ARCHIVE: Category Archive for: Metro Sign

Doing Our Part to Help Boston Grow

Anyone watching NECN, New England Cable News, on January 16, 2014, probably saw its featured story on the Boston metropolitan area’s future growth. Specifically, the cable news channel covered a Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) report on demographic and economic trends, which calculates the need for some 435,000 new housing units – including affordable apartments, single family homes, condos, townhouses, and even something called “micro units” – by 2040 if our region is going to sustain the record of strong economic and civic expansion we’ve establishing during the past couple of decades. Even if we fall short of “strong” economic growth, we’ll apparently still need some 300,000 additional housing units. Various experts and officials spoke about the need for additional

What a great year! Despite all the turmoil and difficulties for Boston, the northeastern U.S., and the world at large, we at Metro Sign and Awning have enjoyed the opportunity to meet the year’s challenges, to grow, to serve, and to do our bit to make the world a better place. Some of our more exciting and successful 2013 projects include: The Forum Restaurant: After the horrific events of Marathon Monday and the destruction that took place outside one of our valued customers, we did our small part to help them rebuild. Working with Boston Nightlight Ventures and the Back Bay Architectural Commission we put together a plan to reinvigorate the remodeled restaurant that included new awnings and face lit

Although the products rolling out the big door are nearly always “one of a kind,” and often highly artistic or creative, at the base of it all, Metro Sign and Awning operates around a factory. Every day, artisans and support staff deal in actual, physical goods that have to be cut, bent, shaped, carved, welded, sanded, finished, painted, and more. Nothing happens until that material and the requisite supplies for the various manufacturing processes are procured. So in a real sense, Craig Wondrasch sits at the very heart of the Metro Sign and Awning complex. Pricing the Materials and Supplies – Putting It All Together “In my purchasing role,” explains Craig, “I look at a complete set of drawings for

Custom Signage Supports Corporate Identity: The Difficulties and Pleasures of Working in Wood When long-time client Pinkergreen, a well-regarded architectural firm, called to say they were designing an office for a CEO who wanted a piece of reclaimed wood as the basis of his Main Reception Corporate Identify Sign, we accepted the challenge with gusto. Starting with the cherry finish planned for their office space, we worked through our normal channels on sourcing some attractive reclaimed wood to match. Our client wanted the wood to be in one solid piece, rather than having it glued or notched,as it would be if we made it up from smaller pieces. What made the challenge even more difficult was the desire to have

How Much Does a Sign Cost? Return on Sign Investment Calculator Has the Answer

That big sign outside your door – it’s more than just a nameplate for your business. It’s even more than a landmark for local citizens giving directions, or an iconic image of your business. It’s an investment – pure and simple. And like all investments, it produces a return … a return that smart business owners and managers naturally want to be able to quantify. Until now, however, calculating the return on signage investments was rarely attempted, and difficult to complete. That’s no longer true. As of right now, calculating the return on your signage investment has become a piece of cake. That’s because we’ve built and made publicly available our proprietary Return on Signage Investment Calculator at How-Much-Does-A-Sign-cost.com. To

Signage Scam Stresses Small Business Owner If you can’t trust your sign-maker, who can you trust? That’s what Shay Kindle, owner of a do-it-yourself workshop in Lubbock, TX, is wondering after a run-in with a sales rep who scammed her, big time, on what should have been a simple, affordable, and effective signage project. In May, 2013, Shay found herself targeted by local representatives of Signtronix, a national company. The smooth-talking sales rep proposed to fabricate and install an electronic sign to promote her business, Pinspired, which is conveniently located on a high-traffic corner lot. Intrigued, Ms. Kindle listened carefully while the shady operator waxed poetic about how Signtronix wanted her business so bad it would discount the cost of

That’s a Refreshing Sign! New Balance Leaves Footprint on Parks Now we can say we left our footprint along the Charles River! Well, not our footprint, exactly – it’s actually the mark of Brighton’s favorite shoe manufacturer. We were absolutely tickled when New Balance asked us to create a few “footprints” for some of the water fountains they’ve provided to various Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation park sites. While New Balance wasn’t angling for extra outdoor advertising when the company donated the fountains, it was important that the signs look good and hold up extremely well in the environment. Even though the footprints weren’t designed to advertise the company, they had to represent the company and its brand in the

Yay! Today’s the day Forum Restaurant reopens! The popular bar and restaurant at 755 Boylston Street in downtown Boston celebrates with a new new menu and a new look. Remodeling and restoration over the summer gave all of Boston a visual reminder that “we are still here, still strong, and still standing.” Now, it’s time to celebrate – the restaurant’s reopening is a point of pride for everyone in Boston. We were delighted to work on the restaurant’s new sign this summer. Two of our installers enjoyed a little “brush with fame” when a local news crew caught them in the act. Look quick! Brad Quinlan and Mark DeFelice appear about 40 seconds into the video. In addition to a

Wow, summer is flying by. We’re gearing up for some fun school projects (more on that later), just wrapped up a couple of wayfinding projects, and are doing more conceptual design work for some of our valued partners. We know you’re busy too, but we remind you that summer and fall are the best times to schedule routine maintenance or to have us out to inspect your exterior signage and discuss any updates you might want to make before the back-to-school and holiday seasons arrive. (Did you have storm damage that should be addressed?) Call us at 978-401-9270 to maximize your sign investment and ensure your signage is safe, secure, and in good working order. >Beep beep< Oh, and our

While Metro Sign & Awning is happy to call Boston home, we get excited when we’re fabricating signage for a West Coast architectural firm or designing custom signs for businesses based in Texas, or Tennessee. We’re just as proud to say we’re installing pylon signs in South Carolina as we are showing off photos of a giant banner in Chicago (or even a local sports team). What’s our point? As the Fourth of July approaches, we remember that no matter where we go in this land, there are always signs reminding us that we’re ever so grateful to be here. Happy Birthday, U.S.A.!