Large format signage & printing

Go big or go home is the order of the day for large format signage – whether indoor or outdoor, for advertising or decoration, if you’ve the space and the idea, we have everything else you need to start making a big impact.

What is large format signage and printing?

Requiring specialised machinery, large format signage and printing uses a range of tools and techniques to turn your digital artwork and design into eye-catching focal points that can serve to advertise your brand, draw visitors to an exhibition stand, promote sales and events, and much more besides.

Typically, digital print sizes included in the ‘large format’ bracket will range from A2 width (420mm) all the way up to more than three metres, and covers any length. Obviously, this is a pretty broad definition of large, meaning you’ll need to make sure you’re dealing with a printer that has the required equipment to print at a scale that meets your needs.

The same is true for signage – though some three dimensional signage, monoliths and totems etc. can be very bespoke one-offs, you’ll still need to double check the companies you’re considering have the required experience and equipment for your project.

 

Our large format signage and printing specialisms

While we’ve performed custom jobs for some of the nation’s best loved brands, we’ve developed a particular expertise in the following forms of large format signage and printing.

Large format vinyl printing

Since its founding, Lavastar has developed extensive experience in printing high quality digital designs onto vinyl for use indoors and outside for a host of promotional and wayfinding requirements.

Large format fabric printing

Whether you’re looking for banners, exhibition graphics, flags, showroom displays or any other novel use, we can print your digital designs onto high quality, durable fabrics – or help you realise ideas with help from in-house designers.

Large format aluminium composite panel (ACM) printing

Your digital designs are printed onto a self-adhesive film which is then applied to a lightweight panel (two aluminium sheets sandwiching a polyethylene filling). Useful for both external and internal signage due to its durable and weatherproof nature, ACM printing, especially at larger scales is a difficult process to get right, but can produce stunning results.

CSCS

All our installers carry CSCS cards

CHAS

CHAS accredited

Nationwide

Nationwide service

Trust Pilot

5 star rating on
Trust Pilot

UK Sign awards

Sign company of the year

UK Sign awards

Large format job of the year

Clean Air

Clean Air licensed applicator

Uses of large format signage and printing

As it covers such a large proportion of all signage and printing projects, we could discuss everything from the printing of blueprints and posters all the way up to building wraps, but rather than outline the whole of the entire printing industry, we thought we’d break it into ‘types of use’ rather than individual types of print.

replica building wrap

Trade show and exhibition displays

In an increasingly digital world, trade shows and exhibitions represent a rare chance for many businesses, especially in B2B and wholesale sectors, to meet their customers face-to-face, and it’s a chance that brands obviously want to make the most of. That’s where large format digital printing excels. 

Event stand graphics

According to research from market research platform Gitnux, 82% of trade show attendees possess final purchase sign-off, and 49% of attendees travel to shows with purchase intent. That makes your exhibition stand a hugely important marketing asset – and, whether it’s the stand itself or signage directing footfall or capturing attention, you’ll want to make sure you’re working with a partner you trust to achieve the best results.

In-store and shop window promotions

In retail, every inch of space is an opportunity, and while you don’t want to overwhelm visitors to your store, you do want to capture and retain their attention – whether they’re passing your premises or need to be made aware of a new product or promotion. Large format printing for this purpose can help to set the tone of an environment, convert browsers into buyers and, perhaps most importantly, passers-by into customers.

vibrant hoarding design

Building and renovation projects

For a long time, it was common to see large renovation and building projects use debris netting and plain panels for dust mitigation and weather proofing. Over the last few decades, however, high concept large format printed designs have added a decorative flourish to a functional requirement. Such large scale printed designs have reduced negative sentiment surrounding building works and can serve as a way to preserve or enhance the appearance of a building during renovation – all while advertising the construction company undertaking the work.

 

FAQs

Does gradient banding show in large format print?

Gradient banding is typically a translation problem between digital design platforms and physical printing methods (from issues with rendering pantone or hex colours in CMYK to physical limitations of printer heads and incorrect design tool selection), but they can be overcome with expert advice, which our team of experienced designers can provide.

How to design for large format printing?

Providing you’re using an appropriate design tool (Adobe Illustrator or similar professional quality tools), designing at a scale of around 25% should be sufficient provided you make sure a quality of at least 100 dpi (dots per inch). While smaller prints are often done at 300 dpi and above, large scale prints will still appear crisp at 100 dpi. Beyond the fundamentals, however, standard design advice applies - make sure the text is readable from the distance you’d expect it to be read at; choose the right colour palette, consider the environment it will appear in and, where possible, seek expert advice before proceeding to print.

What is large format printing?

Large format printing is the collective term for a process that turns your digital artwork into eye-catching focal points to advertise your brand, draw visitors to an exhibition stand, promote sales and events, and much more besides, typically between 420mm to more than 3000mm.

What materials can you print on?

Our large format printing services include options for vinyl printing, fabric printing and aluminium composite panel (ACM) printing.

How do we send you our artwork and design?

We are happy to receive files by any secure file transfer platform or, where file size is not a hindrance, by email. We will always make sure that we discuss secure file transfer with you during the onboarding process.

Can you help with the design or formatting process?

We have an in-house team of expert product and graphic designers, and offer professional design services at no extra cost. By using our complete service, you can save your company money and make sure your job runs smoothly, with everything handled under the same roof.

Do you have any customer reviews and feedback?

You can find our reviews over at TrustPilot. However, it’s tough to convince people to take the time to leave a review, so if they matter to you, don’t forget to leave us one when the job is done!

Who We Work For & What They Say

Tom Hicks - Premier League

On many occasions Lavastar over delivered on quality of the work, creativity on our design and the delivery times were always on time or before. I would highly recommend Lavastar to other corporate clients.

Tom Hicks - Premier League

Rebecca Sawyer - Completely

The print has always been to high standard and we have used many suppliers in the past who have always managed to get it wrong and its great to have so much trust in Lavastar to get it spot on.

Rebecca Sawyer - Completely

Abby Rees - Godfrey London

Lavastar are passionate about what they do and experts in their field. This is evident in their approach from the initial design stage to post completion.

Abby Rees - Godfrey London