Case Study: Meriton

Mesh Direct was approached by Meriton to assist them with a large scale development and building wrap. Founded in 1963, Meriton is now Australia’s biggest residential apartment developer.

More than 70,000 apartments have been developed, designed and built by Meriton across Australia’s east coast. Additionally, Meriton is responsible for some of the highest residential towers in the Gold Coast, Sydney and Brisbane.

Naturally, Meriton has an impressive portfolio and offers sales and leasing, as well as property and strata management services. Meriton’s luxury accommodation brand Meriton Serviced Apartments spans across more than thirteen locations country-wide.

When Meriton began to develop their latest large scale construction site, they came to Mesh Direct for solutions to their scaffolding and high-rise development needs.

After much communication with the established brand, Mesh Direct provided the organisation with premium banner mesh in the form of north and south facing banners across the development.

Mesh Direct organised the design and printing of the large-scale banners for the high rise building and scaffolding. The building wrap was created and then transported to the construction site.

We had to use Ropetek and abseiling techniques in order to install the massive banners.

During the installation process, challenges arose due to the significant winds plaguing Parramatta at the time. While premium banner mesh offers great wind durability, the conditions were extreme and Mesh Direct worked extra diligently to provide Meriton with solutions to these unforeseen issues and challenges.

The result of this project was an impressive building wrap that withstood both the test of time and the blustering conditions of the high velocity winds.

Mesh Direct has maintained an ongoing relationship with the Meriton brand, and have since been commissioned to provide banner mesh for another large scale development.

If you’re interested to see how building wraps and large scale printing can work for your development, get in touch with us here.

• Banner Mesh
• building signs
• Building Wraps
• construction advertising
• grand format printing
• Large scale projects
• Premium Banner Mesh

Why You Should Have Festival and Events Signage and Banners

Here at Mesh Direct, we specialise in large format festival and events signage. We’ve got over a decade’s worth of experience in the industry, and have worked with numerous music festivals and sporting events on a regular basis. Which is why we understand the importance of using this type of signage and banners. Have you heard about large format printing for events but don’t know if it’s right for you?

Let’s dive into three reasons why you should have signage and banners at your next festival or event…

1. Take advantage of advertising space

With signage and banners across your event site, you can take advantage of otherwise under utilised, high value advertising space. From mesh banner fencing, stage signage and crowd control barriers, we can guarantee there’s definitely room for advertising your brand.

Our numerous mesh products and fencing options allow you to make the absolute most of these areas. Products like mesh banners allow you to put advertising in places where you wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity. These areas are usually in high traffic, high exposure positions, which helps get as many sets of eyes on your branding as possible.

2. Create a uniform look across your site

Another advantage to using festival and events signage and banners around your site is that they create a uniform aesthetic which looks both impressive and professional. Tying the look of an event together with uniform branding across all signage solutions is a great way to get your business’ name out there.

However, in addition, a uniform aesthetic also makes your brand, your event and/or your festival more reputable. It potentially provides you with the opportunity to reach new audiences, and potentially new clients.

3. Brand awareness

On a similar note, another reason you should have festival and events signage and banners is to create brand awareness for your company and/or product.

Utilising otherwise under-utilised, high traffic areas for your branded signage and banners can help create awareness of your festival or event with an entirely  new audience.

Festival and Events Signage Recommendations

So, as Mesh-experts, what products do we recommend that you use in order to create the best possible results with your festival and events signage?

We recommend using a winning combination of our most popular products across your entire event. These products include: premium mesh banners, crowd control barriers, mesh fence panels and media walls.

The draw card for festivals and events are that they’re entire experiences, and our products can help that experience be more uniform and wholesome for all involved.

If you’d like more information on how Mesh Direct can help you master your festival and events signage, be sure to drop us a line here, or give us a call on 1300 368 978.

Event Signage And Effective Low Budget Advertising Guide

There are dozens of factors to consider when it comes to event management and success. However, event signage and effective low budget advertising are usually at the top of that list. Planners want to know the best ways promote their event, and create a unique, branded experience.

One way of creating a uniform branded aesthetic across the scope of your whole event is to use event signage. This is also an incredibly effective form of low budget advertising.

