

(Note: This paint cures in twenty-four to thirty-six hours, which was a plus). They bought three times the paint needed, with future touch-ups in mind.

Bloomingdale Signs allowed all the unrolled materials to dry in the warehouse and then re-rolled them onto rolls using a slitter/roller machine, loaded them onto their truck, and took them downtown for installation.

Installation Installation covered seven consecutive nights. Alan Schellerer and Perralt worked from 7pm to 7am every night, yet their enthusiasm never wavered.

To help fit their budget, the CLA also enlisted a dozen volunteers to aid in the ground-level vinyl installation. Most of the volunteers were involved in the

To view more content, including a video of this project, visit

Chicago art community and were already fans of Jessica Stockholder. “They were all great to work with and had a great deal of artistic ability (which really helped),” says Alan. “They caught on very quickly.”

Bloomingdale Signs and the volunteers only applied graphics directly to the streets via heat guns on weeknights between 2am and 5am, since traffic was most minimal then. Cones and caution tape (and the occasional cop) also kept any oncoming traffic at bay.

The crew finished installing the intersection graphic at 4am on June 4. The catch: The opening ceremony was at 10am later that morning. “I had to drive home, shower, put on my suit, and head back down for it,” says Alan.

Completion The Color Jam project has been a hit and even generated prominent coverage in local and national newspaper and television reports. Stockholder herself has been ecstatic that Bloomingdale Signs was brought on-board to bring her vision to full-color life.

The project is scheduled to run through the end of this month. Bloomingdale Signs has been handling any patching and painting of worn areas every other week during the duration of the project. “We’ll be removing all of the building graphics, while the CLA is going to be utilizing volunteers to remove all the ground-level graphics,” says Gary Schellerer.

The biggest challenge on this project involved color matching. “It was difficult to match three different colors on four different materials with three different types of inks,” says Alan Schellerer.

In the end, Bloomingdale Signs was honored to bring more color to the city of Chicago. It took every part of their business experience and what they’ve developed over the past twenty years to put this together—from their graphic designers and installers to print staff and sales people. “We were referred by a customer who purchased a small banner from us a couple of years ago,” says Alan. “It shows that great opportunities can be generated by even the simplest of projects.”

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September 2012 // Sign Builder Illustrated

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Sign Builder Illustrated // September 2012

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55

“

SHOP TALK

B y A s h l e y B r Ay

HDU: Piccadilly Signs

Paul & Kelsey Martin

Dynamic Dimensional Signage

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“

o what you love,” is an adage Paul and Kelsey Martin know very well. Both have artistic backgrounds that include painting and woodworking, and they eventually gravitated toward signage as a way to use their skills.

Their signage work began as just a hobby. After looking into the properties and capabilities of HDU, they decided to use the material to create a sign for a friend. It received such an overwhelming response that they started making more.

After about a year, response to their work had grown so much that what had started as a hobby was now taking up as much time as a day job.

Last December, Paul decided to leave his job of sixteen years at a digital print shop and make the jump from 2D prints to 3D carved signs.

“It’s a scary thing because obviously I was making very good money, and now we’re just getting by,” he says. “But we love what we do.”

Piccadilly Signs (www.piccadillysigns.com) was

At Piccadilly Signs, the hands are the most important tools.

56

born, and Paul and Kelsey have found a way to marry their love of painting and woodworking with the hand-carved signage they now create. “It was a natural process for us to put the two together,” says Paul.

Everything is done by hand at Piccadilly Signs, and no routers or engravers are found in the shop.

“Piccadilly Signs is getting known for handmade signs, and that’s what we love,” says Paul.

In fact, the Martins believe their work is part of a growing trend in the industry—a turn away from cookie-cutter signs and a return to the traditional.

With his business now in full swing, Paul has had time to assess some of the unexpected challenges that come with owning your own shop.

He advises new shop owners to keep careful records of business transactions and expenses.

But even this extra work is worth it because he and his wife have found their niche. “I’ve been wanting to do this for a very long time,” says Paul. “[The technique] takes a little longer, but I think people really love the effect.”

Paul and Kelsey Martin don’t mind getting their hands dirty to create some fresh sign designs.

Sign Builder Illustrated // september 2012

signshop.com

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Contact Jeff Sutley (East Coast) at jeffsutley@sbpub.com or 212-620-7233 or Kim Noa (West, Central U.S.) at knoa@sbpub.com or 212-620-7221 Follow Us On: Sign Builder Illustrated @SBIMag Sign Builder Illustrated

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