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An LED (light emitting diode) is an efficient, effective and ultra-bright alternative to incandescent light bulbs. The LED in a sign typically last as long as 100,000 hours and they require significantly less power to operate.

Neon emits light due to gases in the neon tubing being bombarded by electrons. To generate a stream of electrons, very high voltage is required. LEDs emit light due to the flow of electrons but do not require high voltage-it is a property of certain materials. When space is restricted (such as the width of a letter) LED may be the answer. Also, low operating costs and low voltage are also reasons to consider LED as a source of illumination.

A raceway is an enclosure for enclosing electrical components. In many cases this is a UL requirement. When used with illuminated letters it may be exposed with the letters mounted to it and the transformers with associated wiring contained within.

A standard channel letter has a translucent face on the front of the letter with the source of illumination behind it so that the face is illuminated.

A standard "reverse channel" letter has typically a metal face with a clear back and the source of the illumination behind this clear back. The result is that light shines onto the building giving a "halo" of light around the letter.

Redwood, Cedar, HDU (High Density Urethane)

Signage is the least expensive, yet most effective, form of advertising for independent and national retail businesses. You pay for the sign once and it works for you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for years. Use of other media requires paying month after month and you never have the benefit of ownership. You also have no assurance that you're reaching potential customers. From a business owner's perspective, a sign should not be viewed as an expense, but as a capital investment. When you factor in your return on investment, signs are not expensive. An effective sign will most likely pay for itself many times over.

A successful sign will communicate effectively and concisely. Therefore, here are some general guidelines:

• In as few words as possible, clearly communicate what you are selling.
• A picture depicting your product or service adds impact and clarity.
• Present the image you want to project that will attract customers and entice them to stop, shop, and buy.
• Determine the best sign type, size, colors and placement, keeping in mind what the sign will look like from the street and sidewalk. The proper design of your sign is critical to its effectiveness.
• Crowding the sign with too many words or lines of text makes it impossible to read from a distance. Use as few words as possible.
• Don't try to sell your customers with the sign -- save that type of information until they are in your place of business.
• People are looking through a windshield, in traffic, day and night and in all types of weather. Help your customers both see and read your sign easily.

There are several things you can do. First, keep your sign illuminated only at night. Doing this saves electricity and wear on the sign components; also sign components have a limited life. Make sure to check your sign's clock timer. Your sign should go on around dusk and turn off just before sunrise. Also make it a routine to check the timer if there has been a power outage and also when the seasons change. In the long run a properly maintained sign will save you money and help you avoid costly repair bills.

A problem with a sign generally will cause all or part of your sign to go out. Frequently, the solution is as simple as having the lamps replaced. One burned out fluorescent lamp can cause as many as six lamps to go out. A bad neon unit inside a neon channel letter can cause several letters to go out. Heat builds up in the ballast or transformer and will eventually cause it to fail. The power produced by the ballast or transformer often will burn up the secondary wiring as well as causing "secondary shorts" inside your signs raceway. To help avoid these expensive repairs, a good maintenance programs is essential.

Sign components such as florescent ballasts and neon transformers are high voltage, high output devices. These components are designed to operate safely in extreme heat or cold and are contained in metal casings to disperse heat. Fluorescent lamps used in signs are brighter and more durable than ordinary lamps. They are designed to operate in a wide temperature range. The ends are specially designed to protect against humidity and condensation that is normally in the air. The lamps are also high output devices that require high output ballasts.

ART REQUIREMENTS:

NOTE: Digital image files should be sent in PC format. In very few cases, we can accept MAC files, but these must have been created using Adobe Illustrator and saved in outline vector art versions of (.ai) or (.eps) format. MAC fonts of any type, however, are unusable. Order of Preference:

• E-mail
• Upload to our Portal
• Diskette, Zip disk or CD-ROM
• Camera-ready art

File formats, in order of preference:

• Adobe Illustrator (.pdf) or (.ai)
• Encapsulated Post Script (.eps)
• Tagged image file format (.tif)
• Joint photographic experts group (.jpg)

NOTE: While (.jpg) files may be used for sketches during the design layout sketch process, they are not acceptable in most applications of manufacturing. You may be required to provide better format for manufacturing purposes if the graphics is very detailed and cannot be "hand corrected" by our designers.

No Quark Express files