Business - Applications

Pixartprinting has created a printed magazine holder made from honeycomb cardboard - the Magazoo.  Ideal for creative outlets, stands and showrooms as well as offices and even homes, MagaZoo is recyclable, durable and features a lightweight chassis created from smooth white 10mm thick paper to provide for a multitude of bespoke graphics on the outside. There is something for everyone: dog, cat, sheep, turtle, gorilla, swan and many other animals.

Magazoo is a functional object, that perfectly fits into Pixartprinting’s range of design objects and furnishings.  Extremely versatile and environmentally friendly, the magazine holder can also be used as a planter.

Printed on a Durst P10 machine, MagaZoo can be ordered online directly through the e-commerce storefront www.pixartprinting.co.uk. The user can chose the preferred shape of the animal and different kinds of personalisation. Select a graphic online from those already proposed by Pixartprinting on the dedicated page or chose your own branded image. In addition you can give free rein to your creativity and “do it yourself” by ordering MagaZoo in a neutral version (white) and then indulge in decoration with paints, colours, application buttons, paper and ribbons. Once the order is completed, delivery will take place wiithin 48 hours.

Brazil-based Artwork Digital has created two eye-catching and decorative displays for Centro Universitário Una. These exhibits, printed on heavy 5 and 10 mm acrylic using an Inca Spyder 320, also served as containers to be used as recycling bins – one for magazines, books and newspapers, the other for expired prescription medicines.

“Printing on acrylic is always difficult,” notes Rômulo de Abreu Guimarães of Artwork Digital. “We pre-treated it with a primer before sending it to print.” However, each of the bins still presented its own unique print dilemmas. In the case of the paper-recycling container – whose defining feature was a tree towering over the bin – it was the use of solid color that proved challenging. “Printing solid colors on any substrate is tough enough,” adds de Abreu, “but it was even more difficult on the acrylic.” Thankfully, Artwork Digital’s Inca Spyder 320 was more than up to the task: “We printed it on the back of the clear acrylic, and it came out brilliantly,” he said. “We then cut it with a laser machine and assembled it.”

In the case of the prescription medicine container, the desired effect was very different. Instead of solid colors, the client requested the illusion of a tank of fluid. Printing on the back of thick, frosted acrylic created the perfect effect, giving just the right amount of transparency to suggest the appearance of liquid. The result was a display that made people look twice. “It doesn’t contain any real water, but it looks like it does,” declares de Abreu proudly.

“The Inca Spyder 320 allowed us to complete the project on time and to the exact specifications set by the client,” he adds. “Given the demands of both the printing and the substrate, this was something of a miracle.” In addition to catching the attention of countless students from Centro Universitário Una, the attractive, durable displays also impressed the Inca judges, who awarded the project an IDEAS Award in the Décor and Furniture category.

Hampshire Flag Company has donated a wealth of flags and banners to support a charity which helps improve the lives of people with cancer and other life-limiting illnesses.  The flag manufacturer has supplied nine roller banners, two tear drop flags and 10 PVC banners to The Rowans Hospice, which is situated just a few miles away from the firm in Waterlooville.

The flags and banners will boost the charity's efforts to raise its profile and much-needed funds when they are used at a range of events throughout 2013.  These events include the Dying Matters Week taking place this month when The Rowans Hospice will have stands in the community to promote its Make-a-Will fortnight in June, the Moonlit Memories walk also in June, the Ruby Ride in September and the Great South Run in October. 
The banners will also be used by community groups at their own events to brand them as supporting The Rowans Hospice.

The teardrop flags are manufactured from knitted polyester on a DuPont Artistri 2020 machine and feature three designs including The Rowans Hospice logo. The roller banners are manufactured from polyester film on a DuPont Chromaprint machine.

Ann Cooper, Head of Communications at The Rowans Hospice said, “Once again the support from the Hampshire Flag team has been invaluable. We are extremely grateful for their generosity and willingness to donate so many promotional items free of charge.  The latest flags and banners look amazing and will certainly attract attention when they are displayed at the extensive line-up of events we have planned for this year.”

The Rowans Hospice was established in 1994 and has helped more than 7,000 patients and families across Portsmouth and South East Hampshire. This year the Hospice needs to raise over £4 million to continue its work.

Managing Director of Hampshire Flag Company, Graham Wilkinson, adds, “The Rowans Hospice plays such an important role and we are delighted to be supporting the charity again, especially as it's an intrinsic part of our community."

Hampshire Flag has provided on-going support for The Rowans Hospice - it provided five tear drop flags and five banner systems in 2011 and pull-up banners for Dorothy’s Dream, the appeal to raise £1 million for The Rowans Hospice at Home Appeal launched in September 2010.

