Finish strong. That’s what competitive sprinters say is paramount. Bicyclists, race car drivers and marathoners live by the same mantra. It’s only natural for man to try his best, competition driving him to deliver his greatest effort, sprinting toward the finish line of success. Sporting events are classic examples of exemplary determination, but business owners should have the same drive for completion in their tasks.
New, efficient and better graphics technology is constantly springing up — to the benefit of the industry.

A dedicated in-house seamer can help companies control quality, time-sensitive projects and costs.(Weldmaster)

Professionals want to offer products that boast a visible advantage over their competition. They want their prints hung in prominent positions along busy streets, at local businesses and in professional football stadiums, glittering with crisp colors and details produced with the precision of the shop’s dedicated printer. With so many efforts put into designing and printing such winning graphics, why would anyone choose to finish such high-quality creations without using the strongest means available?

“The Mona Lisa is a beautiful print,” says Jeff Sponseller, director of sales for Miller Weldmaster, “but if it’s stuck on my fridge with a piece of tape it’s not going to look the same.”

An important finishing step for many wide-format graphics jobs is seaming panels together.
While methods such as glue, banner tape and sewing exist, welding is by far the fastest and most durable way to seam vinyl panels, according to Weldmaster’s marketing manager, Dominic Golembiewski. Welding techniques include RF, hot-air or hot-wedge technology.
But many graphics professionals still use more time-consuming, less reliable methods. Why is that? Perhaps they don’t know how to finish strong.

TRIPLE THREAT
The three general practices of welding —Radio Frequency (RF), hot-air and hot-wedge —produce virtually the same result, but employ different technologies. Regardless of the chosen method, all three possess stronger bonding qualities than sewing, hemming or taping.
RF welding technology for PVC vinyl and polyurethane materials is typically reserved for large graphics. Using two bars, and performing a stamping-type action, the process compresses materials together while a radio frequency passes through, causing a pressure-formed weld. While RF welding holds an advantage in size, the benefit is offset by a higher equipment price.
“RF welders are completely out of the price range of a typical start-up company,” says David Van Grol, product manager for industrial fabrics, Assembly Supplies.
Shop owners can also shy away from large footprint machines because of their high power commitment and longer learning curve, explains Jamie Nute, international sales representative at Sinclair Equipment.
There have also been past concerns questioning the safety of RF welders, because with time wear and tear caused harmful radio frequency leakage. Weldmaster’s Sponseller disputes those claims.
“Leaking RF used to be a problem, but with proper maintenance it’s not,” says Sponseller, so “that shouldn’t be a reason not to buy an RF welder. It is a proven technology.”
On the other end of the welding spectrum are the two heat-related welding processes, which are alike in principle but differ in method.
Hot-air welders seam by applying heated air to two material surfaces. Hot-wedge welders transfer heat from a high-temperature metal wedge that fits between the vinyl pieces.
“In real world terms,” says Van Grol, “hot-air would be a blow dryer and hot-wedge would be a curling iron.”
Most commonly, hot-air and hot-wedge machines are set up on a tabletop, or simply on the ground, to allow for the necessary space in seaming a project. Pole pockets, hemming and overlays can be performed with all three approaches; a trifecta not easily attained by other common seaming methods.

WELDING VERSUS THE FIELD
According to Golembiewski, welding provides superior strength, finishing time, reliability and appearance against stitching and taping. Billboards, building wraps, banners and even vehicle graphics of any size can be welded.
“The majority of our seaming work is for truck sides and mobile billboards,” says Chuck Lewis, production manager of JaxWraps. The Florida-based company employs a Miller Weldmaster 112 Hot Air Seamer for its jobs, and uses the machine about three or four times a day. JaxWraps found the welder especially useful while completing massive outdoor banner graphics for Alltel Stadium, home of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Lewis explains the 72' x 10' banners were seamed together and reinforced four years ago and remain hanging in the same location today.

“When you’re welding, you’re bonding vinyl to vinyl,” says Van Grol, “that weld will last as long as the banner lasts.”
Golembiewski adds that banner and billboard graphics welding is “the same technology used to assemble white water rafts and truck tarps traveling down the highway at 65 miles per hour.”
Thread and tape simply won’t hold up in such brutal outdoor conditions against the elements. With sewing, holes are punched into the material causing weakness and, as Nute point out, the user is placing reliability on a secondary element — thread —which will fail more quickly than welded seams in long-term outdoor projects. In addition, the physical appearance of welded materials far exceeds that of stitched.
“A printed banner is meant to be eye-catching,” says Van Grol. With welds a seam is made near-invisible, whereas stitching is blatantly noticeable along the entire hem. And in situations when overlays are involved, welding is the only true option available.

THE DRIVER’S SEAT
“I’ve got a sewing machine but I don’t really use it,” says Dave Thomas, owner of Ambiant Graphics in Culver City, Calif. “Welding is stronger, cleaner and, in most applications, better.”
The trade-off with welding’s quality is that small- to mid-size shops don’t think they can afford to buy their own machine, relying on third parties for finishing. Such a practice greatly reduces the control of time management, quality and costs.
“There isn’t an industry standard,” says Golembiewski, “but we’ve seen prices ranging from $3 for a three-foot by five-foot banner to $15.”
Nute believes every company that is outsourcing $15,000 to $20,000 worth of welding jobs should own a machine.
“The biggest benefit is time-control,” says Nute. “Sometimes banners have to be done and delivered the same day and the customer can’t wait.”
Companies such as Ambiant have realized the benefits of welding in-house. In many instances, it just makes the most sense. Thomas says the logistics of driving back and forth to outsource welding projects, for what is sometimes just one banner, is reason enough to purchase a dedicated in-house machine. For three years, Ambiant has finished welds using a Sinclair Triad welder, with aspirations to expand.
“I’m told that a portable hot-air welder is easy and fast once you learn how to use it,” says Thomas.
Van Grol reveals that portable welders, such as the Leister Triac S hand tool, are mainly intended for patchwork and repairs; however, it can be used successfully for production with appropriate practice and training.
“Which machine you use is up to you; they’re all going to weld,” says Nute. “Let’s say I do 25 banners a day. It’ll take me a while to pay off a large, expensive machine, but if I have a smaller machine it may only take a year to pay off.”
Whether it’s a large or small machine doing the work, seaming vinyl is widely considered a necessary evil of the graphics business.
“Customers spend a lot of money on a printer, but the print is really only as good as the [finished] work hanging on the wall,” says Sponseller. “If a print has wrinkles or bad panels, it’s not worth the printing that went into it. It is only as good as the finishing.”

Hence the motto: “finish strong”. It’s not just for sprinters anymore.