Use the latest digital graphics innovations to turn your awnings into eye-catching signage. By Sigrid Tornquist It used to be that an awning was an awning was an awning. And a sign was a sign was a sign. Then, in a way that rivals the meeting of peanut butter and chocolate, commercial awnings and signage [...]

Color management systems help printers achieve first-quality products quickly and with less wasted material. By Janice Kleinschmidt In 1903, Binney & Smith introduced eight Crayola crayons. While the list has grown to 120 colors, including such esoteric shades as “unmellow yellow,” “sunglow,” and “neon carrot,” there’s no “McDonald’s golden arches.” The arches (Pantone 123) set [...]

A print shop encounters a spell of color management problems on a theater project and learns to troubleshoot for a solution. By Chelan David The Flag Loft, housed in a 23,000-square-foot facility in St. Louis, is a custom manufacturer of banners and flags that also distributes flags, flag poles and flag accessories. Founded in 1990 [...]

By Janet Preus In order to keep up with today’s demand for sustainable processes and products, manufacturers of digital printing inks are creating products that have labels attached to them like “safe,” “green” and “eco-friendly.” The question is, just what are they calling safe, green and eco-friendly, and what exactly do those terms mean? Graphics [...]

In conjunction with its 25th anniversary, Ultraflex Systems Inc. launched new products. Strip Mesh Plus is available up to 3.2M wide with a PVC backing. An unlined version is available called UltraMesh Plus. SuperPrint Plus Eclipse is a 13 oz. black-backed economy front-lit banner vinyl, available up to 5M wide in matte and gloss finishes. [...]

Graphics One LLC (GO) launched FabInkTX inks, an “all fabric” ink that features advanced SuperBinder and NanoColor technology, which can adhere and produce saturated color range on fabrics without a coating or precoating. NanoColor technology indicates that pigments are manufactured on a nano-scale level, eliminating the printhead clogging of printers left unused for one week [...]

Canon USA Inc. introduced large-format media for its line of imagePROGRAF large-format printers. Roll-up Gloss Film is a strong and flexible specialty sign, banner and display media that features increased opacity due to the gray backing layer, a durable polyester base and a high-gloss surface. Artistic Satin Canvas is a cotton/polyester blend that enables fast [...]

Brussels-based Spandex expanded its ImagePerfect range of media with new environmentally friendly, 100-percent PVC-free materials. Designed for large-format digital inkjet printing, the new materials are compatible with all eco-solvent and solvent inks, as well as UV-cured inks, and are suitable for use in indoor and outdoor signage applications. The new ImagePerfect polyolefin products are both [...]

Oracal USA added 14 new designer colors to its popular ORACAL Series 631 Exhibition Cal Film family. The total number of colors available in the series is now 45, providing a broad pallet of choices for interior designers and sign makers. ORACAL Series 631 Exhibition Cal films are popular among interior designers and home and [...]

The Spartanics Finecut Combination model laser die cutting machine has multiple flexibility-focused design features. Jobs can be sheet fed or coil fed and interchanged quickly. All types of printing processes can be finished by the same laser die cutting machine and cut in intricate detail in limitless shapes and geometries. Any combination of cutting and [...]