Please read the following information thoroughly before uploading:
PDFs are a vector only file format.
DRILL HOLES & ROUNDED CORNERS
Holes for bolts are 3/8" in diameter and are drilled 1.25" from the edge of the sign. If any artwork that we receive has text or important graphics that come to close to the drill hole, we reserve the right to resize the artwork as we see necessary.
Sintra and Omega-Bond® signs with rounded corners: use the blue line in the Proof Center as a guide.
ALUMINUM SIGN BLANKS
The 12" x 18" and 18" x 24" Aluminum Sign Blanks always have rounded corners. Please make sure that your design accommodates for this. PDF Templates are available for all Sign Blank sizes.
Aluminum Sign Blanks are cut prior to printing and can shift slightly during production. A 1/16" bleed all the way around is recommended for signs that have full bleeds.
For signs that have white borders, background color/images should not extend further than 1/2" from the edge or any shifting that occurs will be more apparent.
IMAGE SIZE
All graphics must be at minimum 72DPI in resolution at actual print size.
How do I check the resolution of my artwork?
The resolution of an image is measured in DPI which stands for Dots Per Inch. Dots are pixels. The more pixels per inch there are, the sharper the image will appear.
Once you upload your file, you will be brought into our Proof Center*. The Image Propety Toolbar will let you know the print quality of your file:
*Native and compressed files will automatically skip the Proof Center.
What does Actual Print Size mean?
Actual Print Size is the size of your final product, i.e. if you want a 24" by 36" sign, the artwork you send us to print should be built at 24" by 36".
Alternatively, we will accept files built at half size and scale them to print size for you. Note: Scaling artwork up may affect the final quality of graphics/text.
| What Size Should My Artwork Be? |
|---|
Actual Print Size
(Printed @ 100%) | Half Size
(Printed @ 200%) |
| 12" x 18" | 6" x 9" |
| 18" x 24" | 9" x 12" |
| 24" x 36" | 12" x 18" |
BLEED AND SAFE AREA
Aluminum Sign Blanks with full color backgrounds: artwork should be built at actual print size with a 1/16" bleed.
All other signs: artwork should be built at actual print size with no bleeds. Background colors/images should extend right to the edges of your artwork.
Important content should be within the safe area (about 1" from the edge of your artwork).
What does Bleed, Trim Size, and Safe Area mean?
Bleed: The portion of your artwork that extends past the trim size to avoid white, unprinted edges on the final product.
Trim Size: The final size of your printed artwork after any excess edges have been cut off (i.e. if you order an 18" x 24" sign, the Trim Size would be: 18" x 24").
Safe Area: The area of your artwork where content is safe from being cut off or lost if any shifting occurs during printing. In the Proof Center, the Safe Area will be indicated by a green line.
NATIVE FILES
Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, or Corel files
Please embed all images and fonts or convert fonts to outlines/curves before sending your files to us.
Any solid coated Pantone colors should be named as spot colors.
