Going Green

[signaturesigns]

I have a client that is opening a new eco friendly clothing store. She is trying to obtain Green Certification with her site too.
Any ideas on some "Green" products for her sign? I feel like I dont really know where to start. She is looking for upscale, classy look, it will need to be illuminated.

 

[Checkers]

What's her budget?
Most illuminated signage is already green. The aluminum "can" is recyclable and probably made with recycled materials. Fluorescent and LED lighting is considered energy saving and the plastic used in the faces can be recycled.
The only (potential) issue would be the lettering itself. PVC is not what I would call eco-friendly and, depending on the production method, can generate a lot of waste.

Checkers

 

[signaturesigns]

She has set a side a huge sum of money for signage and advertising. So at this point the sky is the limit. She is a good friend so I dont want to take advantage, but we are totally different thinkers as far as design. I guess I am looking for some unique ideas as far as substrates that can be storefront mounted, that are considered "green" products, She is in a strip mall, that mostly has channel letters. I want her to stand out. I was hoping to use Goose Necks to illuminate, or maybe some LED's. Unfortunately, I cant even get myself started on a design because I just dont know what to use. Plus, she picked out this awful clipart to use as a logo. I really dont like it, its obvisous that its clipart, its "cheap" looking. I want to come up with a sign that can help me illiminate the clipart all together.

 

[ScooterX]

Here are some ideas:

low end: painted lettering (I just did a 20 square foot sign for $750... used three ounces of paint, one paper cup, 20 feet of pattern paper, and some masking tape...)

basic: cut the lettering/design from wood (use ISC-certified MDO, or certified 1x siding) and back-light with LED. use a low-VOC paint for the MDO or stain for the wood.

more deluxe: same as above, but add cut-out aluminum letters over the wood (wood centers with metal outlines or wood outlines with metal centers). Gemini internally recycles all their scrap aluminum, so I consider their metal letters to be a "green" material. Their CAB letters are probably also acceptable, but its a harder sell.

super-deluxe: go look around at a junk yard, salvage yard, or whatever you have out your way. maybe there are some junked materials you can re-use. (I dunno... refrigerator doors? truck windows? safety-glas shower doors?); more labor for you... I saw some really great stuff recently made by "weaving" together old fence wire, barbed wire and rebar...

 

[gps-hi]

Whatever you decide on, may a suggest labeling it somehow to indicate how/why it is green? Even it is green, it may be too esoteric for anyone to understand how so and if she really wants to do it than she can use the sign and it's label to further green education while bolstering her green credentials.

 

[fatdogvw]

Dye sublimation fabric banners. The ink is water based and Polyester can be recycled.

 

[jdigital]

First of all, what type of printers so you have? UV, solvent? The "greenest" ink available that is not Bio-based would have to be UV or Dye. UV contains no harmful solvent characteristics and yes Dye sub is water based.

Second, if you want to make banners for the store I would suggest BioFlex for your solvent machines and Ecomedia banners for a UV machine. They are both biodegradable with no toxins.

Another option for an outdoor sign to be somewhat "green" would be to use a re-grind PETG. It's made 80/20. 20% reground PETG. It's not biodegradable but you're using scraps to create new material. You could either print directly or apply vinyl.

 

[signaturesigns]

I have an edge, nothing big. I am a small shop, I outsource my bigger prints. I prefer to not use vinyl at all. I was hoping to do Dimensional lettering of some sort. On a nice "green" sub surface with some sort of lighting. I am getting into this a little more, excited about my options. Would like something unique, that really stands out, but looks classy and upscale. She is a high end retail business apparel store.

 

[signaturesigns]

Thank you all so much for your suggestions. I will start to try and figure some ideas for layout with these suggestions. Feel free to keep the ideas rolling, maybe someone will spark another great idea I can run with.

 

[bob]

And when you're all done and you see yourselves as being greener than a stalk of asparagus you can look back and realize that the actual effects your efforts have had on anything at all are none whatsoever.