Event signage

Here at Mesh Direct, we’re experts in large scale printing and have many years experience in event signage. We’ve created event signage for numerous festivals, lifestyle events and promotional programs, including Vivid Sydney, Electric Gardens festival, Stereosonic, Winter Festival and more.

When it comes to creating effective signage for your event, and achieving that all-important uniform aesthetic on a low budget, there are a range of options.

Check out the types of banner mesh and event signage below, and determine which is right for you and your event.

Shade cloth/scrim

Shade cloth is a budget-friendly option for many, and is a fantastic solution for festival organisers in particular. It’s usually used on barrier fencing, particularly on long runs where a high print resolution isn’t always necessary. Scrim is a good starting point or entry level branded fencing.

It’s sold in rolls of 50 metres, and can be reused again and again, making it perfect for regular events.

Premium banner mesh

Premium banner mesh is a great solution for things like sporting events or music festivals. Our perforated material provides impressive visual impact and high resolution print quality. This design also allows for wind to pass through without interfering with the fence or structure itself.

While a little more expensive than shade cloth, premium banner mesh does have a superior print quality, which is ideal for displaying the artwork and branding of your event.

This printed shade mesh is perfect for covering up unsightly fencing with your branding and advertising your event.

Particularly if you need to set up the structure and scaffolding of your event in advance, wrapping your temporary fencing with branded mesh can prove to be very effective low budget advertising.

Vinyl hoarding

Vinyl hoarding is another fantastic option for your event signage and low budget advertising. Vinyl hoarding provides the highest possible print quality where wind flow isn’t a crucial factor. You’ll likely find vinyl hoarding outside of buildings and shopping centres where it easily grabs the attention of passersby.

It’s also often used at music festivals and large scale events where timber barrier fencing has been installed.

Another common use for vinyl hoarding is for smaller banners where there is a greater need for durability and high visibility.

Corflute Signage

The final option for event signage and low budget advertising it corflute signage. This is lightweight and versatile, and is ideal for events and festivals due to its low price. It’s most common use is for directional signs, menus, and safety signs.

Banners and signs combination

Of course, for most events, you’ll need a combination of the above signage types. This is definitely recommended for achieving that uniform look across your festival or celebration.

For the most effective low budget advertising, using a combination of event signage is the best solution.

• banner design
• Banner Mesh
• crowd control barriers
• Event signage
• event walls
• Events
• festival and event signage

How-to: Prepare Your Own Banner Design

Here at Mesh Direct, we’re naturally big believers in the power of large format printing and the magic of a good banner design. We do everything we can to ensure our clients’ banners are as aesthetically pleasing and as effective as possible before we go to print. Because of our insider knowledge of the print industry and our decade’s worth of experience working with printers and designers from all walks of life, we thought we’d give a new ‘How To’ guide, this time, we’re looking at how you can prepare your own banner design in order to get the best possible results… Here’s what you need to know…

When supplying logos for banner design…

A common mistake made by businesses supplying print companies with artwork is not supplying the right logo files. Any artwork (logos included) should be supplied to the printer as a vector image. This sort of file is supplied as the following: .eps, .ai or as a .pdf

It’s vital that the business provides the right file type in this case, or they risk not getting the job done on time or the having the print job turn out incorrectly.

If you’re ever in doubt about whether or not your files are compatible and accurate, always check with your printer before approving the job.

Don’t include printer marks

Another common error made by businesses approaching printers with their banner designs is that they include premade printer marks. What do we mean by printer marks? Printers marks include bleed marks, crop marks and colour bars.

Including these can cause confusion for your printer.

Know your artboard size

For Mesh Direct’s printing services, we require artboard sizes to be set at 10% of the full print size. So for example, a 50m x 1.6m banner should be set up at 5000mm x 160mm. Remember that we don’t require crop marks, bleed or colour bars.

Like most printers, we ask that you only provide one artboard per file.

Get your colours right

For those of you who aren’t particularly familiar with artwork specifications for print, you’ll need to use CMYK. All of your files need to be converted to CMYK in order to be used on your printed banner.

Have your fonts ready

Remember when you’re preparing your banner design for print that all your fonts should be entirely legible and should suit your brand aesthetic. You also need to be sure that the fonts are outlined or that the font files are supplied to the printer.

