New profiles for LED illumination added to the Spirit-TEX Fabric System
Spirit Displays, who make textile tensioning systems, has announced the latest additions to its Spirit-TEX range. The four new profiles at various depths provide some new and 'exciting' opportunities for illuminated applications. These include a 27mm frame which incorporates an acrylic LED panel and an edge-illuminated 120mm double-sided frame.
"Soft-signage has taken off in the last few years and we have found massive uptake in the retail sector for illuminated versions," says Hadley Weight, Director at Spirit Displays.
The new profiles expand the range to cover the most common depths of profile at 65mm and 100mm, both of which can be LED illuminated. Spirit Displays has also developed a range of LEDs with their suppliers to work 'perfectly' with their light-boxes and ensure even illumination. The 27mm profile is built up around an acrylic LED panel, making it one of the slimmest illuminated solutions available in the market.
"We have demonstrated our ability to consistently and evenly illuminate our boxes, even mainly white backgrounds, without any shadows or drop-off at the edges," says Hadley.
The new 120mm profile is commonly being used in visual merchandising to create double-sided displays for retail windows. These can be freestanding on steel footplates, fixed to the floor or hung from cable systems. It is also used to build wall panels for exhibitions, conference sets and events. These can be either supplied as light-boxes or non-illuminated versions.
Spirit-TEX was developed in 2012 to address the 'challenging' sizing and finishing issues around soft-signage. The key element of the Spirit-TEX system is the unique TEX-Gripper extrusion that eliminates the need for stitching silicone to the edges of the polyester fabrics. A tool is used to push the fabric into the TEX-gripper which locks it in place. Spirit-TEX has also been successfully tested for compatibility with dye-sublimation, UV-curable and latex printing methods, to make it one of the most versatile fabric display options on the market. These two important features open this lucrative soft-signage market to many smaller printing and sign companies, who may not be able to invest in specialist, dedicated machinery and staff.
With Spirit-TEX Gripper it also allows much larger textile graphics to be tensioned. An 18 x 3m (59 x 9'10") frame has already been successfully installed at London department store Selfridges. This textile tensioning system, which has a patent pending, is still fully compatible with industry standard 14 x 3mm silicone-finished fabrics by removing the TEX-gripper extrusion. This further adds to the versatility offered by the Spirit-TEX fabric system.
The full range of profiles comprises options for front or back lighting and single or double sided display. The frames can hang, or be wall-mounted or free-standing. Spirit-TEX systems, manufactured in the UK, are available to the trade only in stock profiles and flat-pack kits, or fully fabricated with LED lighting in the case of light boxes. The aluminium profiles are available in silver anodised, and black and white power-coated versions are all from stock.
Hadley said: "In 2014, we have invested in computerised cutting and CNC machines to increase productivity and accuracy of our production. This has improved turn-around times and gives us scope to look at more complex bespoke manufactured products. At Spirit Displays we are not content to settle for a standard catalogue of products.
"The industry has been crying out for a simple, flexible display solution for lightweight fabrics, and we have been listening. We are proud to be the first to respond to this demand with Spirit-TEX and we are confident that it will become the most popular product of its kind on the market."