 

[coyote]

Bob the wet blanket--------

Going green, in this economy, will give your shop an edge. This is the future of building, like it or not. If you can offer LEED certified products, your customers may be entitled to tax credits. If nothing else, you will be offering a product that is different. Whether or not it cures global warming or makes a difference in the world, it will help YOUR bottom line.

We used a farm raised balsa product, (don't know if it's still available) for sandblasted signs for the Nature Conservancy. They wanted a sustainably produced product for their preserves. You can use low VOC paints, you can use recycled materials. You can also use other woods that are certified as being from sustainable areas. Check with your local office of LEED certification. Do a bit of googling, you'll find out tons.
good luck, C

 

[Signs365]

Bob the wet blanket--------

Going green, in this economy, will give your shop an edge.

Going green will also legitimize the monsters that make up the lies that are initiating a tax on Carbon... a tax on your right to breathe. Yeah great business move.

CAP AND TRADE BABY!!!!!!


Matt

 

[jiarby]

tell her that sintra is made from old milk jugs

 

[Cross Signs]

I make "Green" signs....also red, yellow and blue ones.

 

[fatdogvw]

From my experience UV inks are not green. I uses to work on a Durst Pictor and when ever we had to get near the ink we had to wear gloves and safety equipment. The container stated that the ink was poison if it came in contact with the skin, and that's just the ink. The cleaning solution melted my flash light. I don't know if other Uv inks are this harmful, hopefully not.

 

[jdigital]

Of course it all depends on how you look at it. UV inks are environmentally friendly, because unlike solvent-based inks, 100 percent of the ink is used. UV ink is a two-part acrylic epoxy, the A part is the ink itself with recepters to be activated by the B part which is UV light. The UV rays from a light source quickly activate and start a cure process to harden the ink, rather than being evaporated like solvent based ink. UV ink is an instant cure (dry) process, which means no dry time, that means no wasted time. Some forget about that resource.

 

[jdigital]

One more option for material is a product called Eco-Glass. It's made from soda bottles. It's available right next door to us. I've printed on it with our UV flatbed with great success. I'm sure you could apply vinyl lettering as well. The company is ecosystemsdisplays.com

 

[Joe Diaz]

You don't get any more eco-friendly then a hand painted mural, in my opinion. The wall surface becomes the substrate (so no need to worry about whether the surface material your sign is made of is made from recyclable materials), and you eliminate the need for petroleum based vinyl products (more importantly the waste created from discarded vinyl scraps, transfer tape, backing and so on). Even though not all paints are considered totally eco friendly, they produce considerably less waste. No need to power your printer or plotter or machinery. So less energy is involved.

 

[signaturesigns]

So whats everyones thoughts on Precision board?
www.precisionboard.com

Says its "green" HDU foam.

 

[Biker Scout]

Going Green these days is really about re-hashing old or long forgotten ideas. Put a new spin on things, so to speak. It all boils down to communication with your client and you the seller/designer to have the presence and confidence in your products.

It's really about re-explaining things by using green terminology, buzz words, and industry jargon.

Glass is Green, because it's highly recyclable with minimum environmental footprint. (It's melted sand)

Aluminum is one of the most recycled metals on the planet... that and steel.
(What they forget to tell everyone is how much electricity is needed to melt down the raw silica and alumina elements) But it's still being touted as a green solution.

PVC, HDPE both highly recyclable. (Mums the word on how much oil/petroleum it takes for 1 lb. of plastic pellets) Even still, "Green Solution"

Bamboo is enjoying a rapid market share expansion... it's technically a grass, not a wood... but works just the same.

Compressed Sunflower Seeds & Epoxy are showing up as a faux stone looking material for counter tops in businesses.

Corn based inks are just around the corner as replacements to the mild and eco solvent inks. Mutoh is field testing their Mubio Inks right now in one of their printers. They will probably have it perfected in a year or so, that anyone with a eco or mild solvent printer would be able to buy Mubio Inks and use them as direct replacements?

It just really depends on how much hot air you are willing to blow up someone's skirt. Now the more successful "Green Team Salesmen" actually believe in what they are doing with such conviction, it's hard not to jump on board with anything they have to pitch.