Many people assume that getting the fonts right is the easy part of printing, but it isn’t always that simple. Think long and hard about the fonts you’re using and if they’re the best solution for your banner design.

Imagery should be hi-res

If you’re keen to include images and photographs on your banner design, you need to ensure that these images and photographs are high-resolution and need to be supplied at 300dpi.

For more artwork specifications when it comes to preparing your banner design for printing, check out our instructional videos here.

How-To: Use Contrasting Colours On Your Mesh Fencing

When it comes to creating artwork for your mesh banners, we know not everyone is an artist or graphic designer. While we have an expert art department on hand at all times, we thought we’d share some insights into what makes great banner art, and how you can make your branded mesh products as eye-catching and impressive as possible.

One of the most commonly tried and tested techniques our designers themselves use is using contrasting colours. Contrast is something that should be featured on every design, no matter what it’s purpose is. Contrasting helps determine a hierarchy within the graphic, and shows the viewer which part of the image is the most important (usually the name of your brand, your logo or your website).

However, more than just making your brand name stand out, using contrasting colours within artwork creates layers of interest, and generally makes your artwork more aesthetically appealing.

So for those of you who aren’t artistically inclined, here’s a little breakdown on how you can use contrasting colours in different ways to make your brand’s mesh banner pop…

1. Use light and dark

When it comes to contrasting colours, this is probably the option that most people think of first: contrasting light and dark colours. For example: white and black, light blue and dark red, light coloured text on a dark background or dark text on a light coloured background.

This is definitely one way of making your brand’s logo or message stand out, and a method that is used to great effect with mesh banners and mesh fencing.

This technique helps make different aspects of your design more visible than others, and can be incredibly eye-catching, particularly in high traffic areas such as sidewalks and when featured on high rise buildings.

Our premium mesh banners have a fantastic print resolution that makes working with these types of colour contrasts incredibly simple and effective.

2. Play with temperature

When it comes to design, all colours are separated into three different groups based on their ‘temperature’: warm, cool and neutral. It’s obvious to some, but colours like reds, yellows and oranges are on the warm side, whereas blues and greens are categorised as warm colours. Finally, white, black and grey are considered neutral.

You can contrast the intensity of the same temperatures, or alternatively, contrast with warm and cool colours. It’s completely up to you and what suits the aesthetic of your business and brand.

Playing with contrasting temperature colours is another great way to create visually appealing branding for your business. You want to utilise the advertising opportunity that banner mesh offers, and using colour in clever ways is the ideal solution to making your mesh fencing as striking as possible.

Both our premium banner mesh and our standard banner mesh options are particularly suited to printing stunning, full colour designs on.

3. Experiment with monochromatic colours

Here’s where things start to get a little technical, but don’t worry, it’s not as complicated as it sounds. Using monochromatic colours essentially just means using the same colour of varying intensities. So you might use a range of different shades of blue, or a range of different shades of red.

This is probably the least popular of the three options, as it doesn’t always have the same intensity or impact as light & dark or contrasting temperature, however it’s still a good choice to consider when questioning your brand’s aesthetic.

No matter how you choose to use contrasting colour, Mesh Direct’s in-house design team and art department can help you achieve a sleek and professional look for your branded mesh products. Whether it’s for an event or a construction site, you can rest assured that you’re in good hands.

For more information on how we can make banner mesh and mesh fencing work for you and your business, don’t hesitate to give our sales team a call on 1300 368 978.

Printed Banner Mesh: Ultimate Guide To Common Terms

When it comes to the utilising printed banner mesh in your construction business, the terminology and vernacular might take some getting used to. Which is why we’ve put together an ultimate guide to common terms used in the world of signage, mesh banners and shade cloth.

Banner mesh

If you’ve been considering the fencing around your construction site, you’ve probably heard the term ‘banner mesh’. Banner mesh is the material that covers a construction site fence. If a business is utilising it effectively, it often features branding, a logo and the business’ details.

Banner mesh is an incredibly effective way to increase your brand awareness, and is a great way to create uniformity across a construction or festival site. Our mesh is sold in an array of lengths and can also be purchased in individual fence panels. For more information on panels of mesh, visit our banner mesh fence panels page.

