What happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas

We had the good fortune to attend the International Sign Association tradeshow in Las Vegas on April 5th and 6th, 2013. What an amazing show. We were able to find new exciting products, ideas and services while walking down nearly each and every aisle. This was not a case of information overload, it was a case of information on target. You could feel the energy and see the results from hard working people all over the world coming together to show the fruits of their labors. The beneficiaries were for all attendees to see and discover.

Below are some of the highlights:

We found a large format printer that prints 104″ wide with superb quality and amazing speed at a price point that makes economic sense to investigate further. Why is that important? Speed allows us to produce jobs faster so when you need a group of banners, posters or pressure sensitive vinyl decals in a hurry, you will have a reliable source to turn to when you need that next client miracle.
New Innovation in Retractable Displays – Versa Telescoping Retractor Kit–
We found a brand new retractable that allows the user to change
graphics by just inserting a new graphic cassette. While this is not an
entirely new concept, this particular new unit is the most economical
and easy to change system I have found to date. I plan to write a more
thorough review in the weeks ahead
Floor Graphics – We found a company that makes a counter mat and floor mat rubber shell that allows you to print changeable graphics for the shells. This allows you to tailor a promotion for a particular product or service right at the point of sale. You can put your best foot forward…so to speak.
LED Backlit display -25″ x 31″ Crystal Edge Light Box Kit.
Wow, there is nothing like seeing a backlit LED sign first hand. The
particular kit I like is one that not only includes nice “stand off”
hanging hardware for attaching to a wall but also includes a mechanism
allowing it to be self standing as well. Very nice. Plus you can easily
change the graphics buy just sliding in and out new backlit prints. This
is great for offices, Point of Purchase and windows.
Car Wraps. The hot thing in vehicle wraps is not just beautiful graphics and ad placements on cars and trucks but also now you can basically just repaint your car with out paint. You want fire engine red, pick premade fire engine red vinyl and your graphics provided will cover your car in fire engine red vinyl. When they are done it will look like the perfect paint job but only better. It is better because after a few years, you can remove the vinyl and your original paint job will be shiny brand new below. What an innovation for car care.
RIP Software. This is the nuts and bolts stuff that takes the data when you hit print and actually reads the data and sends it to the printer. Good rip software provides all kinds of business management controls such as giving a report as to how much ink the printer used, how long the processing took and how long it took to print and that is just the tip of the iceberg. Needless to say if you are trying to figure out how much to charge for your work, this is a must kind of thing to understand.
Flat Bed Printers everywhere. Two years ago we attended this show and purchased our first flat bed printer. At the time we chose the model that gave the best quality that also included a white ink and spot varnish option. That decision has served us well and propelled is into many new markets as a result. Today we can take virtually any hard surface material and lay it in our printer and print directly onto it. This has ranged from foam core, coroplast, styrene, plywood aluminum sheeting, etc. Our next purchase will focus on throughput, ease of use and 2/Sided printing abilities.