Leading the way in outdoor graphics
The Brief
Outdoor advertising company JCDecaux requested Cestrian’s specialist attention to improve the quality of several fabric graphic displays at Heathrow Airport for their client Burberry, who had been dissatisfied with the finish and colour of another printer’s output.
Challenge
Burberry had booked out-of-home (OOH) media space LED lightboxes at Heathrow Airport Terminals 2 and 5. The artwork was mainly deep black, which can pose a problem for many printers. JCDecaux’s quality assurance process found a number of issues, including:
The density of black ink was very poor; even translucent in places – The surrounding panels at the airport were a deep black, which made the problem worse (Burberry’s prints looked green, by comparison) – The light needed to penetrate areas such as the Burberry logo, while blocking out the black areas – Colours were inconsistent between the lightboxes and front-lit graphics – Visibly poor-quality material had been used for the front-lit graphics
Solution
The Cestrian team took a carefully detailed approach to solve each of the issues, including the use of:
- White ink technology to add further density to the black, allowing light to glow through the logo and text
- Vinyl cutting for the logo and text, which were attached to the reverse before eradication at the next stage of printing
- A four-colour printing process on the face of the substrate, to ensure density
We printed onto high-quality fabric graphic using our Durst Rho 500R and EFI Vutek presses, which are capable of printing widths of 5m and 3.2m respectively. The Vutek possess white ink technology, which is rare, yet vital for creating the level of density required.
We also used fire-retardant materials and fire-retardant inks, both approved by JCDecaux and Heathrow Airport, which is very important in busy public areas.
Results
JCDecaux were thrilled with the sharp, robust results, which their client Burberry described as ‘stunning’ – and also said they looked more like digital screens than prints.
As Cestrian has worked in the OOH media sector for 25 years, we understand the challenges that businesses face in different environments. Our outdoor team knows how to get the best results out of each display product; while our world-class printing equipment gives us a substantial advantage.
"Working with experts is always a pleasurable experience; and especially when paired with the right technology and practical know-how,” said our contact at JCDecaux. “Cestrian struck the right balance in their work for us and we were so pleased to be able to consult with them to get the best results."