An 'unmissable' 360° station advert 'wowed' commuters and travellers as they entered the passenger walkway of London’s Oxford Circus tube station earier this week. The stunning, high impact wrap promoting Warner Brother’s UK release of the new Great Gatsby movie incorporated a unique development in digitally printed floor applied graphics to complete an all-round visual brand experience.

The large format graphic panels were printed using an efficient digital flat-bed with flexible UV cure inks which proved ideal for the polymeric base media. The printed graphics were then protected with a propriety laminate and incorporated crystalline aggregate.

The graphics system, developed by Applied Media, has effectively enabled designated floor areas within the London Underground network to be brought to life as a new, giant, out of home media opportunity now used as an integral part of the CBS Outdoor UK underground inventory.

The development at last makes the 360° experience possible within the tube network. It follows close collaboration between media owner CBS Outdoor UK, and Applied Media to gain approval from London Underground for floor applied advertising graphics.

The Applied Media product performance characteristics and technical certification, set it apart from traditional floor media. The panels which can be tessellated to any size are extremely durable under high pedestrian and even vehicular traffic, slip resistant and are easily removed at the end of a campaign without damage to or residue left on the substrate.

The Great Gatsby campaign, which fully utilises the floors, walls and ceiling to stunning effect was booked with CBS Outdoor UK by Kinetic and planned by PHD. Last month TBWA/London and Manning Gottlieb OMD had also utilised the Oxford Circus station domination experience to promote the Juke and highlight the new Nissan connect technology.

Business development director for Applied Media, Larry Walsh says, “Within the tube network we are used to seeing advertisements on the vaulted walls and ceiling. With our versatile system, which was also adopted to create unmissable branding at this year’s BNY Mellon Boat Race, we can now complete the circle and help create a full 360° experience within the underground.

“The base technology employed in our heavy duty floor graphics stems from our parent company’s highway experience who last year worked with TfL to deliver 120 kilometres of temporary games lanes for the 2012 London Olympics and Paralympics.”

“We are delighted to be working with CBS Outdoor UK on this exciting out of home 360° advertising development, a media first now available to the industry.”

For more information, please visit www.appliedoutdoormedia.com

[Photo caption: with Applied Media and CBS Outdoor UK the 360° all round wrap has come to life within the London Underground network.]

Brazil-based Artwork Digital was commissioned to produce a run of customised, decorated Havaianas (flip-flops) for Carnival. Printed on thick rubber with an 8-colour Inca Spyder 320, the sandals were constructed for Fiat as a giveaway for the festive event.

“Fiat wanted to present the Havaianas to guests at their Carnival lounge,” says Rômulo de Abreu Guimarães of Artwork Digital. “Women usually wear high heels to Carnival, but they always want to take them off to dance. It’s very common, so Fiat thought that sandals would be an excellent idea for the women at their Carnival event.”

It proved to be a difficult order.  “It was a tricky job,” explains de Abreu. “We had to print directly on the surface of the sandal, but in order to do that, we had to position the sandals at an exact point on the table so that they could match up with the design file.” It was difficult to solve. Artwork Digital’s ingenious solution was to create a jig from a piece of MDF that could be held in position on the printer’s vacuum bed and loaded with the flip-flops. “We took MDF and cut the shapes of the sandals—of several different sizes—into it, then we replaced them with actual sandals with the straps taken off.”

The technique worked like a charm, and the MDF held the unprinted Havaianas in place for their adornment. Once they were printed, the flip-flops were removed and their straps re-attached. “We produced 106 pairs in total,” adds de Abreu.

The final results delighted Fiat and their Carnival guests alike, who danced in both comfort and style in their new decorated Havaianas. They also earned Artwork Digital an Inca IDEAS Award for Product Decoration.

BAF Graphics has been commissioned by designer Clarity to help restyle the reception areas within new Premier Inn hotels. The project comprises an extensive number of buildings throughout the UK to be restyled by the end of the 2013.

The creativity of Clarity is being strongly supported by BAF Graphics’ print expertise to produce highly durable, digitally printed wallcoverings distinguishing the reception and other public areas within the Premier Inn hotel chain. The creation of a “Welcome wall” depicting significant, bespoke images of each hotel’s local area is a key feature of this project. Cut out 3D letters in acrylic placed on top of the personalised wallcoverings to show the name of the hotels’ locations, complete the design.

Mark Andrews, Project Manager at BAF Graphics, comments, “Premier Inn is the UK’s biggest hotel chain so we are really excited that we’ve been given the opportunity to work with them. We are proud of the effective and colourful use of digital print we’ve achieved and are confident that the new look will be immediately noticeable as guests enter the premises.”