Explore Metro Sign & Awning’s latest blog posts, expert advice, news, and commentary. Learn more about the features of our innovative blog here.
Using Design-Build Contracts

A design-build contract is defined by a single point of contact and can offer time savings and other efficiencies, but it comes with potential drawbacks.
Source: www.thebalancesmb.com
Design-build contracting has grown in popularity over the past 10+ years. Design-build concepts can include variations like turnkey, bridging, and design-build-warranty.
Companies like Metro who use a design-build process benefit their customers because the owner works with a single source. Using a design-build approach can save time, preserve budgets, and avoid project cost overruns. These contracts also facilitate partnerships among everyone working on a project.
We’re also happy to assume design-build duties later in the process, when our clients have already developed their overall branding and begun to develop conceptual signage ideas. We work our own magic to finesse concepts so that they meet the brand standards demanded by the signage program.
5 Ways Digital Signs Improve the Customer Experience at Bank Branches

Video displays can make financial institutions more attractive and approachable.
Source: biztechmagazine.com
More financial institutions have embraced digital signage as they recognize its effectiveness in communicating messages and enhancing their customers’ experiences. Not only can digital signage make a strong visual impact when people walk by and as soon as customers walk through the front door, it can:
- Highlight financial services via video walls
- Deliver focused, targeted messages via ATM screens
- Display real time information
- Offer a collective resource via a digital community board
- Create a welcoming environment via signage posted in lobbies
- Engage those outside — including potential customers — with front-of-building signage
A Solar Solution for Manzo Freeman

In early spring of 2020, Manzo Freeman Development (MFD) — a privately-owned commercial real estate firm — reached out to Metro Sign and Awning with an idea for a new signage project.
Metro had previously designed and installed a curved canopy for
Partnering with a Design-Build Signage Company Protects Budgets and Timelines

When you’re faced with a mammoth project that spans three years and involves many stakeholders, collaboration and communication are critical keys to a successful outcome. Equally as complex as the UMass Boston signage project, Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Kendall Square project has required a massive...
The Challenges of Creating & Installing Signage in Historic Districts

Facing a signage project that requires designing a sign package for an existing historic building presents its own unique challenges. You can fit sign programs to the building while still maintaining the business owner’s aesthetic.
Source: www.nps.gov
Historic sign practices didn’t always take into consideration the buildings on which the signage was used. Sometimes sign styles didn’t complement a building’s unique characteristics. Or the sign designs overshadowed the buildings themselves.
Today’s sign companies face somewhat of a paradox when designing a new sign for a historic building. Updated signage must align with current best practices while also adhering to strict regulations that govern the sign’s design, placement, and style with respect to its historic environment.
The National Park Service (NPS) encourages communities to promote diversity in their signage. Although the City of Boston has very strict requirements for signage design and placement, for example, the NPS does encourage business owners to choose signs reflecting their own tastes, values, and personalities.
One recommendation includes incorporating the original building’s size, scale, and design into new signage. Another point suggests using sign materials compatible with those used in the historic building.
Solar Powered LED Sign Lighting Systems with Floods or Internal LEDs

Commercial solar LED sign lighting systems manufactured in the USA by SEPCO providing a great solution for businesses, cities, communities, HOA signs.
Source: www.sepco-solarlighting.com
Solar sign lights come in various shapes and brightness levels — perfect for signs in different locations. Companies that use these signs to advertise their businesses benefit from their one-time investment, since they don’t incur future costs from monthly electricity bills.
Signs That Define a Building, and Sometimes a City – The New York Times

Building signs have grown into a $37.5 billion industry. Some have become so iconic they are permanent parts of the landscape, often standing in for their hometowns.
Source: www.nytimes.com
Nice article, but they did not include Boston! Correcting this, here are some well-known Boston area signs we've done:
A Signage Transformation: From Average to Elegant

The most effective outdoor signage does more than point out the entrance to your business’s parking lot. Well-designed outdoor signs communicate your company’s brand and image. Monument signs, like the one created for J. Borstell Realty, can also help to cement a business’s presence in the area.
When...