Anti-Graffiti Coating: How to Protect Your Signage

August 15, 2015 / in Blog / by Mesh Direct / No Comments

Graffiti and tagging on banners, hoarding and billboards is an unfortunate reality these days. When you install a banner you might want to think about taking precautionary steps to limit your risks of the costly effects of vandalism.

Graffiti vandals can strike anywhere at anytime, even in respectable areas where graffiti is rare. These pests use a wide variety of pens, spray cans and other implements, all of which can be used directly onto mesh or solid vinyl substrates. The cost of graffiti removal can quickly run into thousands of dollars, if possible at all. To remove the graffiti you need to use a solvent which will most likely remove the ink your banner is printed with.

What can you do to protect your signage?

Anti-graffiti coating is one way of protecting your signage investment. At Mesh Direct, we offer only the best graffiti protection provided by Adcoat Graphic Solutions. Adcoat Tuffcoat anti-graffiti coating is available in two variations which differ between levels of graffiti protection. Both are applied to signage after printing by a special liquid coating machine.

The anti-graffiti coating comes in both gloss and matt finishes. Not only does Adcoat Tuffcoat offer the ability to easily clean graffiti off printed banners but it creates an outstanding finish making images and text jump off the substrate.

Adcoat Tuffcoat graffiti coating makes graffiti removal quick and simple without damaging the inks. Adcoat Tuffcoat anti-graffiti coating adds a layer above the original ink, this layer is not impervious to graffiti but it does mean that your signage can be easily restored to its original glory. This is hugely effective in areas of high vandalism activity. Rather than reprinting the entire sign or sections of it, it can be simply cleaned. Over the course of some projects, this would run into the tens of thousands.

Features and Benefits of Anti-Graffiti Coating

• Resists scuff marks, graffiti, gummy adhesive tapes and all stains
• Easy to clean with water
• UV protection
• Weather resistant
• Non-stick, slippery coating
• Mildew and mould resistant
• Durable
• Non-sacrificial (does not lose its properties after cleaning)
• 4 years of graffiti and fade free protection with a 60 micron coating.

Adcoat Tuffcoat anti-graffiti coating is not for everyone or every banner installation. The price of the initial application could double the price of your order but in areas where repeated vandal attacks are likely this is a small price to pay relative to replacement or repair costs. Decision makers will need to weigh up the risks of using Adcoat Tuffcoat anti-graffiti coating but in some cases it is not only desirable but it is virtually mandatory.

We strongly recommend using Adcoat Tuffcoat anti-graffiti coating to protect vinyl covered hoardings against graffiti, particularly when the hoarding is easily accessed and in an urban area. On large scale projects that will last 18 months plus there is a possibility that graffiti vandals will attack your expensive signs multiple times and then the cost of the coating seems relatively cheap compared to replacement costs.

To find out more about protecting your signage with Adcoat Tuffcoat, contact Mesh Direct – 1300 368 978 or visit www.meshdirect.com.au/get-a-quote/.

• Anti-graffiti
• Anti-Graffiti Coating
• banner design
• Banner Mesh
• branded banners
• Building
• building signs
• building site signage
• Construction
• construction advertising
• Construction signage
• installation
• Signage
• Temporary fencing
• Vinyl

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The Power of Colour in Advertising!

May 25, 2015 / in Blog / by Mesh Direct / No Comments

Did you know certain colours can ignite key emotions?

The use of colour can be associated with emotions, social status and a variety of other elements. It is important that you consider colour when you build your brand, banner or any other factors that relate to your business.

COLOUR DEFINITIONS

Colour is a visual component a person remembers about a brand or product. Gaining an understanding of colours will help you achieve an outcome of your banner or campaign. The meaning of colours and their associated moods are:

• Red is the most powerful colour and should be used in moderation. Red is associated with anger, passion, danger and love. It is known to stimulate appetite.
• Orange is commonly used as a call to action button and is associated with happiness and vitality.
• Yellow can be irritating on the to eyes as it reflects the most light compared to any other colour. Green is the easiest on the eyes. Yellow is associated with energy, optimism, sunshine and humour.
• Green is associated with growth, nurturing, freshness, the environment, wealth and new beginnings.
• Blue is associated with safety, trust, clarity, serenity, intellect, formality, elegance, truth, refreshment, coldness and masculinity.
• Purple is viewed as soothing and calming for the recipient. Purple is associated with creativity, luxury, royalty, extravagance, wisdom, magic, ambition and femininity.
• Pink portrays femininity, love, sweetness and babies.
• Black is traditional and is a readable colour particularly used on a white background. Black is associated with formality, grief, prestige, power, mystery, evil and exclusivity.
• White is associated with purity, cleanliness, modernity, sterility, simplicity, honesty, innocence, virginity and goodness.
• Brown is a great colour choice to use to balance out stronger colours. Brown is associated with nature, wood, leather and humility.
• Grey can be used to intensify other colours particularly when used as a background. Grey is associated with neutrality and practicality.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

