ARCHIVE: Category Archive for: Curated Content

Will Architecture’s Future be Held Together with Glue?

Staying current in the design/build industry means understanding constantly changing materials and techniques. Metro’s designers, fabricators and installers go through regular training on new materials and sign manufacturing methods in order to offer our clients the best options for each sign, based on its location, signage regulations, and of course, the client’s budget.

Shipping Container Restaurants are Opening this Week on the Waterfront

“The kiosks are part of a $100 million in upgrades to the Innovation and Design Building. Mei Mei joins Triangle Coffee and Jubali, which have already opened their shipping container kiosks, according to the Innovation and Design Building website. More shipping container kiosks will open “within the next couple weeks,’’ according to the building’s website. Roxy’s Grilled Cheese confirmed to Boston.com that it will open Thursday.”

12 Branch Design Trends to Watch for in 2016

According to DBSI, better lobby signage is among a dozen Design Trends to Watch for in 2016. More than half of all banking customers want to learn about new banking products, but need help – and they look to lobby signage first. From digital signs to high-impact graphics, Metro Sign can help you help your customers.

Energy Efficient Window Treatments

Choose window treatments that allow you to use natural light while reducing the heat gained in your house when the weather is warm and lost when it’s cold.

Bad Signs: Back to School, 1st Communion Gowns

Jimmy asks Tonight Show fans to send in photos of funny or weird signs they’ve seen and shares some of his favorite submissions.

Events and Experiences – ISA Sign Expo 2016

The ISA Sign Expo is coming up later this month. Will you be attending?

Illumination: Optimizing LEDs for Signage

Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are a household name today, with a growing number of general illumination applications in residential buildings and elsewhere, but only after enjoying a longer period of research and development (R&D) specific to the sign industry, along with long-term real-world use.

Block’hood: The Neighborhood Building Game That Will Test Your Urban and Architectural Prowess

It is said that the best design solutions are often found when a project comes with a very strict set of parameters. So it makes sense that architectural games, with their coded restrictions and rigid rulesets, tend to draw out a particular kind of creative problem solving.

Awnings and Enclosures Make Versatile, Functional Business Signage

Although they’re not necessarily the first type of signage that comes to mind, awnings, canopies and enclosures can communicate your brand and function quite effectively in many of the ways that traditional business signs do.

Smart designs, durable and good-looking materials, and high-quality graphics can turn awnings into signage that is effective in more ways than one. They also have added benefits of providing extra convenience, comfort, and/or accessibility to a place of business.

Awnings, Canopies Offer Energy Savings

Often overlooked, but a very welcome “by product”of adding an awing or canopy: extra insulation. High-quality, well-designed awnings and canopies measurably reduce heat gain and loss from windows and other outside surfaces.

Many of our clients have included those energy savings when completing their ROI calculations in their budgeting process.

Curb Appeal, Comfort Factor

In addition to their visibility and aesthetic appeal (not to mention high-visibility surfaces for your business name and logo), the practical nature of these versatile“signs”welcome customers, too.

An awning or canopy can offer an overhang to stay out of the rain and a welcome buffer against the wind

Enclosures, of course, also bring an opportunity for increased revenue, specifically, by –

Increasing useful space, particularly during less-than-ideal weather. Awnings and canopies open up opportunities to increase revenue in what might otherwise be unusable space. Whether it’s increased seating for a restaurant or bar or an extended entryway for a hotel or theater, durable awnings and canopies increase the space that truly serves your customers.
Welcoming Customers. Awnings and canopies are like a practical “welcome” sign. Underneath their cover, your customers are protected from beating sun, blowing wind and driving rain. They also provide a virtual buffer from traffic and street noise.
Make the Old Look New Again. Awnings and canopies provide color and design interest to otherwise non-descript storefronts.

Have you considered an awning, canopy, or other fabric enclosure as a way to increase your business’s useful (even profitable) space? Get in touch with us, as we’d love to show you some of the innovative, practical, and beautiful awnings and fabric enclosures we’ve created, and let you see just how they’re paying off for their owners.

Digital Signs Show the Way on Campus

When mapping out how wayfinding should be incorporated into digital signage on campus, ease of use for students and visitors should be the top concern. “The more information that can be presented visually, rather than textually, the more easily information can be digested in terms of wayfinding,” says Lyle Bunn, a digital signage expert based outside Toronto.