Banner mesh is a general term that encompasses three different types of mesh: premium banner mesh, standard banner mesh and wind mesh.

Premium banner mesh

As the name suggests, premium printed banner mesh is a type of banner mesh. Of our products, this is generally the most sought-after, as it’s highly durable and versatile. It’s also the banner mesh that provides the most stunning print results, while still allowing for that all-important wind flow.

This style of mesh fencing boasts PVC coated substrate which ensures that the ink from your print job is adequately absorbed, as well as provided UV protection.

Standard banner mesh

Standard banner mesh is our mid range fencing product. For those businesses on a tighter budget, this may be a more affordable than our premium option. While the print quality isn’t as good, it still offers an excellent structure, uniform look and print quality.

This product is incredibly easy to install, using simple cable ties and metal eyelets, making it a great temporary fencing solution for any event or construction site.

Wind mesh

Wind mesh is the final product in our printed banner mesh collection. It’s a product that’s specially made to withstand large wind loads and the harsh Australian climate.

This printed banner mesh is designed with a much more open weave, with perforated material that allows more wind to flow through the mesh. This puts less load and pressure on the structure to which it’s attached, making it and ideal solution for high-wind areas and construction sites. The fact that it’s a more perforated product means that the print quality isn’t as high as our premium banner mesh, however it still provides a professional finish.

Wind flow

When working out which printed mesh banner product is right for you, you may be asked to consider what the wind flow is like in your designated area.

Wind can have a major impact on how durable your mesh fencing is, and so if you’re planning on installing in a high wind area, you’ll need to opt for wind mesh, which as we mentioned above, has a more open weaved designed for this type of environment.

Building wraps

If you’re in the business of large scale developments, you may have come across the term ‘building wraps’, you may have even seen one for yourself.

Building wraps are extremely popular in Europe and America, particularly when it comes to landmarks undergoing maintenance or construction.

Traditionally, these wrap around the entire facade of the building, with a rendition of the building underneath. Alternatively, other companies opt for cityscapes, nature scenes, while some use it as an advertising platform for their brand.

Jump form signage

Another product in our large scale development arsenal, jump form signage is a great signage option to utilise throughout the building process. This is one of the first structures to go in place on the construction site, and progresses up the building as the scaffolding and building grows. It’s a super effective form of advertising due the high visibility of high rises and the long-term nature of the projects.

As the building grows, so does the scope for advertising and the potential for your brand to reach a larger audience.

Another advantage is that it not being situated on street level it is virtually vandal proof.

Vinyl hoarding banners

If you’ve got a thicker fence that’s more solid than a chain link fence, vinyl hoarding banners are the solution. These banners are attached to wood hoardings made from wood panel, this creates a strong surface, and provides an ideal background to allow for premium quality print on non-permeable signage.

This is a well-regarded option for urban areas, and is often used within shopping centres. It’s also ideal for crowd control in both large and small scale events.

Vinyl hoarding is so aesthetically pleasing that the Sydney City Council enforced that all hoardings be dressed with vinyl.

Alupanel signage

Alupanel signage is fast becoming one of the most popular methods of signage around the globe. This is made from a hard-core substrate that is used for permanent installations such as building signage, advertising and shop fronts.

It’s got an outstanding print reproduction and quality, and is ideal for long-term solutions. The alupanels hold resistance properties that make it incredibly suitable for outdoors. It’s chemically resistant, rustproof and waterproof, and is a relatively light-weight option, making it easy to install.

Shade cloth

Shade cloth is one of the most commonly used banner products used, and is incredibly versatile. Also known as ‘scrim’, it can be sold as plain (unprinted), partially printed or fully printed to suit your needs.

It can be completely customised to suit scaffolds, temporary fences, chain wire fences and building facades. It’s an adaptable and budget-friendly option for everything from construction sites to music festival fencing.

Mesh fence panels

Using printed banner mesh in fence panels, this product is perfect for temporary fencing on construction sites. Mesh fence panels provide a great amount of flexibility on site, and can be moved around easily as your construction site grows.

This type of mesh is also very aesthetically appealing, and makes any site look uniform and professional.

Corflute signage

Corflute signage is also often called corrugated plastic signage or corriboard. It’s a flat, rigid substrate that’s especially versatile. It can be used practically anywhere and is extremely easy to install on just about anything including walls, fences and hoarding.

