Avoiding 'Edge Curl' On Retractable Roll Up Banner

Banner stands are portable display systems that are used everyday in a wide variety of environments, including shopping centres, retail outlets and of course at exhibitions and trade shows. These portable displays are incredibly popular thanks to the fact that they are lightweight, easy to assemble and very portable.

Banner stands are usually supplied by large format print companies or exhibition and display related businesses who purchase the base unit that is essentially a spring-loaded mechanism and attach a custom printed banner, sometimes referred to as a 'graphic'.

With the popularity of these banner stand displays at an all-time high, there are a wide variety of companies who can provide your business with a banner stand and it is therefore important that you select a company who can provide a good quality display, guaranteed to look professional and advertise your product or service in the best possible way.

The base unit for a banner stand is nothing more than a carrier for the message that you are displaying and the purpose of this article is to describe the various ways that these graphics can be produced and to illustrate the associated benefits.

There are a wide variety of materials that can be employed for a typical roller banner stand graphic and these include polyester based films, polypropylene based films and PVC. One of the biggest problems with many roller banner stand graphics is known as 'edge curl'. Quite simply, this is the effect caused whereby the long edges of the print either curl inwards or outwards, thus negatively impacting on the geometric correctness of the print. Edge curl can vary from a minimal variance of between 10 and 20mm, through to severe edge curl which can obscure up to 25% of the overall printed image in some extreme cases. Almost universally, edge curl is caused by the thermal properties of the material being influenced by changes in temperature and this effect is accentuated where the print is is protected with a laminated film.

Generally speaking, polyester is the best choice for a roller banner stand graphic because the base material is very dimensionally stable and does not vary according to external temperature. It is worth noting that should a protective laminate film be used to over the surface of the polyester film, then the laminate should have a polyester composition rather than PVC which will otherwise have different thermal properties and could lead to edge-curl.

With the introduction of new print technology such as UV printing, many providers of roller banner graphics are able to supply prints onto low cost materials such as PVC at a lower cost of the polyester counterparts. An added benefit of a UV print process onto a PVC base material is that the ink possesses both UV stability and water-fastness, thus a protective lamination is not required. For these reasons an unlaminated banner stand graphic is unlikely to suffer the negative effect of edge curl.

If you own a banner stand and find that edge curl is a problem then you can take some simply steps to try to minimise the effect before the display is used. As mentioned previously in this article, edge curl is a fault which is caused by the thermal expansion/contraction of the base material or the lamination film that is used. The banner stand should ideally be stored at room temperature prior to use to allow the printed graphic to stabilise. Furthermore, the print should be assembled a few hours or preferably overnight prior to use which will allow the substrate to 'relax'. By taking these preventative measures, you can help to minimise the negative impact of edge curl on your banner and ensure that your display has the best possible impact.

When sourcing a supplier for a roll-up banner stand or a replacement graphic for an existing banner stand, it is important that you select a company who have experience with the production of such printed display graphics. Ask to see a sample of work or some testimonials from previous satisfied customers and you can be assured that you will purchase the best possible product.