Graphic Components Is Growing Fast!

Graphic Components Is Growing Fast!

BIG NEWS! Graphic Components was honored, for the 2nd year in a row, to be recognized as one of the 50 Fastest Growing Companies in the Piedmont Triad Region of North Carolina (population of nearly 2 million people). We ranked #29 out 50.

We owe our growth and success to our customers!
#customerservice

 

Photopolymer ADA Signs Are Better For The Environment

Photopolymer ADA Signs Are Better For The Environment

3 HIDDEN ENVIRONMENTAL COSTS OF THERMOFORMING

When putting together a new project, architects and designers place a special focus on the materials they use, gravitating towards materials that both perform as engineered and cause minimal impact to the environment. The problem is the decision on materials, more often than not, does not extend to signage, leaving an area open that can potentially increase the impact on the environment.

 

Thermoforming, also referred to as compression, is a highly vandal-resistant process within the sign industry. Similar to photopolymer signs, thermoformed signs are produced as a single piece; however, the process of creating them is very different and is seen to be harmful for the environment in several ways.

1. Thermoforming Utilizes Excessive Energy + Resources

Requiring a separate processing machine, a CNC router, special materials, and more, thermoforming is an energy intensive process. The process involves an extremely large amount of heat to form the acrylic signs, power to run the machines, and complete all of the routing. Some companies do not regularly count routing as a cost, but it should be noted that thermoforming consumes a significant amount of routing time that could otherwise be used for other fabricating applications. Combine all of this together and it is easy to see how exhaustive the thermoforming process can be for companies and the environment.

2. Thermoforming Does Not Support Recycling

To begin the thermoforming process, a mirror image of the desired sign must be routed into a mold, which includes letters, pictograms, and braille. This mold is then placed inside of the press with the acrylic that has been trimmed down to the same size as the mold. Special materials are also added to separate the acrylic from the mold. Once the two pieces are separated, the process is complete and you now have your fully acrylic sign, but what do you do with the mold?

“99 times out of 100, you’ll never be able to use [the mold] again. So, you just have to throw it away. The nature of ADA signage is that you make a sign to identify a room by either a unique number or name, so, for example, you really can’t have two Room 101s in the same building,” said Vince Cvijanovic, Co-Owner of Graphic Components. “And, the molds are pionite laminate, making it very difficult to recycle.”

3. Thermoforming Is Vulnerable to Mistakes

The abundance of resources and equipment needed for thermoforming creates many opportunities for the process to go wrong. If there is a mistake on the mold, the whole mold will go to waste and the sign to will have to restart. ADA laws and regulations state that signs that designate permanent rooms and spaces must have a tactile depth of 1/32” minimum. With photopolymer, this requirement is never an issue; however, if there is a routing issue within thermoforming or fluctuation in the amount of pressure and/or heat, the sign may not be deep enough to be ADA compliant—creating more wasted materials, resources and time.

Overall, perceived the low cost of thermoforming comes at a high price for the environment. Between the significant number of resources, the inability to recycle, and the high risk of mistakes, thermoforming has a fairly large carbon footprint compared to photopolymer signage.

Photopolymer ADA signs are the most established type of ADA signs and are among the most vandal resistant. NovAcryl PT series photopolymer is the greenest and most versatile line of signage photopolymers ever introduced. Features include a unique, clear PETG sign base that contains a minimum of 40% post-industrial recycled content which is resilient and shatterproof.

 

GRAPHIC COMPONENTS IS A 

Want to learn more about Photopolymer? CLICK HERE!

CLICK HERE to see more of our processes!

 

Hope Academy Student Visit – September 17, 2019

Hope Academy Student Visit – September 17, 2019

Hope Academy is a local middle school that exists to serve students that are socio-economically disadvantaged. At least 80% of the student’s families have a household income that is near or below the federal poverty guidelines. Hope Academy currently serves grades 5-8th, with plans to add elementary grades in future years.

The team at Graphic Components want to help our local community to thrive so we made the decision to manufacture and donate a complete interior wayfinding sign project to the school. We completed the project in August 2019.

Today we were honored to have four 8th grade students together with the Head of School – Josh Mullins and Development Director – Susie Guhne visit us and show their appreciation of our donation by bringing coffee and donuts for our entire team! We gave the students a tour of our facility and taught them about what we do and gave them a brief introduction to the exciting world of signage. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the visit!

We have an on-going commitment to continue to manufacture and donate signs to the school for the benefit of the students with future signs focused on the areas of Inspiration and Recognition.

We also want to recognize the contribution made by Dan Scranton with ProUp Services who donated his time to design all of the interior signs.

You can learn more about Hope Academy at their website - https://www.hopegso.org/

Graphic Components August 2019 Newsletter

Graphic Components August 2019 Newsletter

The Team at Graphic Components has been working exceptionally hard over the last several months, and we will always strive to be your most reliable outsource vendor.

Our goal is to ship at least 95% of all orders complete & on-time to the date promised when we received the order.

For the first 6 months of 2019 we have shipped 1,423 orders.

  • 1,397 were shipped complete & on-time – 98.11%!