Research has shown up to 90% of consumer judgments about a product are based on colour alone. Colours can even target and change consumer behaviour. For example:

• Red orange, black and royal blue attract impulse shoppers. These colours target consumers in fast food outlets, outlet shops and clearance sale venues.
• Navy blue and teal attract shoppers on a budget. These colours attract consumers in banks and larger department stores.
• Pink, sky blue and rose attract traditional buyers, particularly in clothing stores.

Research also shows that colours can affect genders differently. For example, a male’s favourite colours are blue followed by green and black. A female’s on the other hand prefer blue followed by; purple and green. Studies have found men prefer bright colours and shaded colours whereas women prefer soft colours and tint.

The choice of colours that you use influences how people see your company. Small changes in tone and hue can make all the difference between a brand which creates an aggressive reaction, to one which creates a sympathetic one. Choose your colours wisely, or better yet have a professional designer choose them for you.

PRINTING WITH COLOUR

A printing press uses 4 main colour of ink knowns as CMYK colours. C is cyan which is a blue-green color, M is magenta, a reddish pink color, Y is yellow and K is black. All printing submissions need to be submitted for 4-colour printing, meaning using the CMYK colours.

Mesh Direct has an in-house team who can assist you with your design needs. The new design service package may also be of benefit to you.

• Advertising and design
• banner design
• Banner Mesh
• branded banners
• building signs
• building site signage
• colour in advertising

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Which grand format print solution is best for my building site or outdoor event?

May 20, 2015 / in Blog / by Mesh Direct / No Comments

With advances in print technology and substrates the construction and event industries have been taking advantage of free advertising and branding opportunities on a grand scale. Building signage and outdoor event banners have been growing steadily in popularity as marketers look for cost effective ways of spreading their message.

Construction sites and property subdivisions need to have erected fence panels around their sites for security and dust protection. The fences tend to border roads giving great exposure to passing motorists and pedestrians. Organisers of musical events and sporting events also need erect temporary fencing for security and crowd control creating huge canvases for advertising their own or other brands.

Fence Advertising and Building Site Signs represent fantastic value for money branding opportunities. These days printing is not expensive, certainly not compared to other ways of spending marketing dollars to build brand recognition. Banner mesh, printed shade cloth and vinyl banners all offer different solutions and varying aesthetic results.

So, which printed banner material is right for your project?
With a variety of printed banner materials available, a little product knowledge and consideration of the key selection criteria of cost, print quality, longevity and durability can assist you to select a printed banner material that is ideal for your brief.

PRINTED SHADECLOTH
Printed shade cloth is a budget solution which yields a high impact result. Shade cloth is a permeable substrate which allows wind to easily pass through. It is made from knotted monofilament high-density polyethylene which makes it a strong and durable substrate. Otherwise known as scrim, fence mesh or fence fabric signage is attached to scaffolding, temporary fences, chain wire fences or building facades. Shade cloth provides a good print quality whilst allowing wind flow with an expected lifespan of 12-24 months if handled and installed correctly.

Printed shade cloth is ideal for printing logos and text or block colours. Plain writing on a single coloured background works best. This type of scrim can make colours look washed out. The mesh material is very porous so imagine that you are printing on 50% material – 50% air. Black can look grey, dark blue will look mid blue. It is not recommended to print intricate images, logos or photographs as they do not reproduce well.

Shade cloth can be re-used but it can look a little tired if not installed properly and tensioned. It is possible to wash any dirt off with water although care must be taken not to use high pressure cleaners too closely as it may remove the inks.

The disadvantages of shade cloth are that the design really needs to good to make the brand or message jump off the substrate.. It does need very good installation and maintenance if is to look good as it can tend to get a little loose and billowy. Shade cloth only comes in 50m rolls at 1.8 high.

BANNER MESH
Banner mesh is the most popular product used within the printed banner industry with its high print quality and durability. It is less permeable than shade cloth and delivers great print reproduction whilst allowing for wind flow. Printed banner mesh, also known as PVC-coated mesh, fence fabric, mesh banner and shade mesh is a versatile substrate which can be used on temporary fences, scaffolding, cyclone fences, billboards, wooden hoarding, containers and just about any application. The PVC coating allows the inks to be very well absorbed. Banner mesh has a guaranteed lifespan of 12 months although it is not uncommon to get up to 5 years use from banners. Like shade cloth, banner mesh is easy to install with cable ties. New nylon supertuff seatbelt style webbing ensures banner mesh is durable and can withstand heavy winds without tearing.
At Mesh Direct generally sell two types of PVC mesh banner, our budget solution which is 9 threads per inch, and our premium solution which is 12 threads per inch. High wind-load and fire rated mesh is also available.