At Mesh Direct, our corflute signage is fully UV stabilised and can last for years with the proper care. We use only the highest quality inks available and our corflute signage is printed directly onto substrate on 3mm or 5mm thick bases.

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And there you have it! Our ultimate guide to printed banner mesh terminology. Still got questions? No problem, get in touch to talk to one of our experts.

• banner design
• Banner Mesh
• branded banners
• Building Wraps
• construction advertising
• Premium Banner Mesh
• printed banner mesh
• Shade Cloth
• Temporary fencing
• Vinyl
• vinyl hoardings

Construction Site Banner: 3 Reasons Why You Should Have One

Why should you have a construction site banner? With the developments in new age digital print technology, the use of branded construction site banners has really taken off. Builders, construction site companies and real estate brands can truly benefit from using a construction site banner on any given project. The affordable and practical nature of these mesh banners means that more and more sites can look more appealing, and more businesses can get their name out there.

But let’s take a closer look at why you should have a construction site banner for your next build…

1. A construction site banner is visually appealing

There’s nothing more unappealing than an ugly fence bunched around a large construction site. Passersby can see through to heavy machinery, and unsightly mounds of dirt and scaffolding. You also might not want people to see the building in progress, but rather work your way up to a big reveal once the job is done.

Construction site mesh, or fence mesh can help you here.

You can print just about anything on banner mesh (we’ll get to that in a moment), and this helps covering up that messy construction site. It adds an element of continuity around your site, and makes everything appear much neater.

2. Advertise on your construction site banner

One of the biggest benefits of fence mesh is the opportunity it provides for your business. Premium banner mesh, standard banner mesh and even shade cloth allow you to print just about anything on them. Most builders and construction companies use this opportunity to advertise their business and create brand awareness. You can print your logo, your contact details and your website on your mesh, and wrap it around your entire construction site.

This is a fantastic way to make people aware of your business, and to have a lasting impact on those who pass by. Not only are you covering up the unsightliness of a construction site mid-build, but you’re also potentially exposing a lot of people to your business and what you do. People are far more likely to trust and use a brand if they’ve heard of them before. Banner mesh allows you to utilise your fence in multiple ways in this respect.

3. Banner mesh is versatile

We’ve already provided two solid reasons for using a construction site banner, but the versatility of this product doesn’t end there. Printed mesh fencing is created especially for your advertising needs, but it’s also designed to perfectly suit outdoor areas, indoors, retail space, windows, large scale hanging building banners and numerous other sign alternatives for your business.

The versatility of this product just keeps on giving, as it can be applied to various scenarios like use between fence poles, or for scaffolding and temporary fencing. It’s tailored to suit you and your needs, and is sold in a variety of different lengths and styles, and are processed through massive 5 metre printers.

These banners have been created with the ever-changing Australian climate in mind, and are fully UV stabilised. This means all our banner mesh products are durable, as well as highly detailed. Our premium banner mesh boasts fire retardant properties, and also has a full CSIRO wind rating.

The banners are easy to install, as they use a simple cable tie and eyelet process that just about anyone can put together. As they’re so durable, you can use them time and time again, from one construction project to the next.

Got a question for us about your construction site banner? Get in touch here for a quote today.

Case Study: Scentre Group

Mesh Direct was lucky enough to be approached by Scentre Group (the owner and operator of Westfield in Australia and New Zealand) to help them with their signage and mesh fencing needs.

Scentre Group has been around since 2014 and is the result of a merger between Westfield Retail Trust and Westfield Group’s Australian and New Zealand management business. It combined the retail real estate assets valued at 43.3 billion and shopping centre ownership interests of 30.8 billion.

The Scentre Group’s shopping centres are highly productive, with massive franchise value and attract an array of the world’s famous retail brands. The shopping centres are a dynamic and essential aspect of the economy, as well as the community’s social fabric.

Scentre came to Mesh Direct for assistance with shopping centre development signage for all over Australia. Every job with Scentre is large-scale, and involves collaborating with numerous people, and making sure that every detail is perfect.

Together with the professionals over at Scentre, the Mesh Direct team organised custom printed banners and signage for the large scale development and construction sites.

