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 | Visit our new web site! www.gillespie-graphics.com. Project Spotlight of the Month: Garlic Gourmay | |
| Bright colors and creative designs give this box truck a truly distinctive presence. The cartoons feature garlic cloves engaging in Northwest activities, like snowboarding, riding bikes, and Garlic Gourmay parks this box truck outside of food shows, festivals, and other events, and it always attracts attention. Attendees see it outside This box truck gives Garlic Gourmay a playful |
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| Material Spotlight of the Month: Reflective Materials |
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Any resident of the Pacific Northwest knows that the winter days can be very dark. By using reflective materials This process has been used for years on emergency vehicles like ambulances and police cars. If your fleet is going to be on the road when it’s dark, this is an especially good way to make impressions. |
| Daylight | Nighttime |
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| Finishing -- The Final Step in the Manufacturing Process |
| In last month’s newsletter we printed a beginner’s guide to digital and screen printing. This finishing article is meant as a companion piece for customers new to the world of graphics. Once your decals, fleet graphics, or other project have been printed, they are ready to be “finished”. Finishing is the last step in the production process, and when this step is completed we are ready to ship your products to you. | |
| The Process Depending upon your project, it may or may not be covered with an over-laminate or a screen printed liquid clear coat. A clear coat or over-laminate protects against UV exposure and will extend the life of graphics used outdoors. We tend to use over-laminates made of vinyl or polyester. The products are then sent to be cut to the desired shape. The
most common ways we cut vinyl to shape include plotter & route cut, thermal kiss cut, guillotine cut, and die cut.Guillotine CutOff with excess vinyl! Our guillotine works similar to the device that took the lives of French nobility in that a blade cuts the vinyl along straight lines. Our guillotine, however, has intensive safety features to make sure it precisely trims only the printed material. Plus we never use it to make a political statement (unless, of course, we’re printing decals or signs for political candidates.) Thermal Kiss CutLike its name suggestions, thermal kiss cutting involves applying extreme heat (300-350 degrees) to cut pressure sensitive material into the needed shapes. The liner is not cut, and so excess vinyl is stripped away leaving the decals below ready to be installed. This makes it easier to install intricate designs, especially once application tape has been applied. Die CutWhile some dies can be a circle or a simple square box, others are custom created for each project. The die uses force to trim the vinyl or other material to a specific shape with very close tolerances. Plotter or Route CutPlotter cutting involves an electronic registration system that trims and route graphics to very precise specifications. Computer-driven equipment cuts out the shapes of graphics, and then excess vinyl is stripped from the project to reveal your graphics. A small precision blade is used for thin vinyl and plastics while a spiral bit is used in a router head to cut through thicker ridged materials. Application TapeApplication tape or pre-mask is applied to the face of the decals or vehicle wraps to ease with installation. The application tape holds the decals in place as they are applied. Once attached to their designated spot, the application tape is removed and the decals stay in place. Next month we’ll talk about how to best use these finishing options in conjunction with different screen and digitally printed processes to create the right product for your project. |
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| Gillespie Graphics neither buys nor sells email addresses. We strive to respect our customers' wishes. If you do not want to receive this email or think you received it in error, please let us know. newsletter@gillespie-graphics.com | |
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| Gillespie Graphics · PO Box 1340 · 27676 SW Parkway Ave · Wilsonville, OR 97070     |
| · phone: (503) 682-1122 · fax: (503) 682-2542 · (800) 547-6841 · www.gillespie-graphics.com · sales@gillespie-graphics.com |
