Whether you're producing permanent environmental graphics, temporary event graphics, or swappable retail fixtures, material selection can make or break the success of your project. If you haven’t already, we recommend you start by reading the first part of our print materials blog series: The Ultimate Guide to Print Materials. This will give you a solid understanding of our nine primary material categories as you begin discussing substrates with your Infinity Images account representative. However, to make informed material decisions and begin print production, your project manager will also need some additional information about your project. In this blog, we outline the key questions they will discuss with you to ensure everything is tailored to your unique needs and goals.

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HOW BIG IS YOUR GRAPHIC?

Whether you need a graphic that spans the width of an athletic stadium or one that covers a wall in a retail store, there are a few size-related factors to consider. For oversized graphics, defined as graphics that are larger than the material used to create them, your material choices are impacted by how you want the finished piece to be displayed. For example, a banner that is 100 feet wide by 16 feet tall and will hang from the roof of the Rose Quarter would have to be heat-seamed or sewn together out of two 100 feet wide by 8 feet tall sections of banner material. Vinyl banner material can be heavy, so you might opt for a lighter fabric material to make installation easier. The trade-off is that vinyl material can be heat-seamed — melting the material together to create a non-sewn finished seam — while polyester fabric material would need to be sewn, creating a visible seam. When hung from a stadium ceiling, the sew line would not be easily visible. You decide the trade-off based on your needs.

For rigid materials, like wood panels, there are common sizes are available to choose from; for example, 4 feet by 8 feet or 5 feet by 10 feet are standard sheet sizes. If your graphic size is larger than 4 feet wide, you should opt for the larger sheet size, which seems obvious; however, the larger sheet size of material is quite a bit more expensive. Therefore, your budget might dictate the decision for you, and you may opt to resize your graphic to fit the smaller sheet size if that is an option. If your graphic is larger than both, then your project can be successfully paneled using multiple sheets of material. Again, the budget will be key to the materials you choose, as the thickness and type of material vary significantly.

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HOW WILL YOUR PROJECT BE DISPLAYED?

Will your graphic be applied to a wall or floor of a retail store? Or maybe it will be hung from the side of a higher education building. Will your dimensional sign pop off the wall in a commercial building lobby? There are a variety of ways to display flat graphics and 3D projects, and the material choice directly contributes to their success.

Adhesive vinyl, one of our most versatile substrate categories, has an adhesive built in. Think of it like a giant sticker. We print on the face of the material, peel the backer, and stick it to whatever you need. The surface the vinyl gets adhered to determines the type of material we’ll use. A calendared vinyl might suffice for walls with a clean, flat face, but vehicles and 3D display elements will require a premium cast vinyl to successfully bend around the curves and edges.

Banner vinyl, on the other hand, can be hung instead of fully adhered to a surface. To achieve this, banners generally require sewing and seaming, and some sort of hardware to anchor from pre-determined hang points on a structure. Our production crew will finish your banner graphics with hemmed edges, pole-pockets, and seaming, as well as provide the needed hardware required to hang your graphic.

Many commercial spaces benefit from dimensional pop-off wall signs made of plastic or metal. To anchor these types of signs to the wall, we use a standoff system with aluminum or stainless-steel barrels.

Fabric graphics can be attached to a frame system with built-in channels and sewn-on gaskets, generally known as silicon-edged graphics (SEGs). We’ll finish your fabric graphic with the gasket edge, and you push the gasket into the frame edge, creating a drum-tight, eye-catching graphic. Fabric can also be used to produce banners and would follow the hanging application method described above.

Finally, A-frames, swing signs, and other freestanding signage should be fabricated from heavy, durable materials such as wood or metal.

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WHAT ENVIRONMENT WILL YOUR PROJECT LIVE IN?

Indoor vs outdoor locations greatly impact which materials you should consider. Without proper UV-resistant inks and laminates, sun exposure causes inks to fade and materials to degrade. The environment and length of time your project needs to last will determine the best materials for the job. If it will be displayed outdoors for a one-day event, you can opt for less UV-durable materials. However, if you’re requesting retail window graphics for a month-long campaign, you’d better choose high-SPF protection. In other words, we’ll recommend the more expensive UV-durable materials.

The same goes for moisture and temperature. Paper substrates need protection from moisture, so the use of plastic-based materials or laminates may be the answer. Heat and cold temperatures distort materials by causing them to expand and contract. The more a material distorts, the more the graphic printed to it wants to peel or chip off. Waterproof materials prevent this degradation from happening.

Finally, there are those pesky humans to consider. High-traffic environments like athletic facilities and retail stores pose a different kind of danger to your project’s longevity. The naturally occurring oils on human hands can cause ink to erode over time. If your printed graphics are in high-touch zones (i.e., areas where people can easily come in direct contact with graphics) or could be bumped by wayward shopping carts, we’d recommend a more durable material like plastic or metal. Additionally, clear materials like plastic and glass allow you to print second surface, thereby adding a barrier between curious hands and your graphic.

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HOW LONG WILL YOUR PROJECT BE DISPLAYED?

Understanding the life of your project will help you determine whether you need to invest in premium materials or if you can be more economical in your choices. Our inks are guaranteed for up to three years and individual material warranties can range from one to 10 years. Barring extreme conditions, certain materials will reliably last longer than others. Metal and plastic are much more durable than rigid paper board and roll paper, making them a better fit for long-term brand signage. Cast laminates also have longer warranties than calendared laminates, so we always recommend cast laminates for branded vehicle wraps. On the other hand, if you’re looking for event signage for a two-day conference, rigid paper board would be a great choice. Make sure to let your Infinity Images project manager know if your project will be a temporary or permanent installation.

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WHAT IS YOUR PROJECT BUDGET?

Let’s talk numbers. Whether you’re a small local business or a global, iconic retail chain, you can rest assured that we have extensive experience working within a wide variety of budgets. Our material experts stock cost-effective and premium versions of most substrates, ensuring that all our clients have access to materials that meet their unique needs. Share your pre-approved budget with us, and your Infinity Images project manager will work diligently to recommend the best materials within your price range.

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DO YOU HAVE ANY SUSTAINABILITY REQUIREMENTS?

Does your project need to meet LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification? Should all substrates be recyclable? Are you looking for PVC-free or post-consumer recycled materials? Or are you just hoping to be a little friendlier to our planet? If sustainability is on your priority list, make sure to specifically request eco-friendly material options of your account representative.

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WHERE WILL YOUR PROJECT BE SHIPPED?

Finally, where’s it going? Are we flying to Europe or delivering across Portland? Is it one FedEx box or several custom palettes requiring a lift? Logistics will certainly impact your budget and timeframe. For example, metal and wood are obviously much heavier than fabric and will therefore be more expensive to ship. Rollable materials like vinyl and fabric can be condensed — unlike rigid paper board and wood — meaning they’ll fit into smaller boxes. Just as heavier boxes are more expensive to ship, so are boxes that are larger in size. Although this question is listed last, if the delivery is to a location outside Portland, you should absolutely address it in the first part of your project planning.