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Building Wraps and Exterior Graphics

Large vinyl banners and mesh banners go by several different names including building wraps, architectural graphics, window graphics, and exterior signage. Several attributes to building graphics are present in most exterior building wraps. Building wraps and graphics must have the durability to stand up to outdoor elements. Specific vinyl and mesh materials make up the creation of exterior signage for building graphics coverage. Strength of the material as well as proper seaming welding and reinforced support must be taken into consideration. High quality graphics material and craftsmanship are paramount to the success of an outdoor graphics application.

Small perforations in mesh banners allow proper "airflow" through the banner installation, which reduces the load placed on the structure or building and on the banner itself. This makes mesh PVC an ideal choice for giant outdoor banners, building wraps, event branding and for large indoor applications too, as mesh banners are typically lighter than standard front-lit banner PVC.

Production costs for Building Wraps & Mesh Banners can be supplied immediately by our sales team as well as the ability to do site evaluations for your exterior building graphics project.

Interior Banners

Most "smaller" mesh banners for indoor applications are fitted at low-level can be quickly and easily fitted by a competent person using bungee fixings or nylon zip ties. However, for large mesh banners we offer a complete service including survey and installation. By using our fully trained installation teams we maintain the highest standards of safety and customer care throughout the whole process.

We take our responsibility and your reputation very seriously and the safe undertaking of all on-site activities is a fundamental part of our service. From initial site survey and preparation through to safe installation of your banner and building graphics we'll deliver exceptional results through the entire life cycle of your building graphics project.

Mesh Banners

Mesh banners often soften images that are printed on them. Artwork for giant mesh banner production can pose a number of challenges, and the Ads On Wheels, Inc.^® staff is on hand to assist. Our graphics creative team can provide you with striking visual communications or work with your own creative team to coordinate your building wraps and graphics program.

Large Building Banners

Our high quality, high resolution and flame retardant super large mesh banners are printed using solvent UV inks for photo-realistic quality and long-lasting outdoor color performance. Meticulous attention to banner finishing ensures that seams, grommets, pockets, and eyelets are reinforced to the highest standards.

Building Site Branding Solutions

Get your architectural development site on the map from day one with our powerful and inspiring site branding service. From survey to installation and everything in between we can get your site properly dressed for business including branded safety signs, barricade graphics, fence graphics, lamppost banners, murals, banners, instore graphics, store displays, store signage, retail instore graphics, window murals, building wraps, and so much more.

Excerpts: July 2006 Digital Output Magazine: By Thomas Franklin

Building wraps are universally recognized as an attention grabber, attracting eyeballs to their enormous facades with an almost magnetic intensity. But pedestrians aren’t the only ones noticing, many sign shops and digital service bureaus are eyeing up the mega-graphics as a means to reap mega-profits.

For all the excitement that surrounds building wraps, it’s not an endeavor to be embarked upon lightly, service providers say. Yet for all their manifest challenges, wraps can, if marketed properly, offer a healthy return on investment (ROI).

Cost Conscious

Neither, the hardware nor the consumables for producing wraps are cheap, and the additional manpower for installation or sub-contracting costs further adds to expenses.

Even before hardware considerations, there is a simple—and often intractable —issue of how much physical space you can devote to the production and assembly of building wraps. Since they’re typically printed in discrete panels which are later sewn and welded together, floor space is critical.

On the hardware end, only grand format printers designed to tackle mesh are really efficient and will minimize the assembly work, states Josh Bevans, chief technology officer, Design to Print/dtpXpress. You can expect to pay over $200,000 for the printer alone and the mesh kits are typically optional accessories.

"Mesh is a really tricky material to print on, so you have to be really careful in your choice of printer," Bevans notes. The ink will pass through the material so the media either needs to be backed or the printer requires specialized receptacles—mesh kits—to collect the ink and prevent it from pooling and damaging your hardware.

The mesh media itself is expensive, a roll could cost between $500 and $1,000. "You have to be realistic about the costs," Bevans states. "It took us six months to use our first roll of mesh. Now I have $25,000 worth of it in my shop."

Since wraps are printed in panels, assembly is another cost factor. "There’s a lot of finishing involved," Bevans notes. Assembling the wrap entails the use of a welder and industrial sewing machines. Design to Print uses two sewing machines from Consolidated Sewing Machines, Corp. "They look like they were built in 1900. They’re ruthless machines," enthuses Bevans. Point Imaging uses the Triad welder from Sinclair Equipment Co.

After the wrap is stitched, welded together, and proofed, it needs to be packaged. FedEx has yet to invent the 100-foot envelope, so wraps require several workers to accordion fold them...

Challenges

Not every firm can successfully produce and market building wraps. Behind those monster graphics lies a myriad of challenges—some routine, others daunting.

There are logistical hurdles. Successfully printing on mesh requires a good deal of experience, Bevans says. It’s not enough to configure your printer for dealing with the ink that passes through the mesh. It’s knowing how to produce powerful colors despite the porous surface area. Since mesh typically surrenders about forty percent of its surface to pores to allow the wind to pass through, you need to compensate for the reduced printable area in your printer’s RIP to ensure the highest quality colors, Bevans notes...

Perhaps the most daunting challenges associated with building wraps are those over which digital printers exercise the least control—Mother Nature and Uncle Sam. The former can be a menace not simply at installation, but during the life of the sign as well. The later typically conspires to thwart projects at the eleventh hour...

To the extent it can be controlled, ensuring that your clients understand the local zoning laws, have filed the necessary permits, and secured the necessary permissions from building owners or associations can go a long way toward eliminating potential bureaucratic hassles.

We offer our building graphics and exterior graphics services and products in these locations:

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming and Canada.

We are proud to offer products and materials of the highest quality. We are also proud members of the SGIA.

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