Mesh Direct provided the following premium products:

• Safety signs
• Vinyl banners
• Premium banner mesh
• Directional signage
• Lift access signage
• Corflute signage

In addition to various mesh banner and signage products, we covered the developments over a range of different locations, including: Westfield Kotara, Westfield Hurstville, Westfield Miranda and Westfield Bondi Junction.

As usual, we provided the best in customer service, and fast turnaround times to meet Scentre’s tight deadlines. The products we delivered were, as always, of exceptional quality and durability.

We worked in partnership with Scentre Group to create a professional and uniform branded look across numerous different construction and development sites.

As a result, we’ve maintained a thriving relationship with Scentre Group for over two years.

• Banner Mesh
• Building
• building signs
• building site signage
• construction advertising
• Construction signage
• construction site safety
• Corflute Signage

Custom Printed Banners: How To Make Yours Unique

When more and more businesses are using custom printed banners, the problem that naturally arises is the struggle to stand out from the crowd. Although there are various different types of mesh cloth and signage printing, the devil is in the details, which is why we’ve put together this quick guide on how to make your custom printed banner unique…

1. Custom printed banners: pay attention to detail

As we mentioned, details are incredibly important when it comes to making your mesh printing stand out. Firstly, proofread your copy – you don’t want to be remembered for the wrong reasons, and there’s nothing more unprofessional than a 5 metre long repeated spelling or grammar error.

Another detail you’ll need to consider is your chosen colour combinations and fonts. These should be complementary and easy to read from both a distance and close up.

No matter how premium a print reproduction is, an ill-chosen colour scheme or unsightly font can detract from your business details, and the quality of your brand.

2. Make sure it’s cohesive

In a similar vein to paying attention to the finer details, you need to make sure that the overall message of the print banners is cohesive. It’s also vital that they have a cohesive and uniform look across the entire site.

All panels should look as though they’re part of a set, that they’re advertising the one company. You can do this by having all mesh cloth featuring the same design, or alternatively decide on a run-on design.

Either way, it’s important that the custom printed banners look uniform in order to have maximum impact on your target audience.

3. Include your contact information

While it may seem like an obvious piece of advice, you’d be surprised at how many businesses forget this simple step. A simple website URL will do if you’ve got a recently updated site, otherwise an email address or phone number are the way to go.

Make sure the details are clear, so passersby can snap a photo if they want, or jot it down in their diaries.

4. Add a personal touch

Here’s where we get a little more original with our ‘stand-out’ advice. Whether it’s a clever tagline or a quote from a satisfied client, make your brand and business stand out by adding a personal touch.

What makes you, you? Is it your high quality customer service? Is it the big-name clients you draw in? If you’ve already got a USP (unique selling point), this is where you should be featuring it!

5. High quality artwork

One of the most effective ways to make your business stand out from the rest is to have high quality artwork. This is one of those instances where it’s best to hire a professional. Make sure all images and artwork are high resolution from the get-go, so there are no difficulties or mistakes further down the track.

Artwork helps your business look professional and unique, and it’s a good investment, particularly when utilising custom printed banners.

6. Main points are visible

Make sure the most important details on your custom printed banner are visible to foot traffic and car traffic. You want your brand and business to be easily recognisable to all those who pass your mesh signage and printed shade cloth.

This is where all the above elements come together to create a highly effective and highly visible marketing tool.

7. Consider placement

Where is your custom printed banner being placed? How much of it will the average passerby have to read the information? Are there any structures that may get in the way of your banner’s visibility? These are all important factors to consider when trying to determine how to make an impact.

8. Get help if you need it

Although mesh banners are generally quite simple to install with their combination of eyelets and cable ties, if you’re not feeling confident, there’s always the option of getting help with your installation.

If you’re concerned about the quality of the job, this is your best bet. The last thing you want is a beautifully printed product that isn’t pulled taut enough for the best display.

Check out our installation services if this is something you’re concerned about!

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Got questions about how to make the most of your mesh banners? Don’t hesitate to contact us for advice or a quote today!

• banner design
• Banner Mesh
• branded banners
• construction advertising
• Construction signage
• custom printed banner
• Premium Banner Mesh
• Shade Cloth