What kind of shop do you have?

[iSign]

I see this is a very old post, but here's 2 long posts about my shop:

http://www.letterhead.com/ubb-cgi/ultimatebb.cgi/topic/1/35428.html?#000000

http://www.letterhead.com/ubb-cgi/ultimatebb.cgi/topic/1/35779.html?#000000

here is a pic from one of them:

 

[ovrcafnatd]

Basement and Garage....
have quickly run out of room!!!
Would like to have a nice plot of land for home and steel building for shop
(ahhhh a place to pull in a truck to work on would be nice)
Maybe someday.

Literally have to rent out space from someone when I
sub-out signs that get shipped crated - no more room!!!
Scary thing is,,,,we could do these ourselves very easily, but
we've NO space

Sorry, but it's good to see we're not the only ones.

 

[threeputt]

4800 square feet. Nice showroom, lots of samples. 9 foot overhead door in rear of building for vehicles. Separate area for messy stuff like saws, vehicles, painting, general work.

Clean area for two design stations where printers, cutters, laminator, vinyl storage are. Gotta keep that stuff separated.

Two nice private offices.

 

[GregT]

2700 square feet. On 2 levels, ground floor has counter for taking orders, computer desk (2 file cabinets with door for desk top). 4'x 8' work table, table saw, drill press, compressors, etc. Upstairs is for storage of supplies and a "kids" area with TV and DVD and little desks for young artist.

 

[Cadmn]

1 bedroom corner My computer desk living room 1/2 My wifes office area. Foemal living is work table & my signage area. 3rd bedroom Wifes embroidery /sewing room & 25 Y.O. daughters bedroom. Garage has welder, chop saw, work bench with tool boxesall my "hobby toys"( metalworking)

 

[Bigdawg]

We have a large corner shop in downtown - lotsa windows in the front room w/a half door counter to the back (where customers don't get to come in) THen a large room with the cutter, the vinyl and the mac setup. I have big office with 10-12 foot layout counter and then another room w/layout counter. Another small office and a crammed screenprinting room... and we need more space.. trying to rent the connecting office next door.

 

[Bobby H]

Wasn't there another thread along the lines of this subject not too long ago? Oh well.

Our shop is fairly roomy for just over 20 employees (I've lost count; we hired an additional neon artist last week). The main shop is over 15,000 sq.ft. and most of the metal work happens there. We also park our three crane trucks in there after hours to fight "midnight auto supply." The smaller shop has our vacuum forming machine, routing tables, neon plant and other storage. The design studio and offices are in the front and the paint booth is in the back, in a separate standalone building.

We're now down to 11 computers (after tossing a couple old ones). These things accumulate! One aging system will get replaced this week with a new Pentium D 920 based unit loaded with a good number of features to make it agile enough to handle both routine sign design tasks and do some serious After Effects 7 motion graphics work for LED video message centers.

 

[roxym]

I'm very lucky, have a 70' by 85' steel building, a 40' bi-fold door and another 18' by 14' overhead door. One corner houses my CNC machine and welding equipment and another corner is my house! We built our home right inside the building. It's two story with a 35' x 28' loft where I do the vinyl work. The building doubles as a farm shop and hanger, have an airplane under the loft for quick escapes. It's a wonderful setup for this rural area, most of my customers come to me and can do installs comfortably all year round. We do have airplanes fly in and can also run them in the shop for graphic work. Love walking right out of my house and into the shop, especially during our bad winters. Like I said, I'm pretty lucky!

 

[pgettys]

well let's see
we just moved from a 20'x20' garage to a 9,000 sqft office warehouse with a 10x10 door up front and a 12x12 door in the back Clean rooms for houseing my roland 545ex, versacamm 300, cx300, 38inch laminator, 65inch laminator we are not completely moved in yet should be up and running monday morning i am hoping if all goes well.

will post pics when i get it organized

 

[ChiknNutz]

Well I guess since I started this thread I should post my setup. When I first posted that, I believe I was in our old house that is now a rental. My "shop" was a 12' x 12' room and the garage when I needed it. We've since bought a house with a decent 20' x 36' shop behind the house, but it really isn't big enough. It is nice with an office and bathroom in it, and I had a proper heating system installed last fall (on trade of course). My goal is to move into an industrial location at least 3X this size so I can do this right and then be able to hire some much needed help.

 

[gvgraphics]

I feel so much better now seeing that I am not the only person attempting to do this out of my home!! We have a small room off of our kitchen that serves as the main area where we keep our vinyl cutter, desktop pc and laptop. As well as the washer and dryer, lol, and a table that doubles as a work table and laundry folding space! And the breakfast bar in the kitchen serves as a work table when we need more work space. We don't have anywhere to do vehicle graphics so we have to try to schedule those things around the weather which is a pain.

