Real Men Wrap Pink

After years of being a disease whose treatment lacked sufficient funding and research, breast-cancer sufferers will hopefully benefit from increased attention and donations. More than 200,000 new cases have been diagnosed in 2010, and approximately 40,000 people have died from it. Breast cancer gained much publicity from the NFL’s ‘Real Men Wear Pink” campaign – in which players wore pink gloves, shoes and other equipment – but other, more understated contributions helped the cause as well.

Vic and Laura Gerhardt, owners of Above Board Construction (Chesterton, IN), plan to contribute $10,000 to St. Anthony’s Memorial Breast Center in Michigan City, IN. To raise the funds, they hired Digital Graphics Solutions (DGS) Valparaiso, IN, to decorate the company’s box truck for promotional purposes. In turn, DGS donated its design services, and handled the wrap’s fabrication and installation for half the normal price, according to DGS president Mark Trumbull.

After crafting the design using Adobe Creative Suite 5, the shop used naphtha to remove all wax and oil building from the truck and cleaned off additional residue with an isopropyl-alcohol wipedown.
The shop produced the 400-sq.-ft. wrap on Arlon DPF6000XRP X-Scape 2-mil, cast film with its Seiko H104s printer. To protect the film, DGS coated the 16 panels using Arlon’s 3220 glossy, cast laminate, which it applied with AGL 6400 laminator.

Trumbull said the project was challenging because of the ½-in.-thick, silver-dollar-size rivet covers that covered the sides. To negotiate application over the rivets, DGS installers used torches and heat guns, and used 3M’s Primer 94 to adhere the wrap over the rivets, hinges, caulk lines and rubber trim. Trumbull added, “This project also needed extensive, proficient knife work to secure the film around the door and access-panel hardware.”