Budget mesh is terrific substrate for photo quality image reproduction at an economical price. It is priced just slightly more than shade cloth and the print result is a great deal better. 9 by 9 banner mesh is also finished with supertuff webbing on the edges.

VINYL BANNERS
Vinyl banners, otherwise known as PVC banners produce a photo quality print result with its non porous solution. This has its advantages in the fantastic print reproduction but can limit the size of the vinyl banner because of stress loads from wind. Vinyl banners are ideal for building sites and in particular timber hoardings.

*NEW* POLY MESH BANNERS
Poly mesh banners deliver a high quality print result at a low cost which is ideal for festivals and events. Poly mesh banners are the best printed banner solution for short term purposes as its lifespan is the lowest of all printed banner materials available at Mesh Direct.

ABOUT MESH DIRECT
At Mesh Direct we are a truly national business delivering all over Australia. All our products are printed in Australia using the finest substrate and inks on the market. Please give us a call on 1300 368 798 for a no obligation quotation for your next project.

• banner design
• Banner Mesh
• branded banners
• building signs
• building site signage
• Building Wraps
• construction advertising
• Construction signage
• grand format printing
• Large scale projects
• outdoor signage
• Shade Cloth
• Vinyl

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Have you seen the Anzac tribute banner in Martin Place?

May 13, 2015 / in Blog / by Mesh Direct / No Comments

Mesh Direct was recently approached by Abacus Property Group prior to the delicate restoration of a heritage sandstone building in Martin Place. We were chosen for this project based on of our depth of experience in grand format printing. We also have the benefit of a world class house design team and for installations an abseil installation crew..

DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS
The brief for this project was to comply with the new policy and guidelines enforcing beautiful hoardings and scaffolding within the City of Sydney.
Mesh Direct worked with the client, the builder and Sydney City Council to achieve this magnificent tribute. The Premiers Department and archival pictures were approved by the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.

TECHNICAL INFORMATION
Mesh Direct used a premium mesh substrate to cover the scaffold, with alloy poles at 3 metre intervals which were attached to the back. The banner was secured with rated cable ties (110kg) and rated straps top and bottom (750kg Strain ). A 15 cm half cut conduit (also known as a ‘plumbers’ pipe) was used on the corners to stop the banner from ripping.

INSTALLATION
Installation provide difficult with Sydney experiencing the worst storm in 30 years. To install safely the wind speed needs to be under 20 km/hr. A break in the weather appeared on Thursday (just prior to Anzac Day Saturday) and a team of five installers, including professional abseilers, began the installation process. In order to comply with OH&S regulations, an RTA permit was set in place and part of Sydney’s busiest streets, Pitt Street, was partly closed. Installation was completed within 11 hours in total. The following day 100 km/hr winds were recorded and the banner sign did not move!!

This banner is available for viewing until the end of July 2015.

A special thank you to RMWATSON , ABACUS PROPERTY GROUP and Sydney City Council.

• banner design
• Banner Mesh
• branded banners
• building signs
• building site signage
• Building Wraps
• construction advertising
• Construction signage
• Vinyl
• vinyl hoardings

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Councils Enforce Beautiful Hoardings

May 13, 2015 / in Blog / by Mesh Direct / No Comments

The City of Sydney Council introduced a new policy and accompanying guidelines as of January 1st 2015, click here. These changes impact all construction hoardings and scaffolding installed within the City of Sydney local government area.

Under this policy, new standards for graphics have been developed that builders must comply with. All hoarding fences and fascias must use set guidelines to ensure an improved appearance and vibrancy. Specific guidelines include:

Scaffolding erected on a public road must be protected at street level by a 2m high ply-sheet hoarding fence; and
Scaffolding can be place on the deck of a hoarding, which can accommodate site sheds.

Graphic displays on hoardings are now mandatory in certain circumstances such as the location (city centre and non-city centre) and the duration of the project. These guidelines allow creative freedom for developers, builders and suppliers and create a visually appealing site. Alternatively, these guidelines will attempt to reduce graffiti and poster damage. Mesh Direct can design and print your site banner using the guidelines set by the City of Sydney Council. Click here for a copy of the creative hoarding guidelines.

Should you require more information or for a confidential discussion about this issue please contact Mesh Direct on 1300 368 978.

• banner design
• Banner Mesh
• branded banners
• building signs
• building site signage
• Building Wraps
• construction advertising
• Construction signage
• Vinyl
• vinyl hoardings

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