Aluminium

Focus on

It is safe to say that is the standard for the industry today, it is a versatile and pliant metal that when combined with heavy-duty plastics, create a great signage composite.

As well as the flexibility of the material, are a great substrate to place onto, as you can see here in the picture.

Archive for October, 2006, page 1

The Effect of Oil Prices on the Sign Industry

It might seem a little way off point talking about the price of oil when we talk about the sign industry and rising prices, but let’s just bear in mind here that most sign products are based upon oil.

Don’t believe me? The vinyls that are cut out and applied onto , those are polymers, which are made from monomer products from the oil industry, as are the other vinyls from . The foam signboards we use for large , those are made from another polymer. The inks we use in wide format printing, those are not natural, and the solvents they are dissolved in come from oil.

Some of the products we use to construct large signs, those are made out of polymers. The facing material, the release liner when we laminate, those are polymers. The list is neverending.

So the recent wars, the rising price of oil (to a high of $78.40), have all had a knock-on effect on the prices in the sign industry. Only recently in fact, GRS Signs has been made aware of coming price increases for some vinyl products. Sadly however, since oil prices have fallen recently (as of this writing, hovering around $60/barrel), that same effect does not apply, prices do not fall…

It all goes to show just how integrated our industry, indeed our entire society, is with oil. As we have written lately, we have made an effort to change our inks to be more environmentally friendly, but there are few alternatives when it comes to the bulk of the materials we use (such as the vinyls).

The one thing that there is no alternative too of course, is the price of petrol. That cannot be avoided, but some steps can be taken, such as doubling up fitting jobs that occur near each other, to cut down on the cost of fuel. That applies to any industry but will large vans and long distances it is important to us as a small business.

So, would customers pay more for biodegradable signs? What are your thoughts on this? Has your own industry suffered as the oil prices rise?

This style of sign belongs to the company,news,world categories. Click on one of those links to see more kinds of articles like this one.

Fire Risk Assessment

The importance of assessing fire risk cannot be overstated.

If you keep on top of this and perform a fire risk assessment say, every 6 months or so, you’ll be doing a big favour for your employees. Don’t keep the information to yourself either. Share it with them, involve them in the assessment, and share the report and final details with them. The better they know where the exits are, where the fire extinguishers are, where the risks are, the less likely an accident will occur.

It is vitally important for a company that has hazardous chemicals stored to perform a fire risk assessment. For example, volatile solvents can leak, and the fumes might be flammable. Are there extinguishers nearby? Is the extractor fan inadequate?

GRS Sign Company Ltd. follows the guidelines laid down in the guide handed out by the Department for Communities and Local Government. You can find out more at their site about the Fire Safety Risk Assessment rules and checklist.

As it stands here are the five main points they outline:

  1. Fire hazards;
  2. People at risk;
  3. Evaluate, and act;
  4. Record, plan and train;
  5. Review;

And, it will affect you if you are:

  • responsible for business premises;
  • an employer;
  • self-employed with a business premises;
  • a charity of voluntary organisation;
  • a contractor with a degree of control over any premises;

This style of sign belongs to the company,legal,news categories. Click on one of those links to see more kinds of articles like this one.