FIRST PLACE
Fabricator
Accent Sign & Awning
Houston
(713) 470-8731
www.accentsignco.com
Designer
Ethan Newton
Client
Aunique
Kudos to this farm-equipment vendor for investing in a unique sign (usually such companies spec standard-issue cabinet signs or channel letters). Accent designer Ethan Newton said, “They asked us to create something fun and unique, and they loved the tree idea.”
Newton designed the sign with CorelDRAW and BobCAD 3-D software, and fabricator Jack Persey built the framework from aluminum, fabricated the top cabinets on the shop’s MultiCam 3000 CNC router, and applied second-surface acrylic clad in ivory-colored, translucent vinyl. Jaime Gutierrez decorated it with Matthews acrylic-polyurethane paint in varying shades to create the appearance of depth. A Daktronics 19mm LED message board informs passing motorists about the shop’s available merchandise.
SECOND PLACE
Fabricator
Gardner Sign Co.
Troy, MI and Toledo, OH
(248) 689-9100
www.gardnersigns.com
Designer
Dawn Funck
Client
Freedom Hill Music Theatre/Luna Entertainment
Sterling Heights, MI’s Freedom Hill Music Theatre hosts events from spring through fall. The display’s cabinet comprises a fabricated-aluminum structure and exterior aluminum cladding that’s painted with Akzo Nobel’s Grip-Gard acrylic-polyurethane paint. The Macomb County emblem was created from routed aluminum and applied 3M reflective vinyl.
The main cabinet contains an aluminum face decked out with push-through, ¾-in.-thick acrylic rendered on a MultiCam A Series table router. The cabinet face contains first-surface, vinyl drop shadows applied with 3M opaque vinyl cut on a Mimaki CG-160 FX vinyl cutter. The secondary guitar cabinet is illuminated with SloanLED VL Plus White modules. The routed-aluminum guitar face features push-through, clear acrylic that’s decorated with first-surface, translucent vinyl and a second-surface, diffuser film. Gardner Signs installed the signs with SloanLED Colorline tubing. The Watchfire XVS 19mm RGB display operates with Ignite Graphics software, creates up to 590 quintillion colors, and runs video at up to 60 frames per second.
THIRD PLACE
Fabricator
DeNyse Companies
Douglasville, GA
(770) 942-0688
www.denyseco.com
Designer
Mike Butler
Client
City of Winder, GA
Rough-sawn, 8-in.-diameter, cedar posts and a stacked-stone foundation set the stage for a homespun display that welcomes drivers to Winder, GA, a town 45 minutes away from Atlanta that still possesses country charm. DeNyse MIG-welded the aluminum cabinet that houses the Adaptive Displays 20mm display with a Miller MIG welder. The main panel comprises push-through clear acrylic that’s decorated with first-surface applied HDU letters. The city seal was routed with ½-in. acrylic that’s covered with first-surface 3M translucent vinyl. Because the sign was shipped in one piece, two trucks were used to stand the sign up for installation.