Chris Adams on Backlit Imprints

Insider was in St Cloud Minnesota recently and saw a great looking backlit imprint on a Franklin Outdoor digital billboard.

Backlit imprints are a great way to call attention to your company, especially on digital signs.  Insider talked with Chris Adams, Formetco’s Product Manager, Outdoor Hardware about backlit imprints.

What is a backlit imprint?

A backlit imprint is a small light weight cabinet that contains an LED lighting system for rear internal-illumination of a plastic face that typically has the company name/logo applied to it using colored translucent film.

There are four main components that our backlit imprints are comprised of:

  • The plastic face being the first, which is made from pure white polycarbonate plastic sheeting. Polycarbonate lexan is designed to be an extremely durable material with an advanced UV resistance technology, enabling exceptional outdoor performance.
  • The second is the 3M colored translucent film, which the letters and shapes are individually cut from and then applied to the 1st surface of the Polycarb substrate. Available in standard colors and designed for up to 9 years of outdoor durability.
  • The imprint cabinet would be third. Typically shaped like a shoe box this cabinet is made from 16 gauge black/white aluminum as well as the retainer caps that hold the Polycarb face in place. The all-aluminum construction offers a lifetime of use.
  • Lastly is the internal lighting system that consist of our pure white LED modules & premium power supply, which are mounted to the back inside of the imprint cabinet. This is the same lighting technology that we use in our spectacular LED Backlit Billboards, which is also backed with Formetco’s 5 Year Product Warranty.

How are clients using LED backlit imprints?

The majority of our clients are using LED backlit imprints on their LED billboards as well as their static boards that are located in prime locations. But we feel these eye-catching imprints can be used at any billboard location where the owner would like their name to stand out as clear as the message on their board. LED backlit imprints will also help their current & potential customer’s recall their company name.

How much do they cost?

We offer our backlit imprints with three different design ends; straight, angled, or round. We’ve had clients request backlit imprints from 6” t X 20” w up to 36” t X 227” w, as well a reverse/halo backlit imprint. Since we manufacture our backlit imprints in house, we have the capability to custom fabricate them based on the number of characters in our clients logo. Our pricing ranges from a couple hundred dollars and up based on their design.

Do they use much power?

Well, we use high-end efficient LED light modules, that have a guaranteed life over 50,000 hours. And with a color temp of 7000K at 70 lumens per module, we’re able to use fewer modules for uniform edge to edge illumination. But really it’s when we pair our LED modules with our high performance premium power supplies that allows us to keep the overall power consumption around 50 watts per imprint.

Can they be controlled by Smartlink remote controls?

Formetco backlit imprints are easily integrated into and controlled by Smartlink systems.  Operators can further their energy savings by setting the Smartlink to cycle power on and off to the imprint, based upon the sunrise and sunset schedule of a sign’s geographic location.  Formetco digital billboards are installed with Smartlinks that have a dedicated relay that allows for remote LED backlit imprint power management.

For more information on backlit imprints contact Formetco Outdoor Hardware Sales at hardwaresales@formetco.com or by phone at 1-800-367-6382. Click here to see how we make both the LED backlit and front illuminated imprints.

[wpforms id=”8663″]


Paid Advertisement

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Comments are closed.