Even better! We have been regularly shipping orders complete and EARLY!

For the first 6 months of 2019 we have shipped 1,423 orders.

  • 1,243 shipped EARLY!

#adasignage

#SuperiorCustomerService

Congratulations, Phil!

Congratulations, Phil!

Proud that our business partner - Phil Lawrence - was selected to be one of the ISA Elite this year.  Phil had the opportunity to meet & get to know many of the future leaders of our industry.  Since the ISA Expo we have had several opportunities to share ideas and challenges with each other.

Our Commitment to Sustainability

Our Commitment to Sustainability

Graphic Components recognized for 3rd year in a row for continued commitment to sustainability thru the reclamation of 20,025 pounds of plastic material utilizing Piedmont Plastics Recycling Program in 2018! #sustainability

Graphic Components March Newsletter

Stairwell Egress Signs

Look to Graphic Components for all your Stairwell Egress Sign Needs. We make thousands of these sign types every year for our sign company customers. We always advise that you contact the local Fire Marshall’s office having jurisdiction for your client’s project to confirm their requirements as they vary in term of size, copy, and braille.

You will most often see the requirement for Photoluminescent materials for Stairwell Egress Signage in the following circumstances

  • New Construction six stories and taller
  • Major Renovation six stories and taller
  • Hotel + Motel + Office + Hospital

Many municipalities are now requiring the use of Photoluminescent materials for Stairwell Egress Signage. We have partnered with American PERMALIGHT, Inc., Rowmark and NOVA Polymers who are the leading suppliers of the raw materials we use to create Photoluminescent signage. Contact us for assistance with these sign types.

Graphic Components March 2019 Newsletter

Graphic Components February Newsletter

Graphic Components, Newsletter

2018 Was a Great Year!

Thanks to the loyalty and business provided by our customers we produced over 100,000 signs in 2018. First time we have ever produced that many signs.

As a demonstration of our commitment to Superior Customer Service we fulfilled 2,707 orders in 2018 and of those over 96% were shipped complete and on-time to the date that we promised when we received the order from our customers. That is one of the highest accomplishments possible in the sign industry considering that every order is custom and most signs within each order are different from the others.

Our entire team is focused on making signs that are of the highest quality, matching customer designs and intent and making the experience an pleasant one for our sign company customers. Our customers don’t have to worry about getting their signs on-time.

When Performance Counts, Sign Companies Can Count on Graphic Components!

Latest News

LATEST NEWS: Phil Lawrence Named to Sign, Graphics and Visual Communications Industry Program for Emerging Leaders

ISA Elite program to recognize young talent

ALEXANDRIA, VA – February 22, 2019 Phil Lawrence, General Manager & Co-Owner of Graphic Components of Greensboro, NC, has been named to the ISA Elite program, recognizing the next generation of sign, graphics and visual communications industry leaders. Phil Lawrence was among 37 young professionals chosen for the program, which sponsors the winners to attend ISA International Sign Expo® in Las Vegas including special networking events, education and, of course, its trade show. The event is sponsored by the International Sign Association®, the industry’s leading trade and advocacy association.

phil lawrence

Phil Lawrence is co-owner and General Manager of a Wholesale-only ADA and Interior Sign company, Graphic Components.  Professionally, he has worked in the Digital and Offset printing industry for 6 years before moving into the sign industry for the last 6 years.  His concentration at work is production management, developing processes, and building a team-based culture.  Phil has a BFA in Design with a concentration in Graphic Design from UNC Greensboro. Phil is married to Lynn (also a team member at Graphic Components) and together they have two dogs and enjoys playing Disc Golf as a sport.  Phil volunteers for the Professional Disc Golf Association as the State Coordinator for North Carolina, while hosting events locally as the President of the local club.

“Our association, tradeshow and industry have been transformed by the energy that the ISA Elite brings each year,” said Lori Anderson, ISA president and CEO. “Already, past Elite members are giving back, serving on committees and boards of ISA and ISA regional affiliates. We’re excited to have Phil join this prestigious group and look forward to the insights that each member of the 2019 class brings.

The ISA Elite program, now in its fifth year, includes three nights’ hotel accommodation and free entry to all education sessions at ISA International Sign Expo 2019, the sign, graphics and visual communications industry’s leading event. It also includes unique networking opportunities with fellow professionals and industry leaders. A two-day follow-up leadership conference will be held in the fall. ISA International Sign Expo takes place April 24-26 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, with education events starting on April 23. Learn more at www.signexpo.org.

Superior Packaging

Superior Packaging

Graphic Components December Newsletter

Superior Packaging

Graphic Components provides another benefit – superior packaging – which allows for clear visibility of each sign, while providing safe transport from our shop to yours and to the ultimate installation destination. The film is easily removable at the point of installation. The Superior Packaging method is exclusive to Graphic Components.

  • Signs are placed onto corrugated pads
  • Shrink film is heated then vacuum applied to hold the signs securely in place
  • Signs on pads are packed into double wall cartons for safe transport
  • Note the border, which provides extra protection if the box is handled roughly.

Check out more processes on our website!

View our December newsletter HERE.