 

[sullosau]

mine started from a spare bedroom which has now grown into storage for vinyl mugs screens inks you name its there plus everything that got moved from garage, dining room now has two computers, 3 printers and a cutter, laundry is screen prep room, garage is screen printing and tools for day job and just enough room for motorbike! Ive told my fiance I need to move!
I dont want to let the business grow just yet, I want to consolidate what Im doing now until out of control but in control enough to take the jump which Im planing this end of year when its quiet enough to move.
And I also live here

Steve

 

[SignMan Sez]

Had an 1,100 sq. ft. shop that was destroyed by arson (the guy in the rental house next door) 5 years ago. Then bought a 14' X 28' and a 12' X 20' pre-fab building and placed on the back lot of the house we were renting at the time, but anticipated purchasing (which we did in '03). I now have an 1,800 sq.ft. turn of the century brick barn with a 10' overhead door downtown. I should have it "up & running" complete with sign by late spring.

 

[Bob 67]

I have been working out of my home now for 5 years, and im still married! Ive got two computers in the living room, versacamm in spare room and my plotter in the basement with the tables and supplies. But, it has paid off. My bank finally purchased my first building yesterday! Only 300 more payments to go and its mine. I bought a unit in a light industrial strip that is still under construction, 1450 sq. ft. on the main floor with a 12' roll up and tons of parking for larger vehicles. I'm hoping they will be finished end of april. I need to pick out heating and lighting for the building in the next two weeks, Anyone have likes or dislikes on their systems?

Bob.

 

[Arlo Kalon 2.0]

I can remember as a teenager - inspired by a legendary "one armed" sign painter in the town where I lived - "beginning" my business in my Mom's kitchen (before computers of course). She DID NOT talke kindly to the day I pounced a pattern with the sprocket wheel pouncer on her kitchen table top, and had a VERY visible, permanent layout of the sign I was gonna do on her nice wooden table top! (NOBODY had told me to put cardboard under the paper!).

BIGGEST shop I had was an aircraft hangar that's now a flight museum big enough for a restored B17 WW2 bomber! I had three complete 18 wheeler rigs in it once to letter! Got tired of pigeons expressing their opinions of my signs from the rafters, and so got a smaller place eventually - sans birds.

Currently have a "typical" small shop, about 1800s.f. w/ 2 ofcs & warehouse w/OH door. Getting ready to add second & third plotters to the mix, since I THINK Omega can run up to five at once? Newest area I want to pursue is something I saw "A DAVE 800" I think mention in here, printing sports team and school decals. He's far enough away from me in Texas I don't think there's much chance we'll be bidding against each other (TX is a BIG state!).

Last thing... I have a storefront I use to a lot of advantage for advertising myself. Y'all have an excellent day!
Arlo

 

[hammered]

Im in a small garden apartment with a garage. My computer and plotter are in the apartment, but all my weeding equipment is in the garage. Once I get everything orginized, Ill use the garage for vehicle lettering.

 

[OldPaint]

i had a store front for 20 months here in pcola. had to close it up and back to house. i have a bedroom 12x 14 i use as the computer/plotter/weeding room. it right off the 12x20 carport where i have a 4x8 easel set up on the wall.
can do most vehicles in the carport or yard. i jst built this 24x30 commercial metal building(140 MPH wind load)on the property. iam close to $20k into it and the wife and i did most of the building.

 

[Cadmn]

OP those floors lookslick NIce stuff & the guard Cat in pic one.

 

[South End Signs]

I went from a home-based shop in my apartment to a small storefront sublet in a UPS Store location on a 6 month lease with option to renew upon a renegotiated rent amount come June '06. Well the store has been sold and the new franchisee told me the new rental rate today - I'll be moving everything back home come June as I refuse to pay what I find to be too high of a figure for the location. Its not like the UPS customers have been my bread and butter and my regulars will know where to find me.

Now I've also heard that someone else with a business deemed to compliment the UPS offerings has been chasing this space ever since I got into the lease. I wonder if they are the reason for a higher than average rental rate being announced.

Looks like the 2 minute commute from home to the shop will go back to being a 15 second commute each day.

Jean-Claude

 

[Victory Signs]

My shop is a 36 x 45 with 2 12 foot roll up doors. The graphics room is 16 x 20 and in it I keep my computer, a 24 inch cutter, a 36 inch cutter, a 40" x 60" light table, my heat press and 2 lunchroom style work tables.