Obviously, the food-truck phenomenon has been a terrific way to provide foodies of modest means access to globe-spanning areas of cuisine. Of no less importance, it’s also given new life to delivery trucks that would’ve been relegated to the junkyard (or worse, becoming Mister Softee trucks that beckon to – or frighten – children as they blare “The Entertainer” from tinny loudspeakers) and given vehicle-wrap providers an expansive canvas for providing tantalizing, slightly edgy graphics.
SunPro Graphics (Edison, NJ) resurrected a former DHL truck from such a dire fate by decking it out for Marci Smith-Carano’s food truck. Mamma Marci’s serves up Italian entrees, salads and breads throughout Hoboken, Jersey City and NYC. After Marci had the truck repainted and retrofitted with a kitchen to meet her specs, she summoned SunPro to outfit it with cheerful graphics that immediately put viewers in the mood for comfort food.
“Thanks to a new paint job, not much prep work was required besides a wash and alcohol wipedown,” said Bill Eng, SunPro’s owner.
Using Adobe Creative Suite 5, which includes the Photoshop and Illustrator programs, SunPro’s designers worked with Marci to create her caricature and the kitchen-like backdrop. To meet the customer’s deadline, SunPro output the approximately 3,500-sq.-ft. wrap on three Roland SolJet Pro II printers with Eco-Sol MAX low-solvent inks and the machine’s onboard VersaWorks RIP. (Since the installation, Eng said the shop has installed an HP L25500 latex-ink printer, which is outfitted with Onyx Graphics’ ProductionHouse® 10, a RIP that he commended for its color-profiling acumen.) The shop printed the wrap over seven panels that were installed in areas where the seams could be integrated without altering registration, such as around the front doors and in other integral vehicle seams. For the media, the shop selected Arlon’s DPF 6000XRP material, with the company’s X-Scape air-release system, which is protected with Arlon’s 3220 crystal-finish glossy overlaminate. A 63-in.-wide, heat-assist laminator applied the topcoat.
SunPro installed the wrap within the confines of its 5,000-sq.-ft. installation bay, which is equipped with a forced-air heating system and supplemental radiant heaters installed in the shop. Installers finessed the film into place with 3M Gold nylon squeegees and a rivet sealer to ensure minimal tenting along the truck’s rub rails. Over rivets and contours, SunPro’s team smoothed the material into place with heat guns and torches used interchangeably.
“We’ve seen a lot of improvements in terms of printers, inks and materials that have helped us do our jobs, but no installation tools have proven better than what we’ve trusted for years,” Eng said. “We’ve done dozens of food-truck installations, and each presents different challenges. In this case, we had to account for the unusual dimensions of the serving windows, and we had to be careful using our propane torches with the material so we wouldn’t scorch the awnings.”
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