These Two Large-Format Printers Have Become Leaders in Branding Big Sporting Events
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FOR A PSP, “taking over” a space for an event can be done in many different ways, with seemingly endless combinations of installations. Window graphics over here, floor graphics over there, and a massive hanging banner on the side of a local building to boot. It’s the type of project that must be overseen from top to bottom. The tiniest details matter just as much as the showstoppers. One poor installation amongst 30 perfect ones can be your downfall. It’s a huge undertaking for any PSP, but certain shops have become leaders in the space, mastering the ability to brand essentially any event for any client.
With time and practice, massive, comprehensive installations not only become possible for your shop, but profitable and marketable. Once you get all your proverbial ducks in a row and knock out your first few large events, the sky is the limit. You can even make “takeovers” your calling card. Consider bluemedia and Strategic Factory, for example. They’ve helped take a plethora of brands and events to unforeseen heights with their expert insight and reliable teams.
Have you seen an amazing graphic installation at a huge sporting event recently? Yes? Well, there’s a solid chance bluemedia installed it. Bluemedia has been making their mark on events and retail endeavors for 25 years and has been especially busy as of late. They’ve completed eight Super Bowls and counting, building wraps in every major US market, space domes for Star Wars releases, and much more. Their professionalism gets put to the test monthly, and large clients depend on them to make their events pop, no matter where they’re happening.Bluemedia printed and installed the graphic elements for the NFL’s Pro Bowl week in Las Vegas at the start of February and then turned their focus to the inaugural Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix, which was happening just months later. It required immense amounts of planning and high levels of execution from their team, who is used to traveling the country to make sure events go off without a hitch.
The NFL’s events are all about pleasing the league’s fans and giving them a full graphic buffet for their eyes to feast on. The on-field product is the most important element of any NFL event, but the surroundings have to match the league’s legendary reputation. The NFL’s Pro Bowl has always been about showing off the most talented players with the most jaw-dropping abilities, so matching that energy with graphics and installations was paramount for bluemedia. But it wasn’t the only thing on their Vegas agenda. The East-West Shrine Bowl was also a part of the week’s events. The graphics for the Shrine Bowl, which features some of the best college football players in the country competing against one another while NFL coaches and scouts evaluate their talents, were also printed and installed by bluemedia, along with graphics for an NFL Play 60 event, which focused on helping children develop their football skills.
As for the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix, it was the first Formula 1 event at Hard Rock Stadium and the track was precisely designed around the Miami Dolphins’ field. Bluemedia was responsible for installing more than 10 miles of fence mesh for the race that would be watched by millions across the globe. They also handled the interior wayfinding graphics at the stadium, skybridges spanning over the track, and even installed a massive building wrap for one of the event’s main sponsors, Heineken, at the InterContinental Hotel on Biscayne Bay, which required more than 20,000 square feet of ClearFocus ReflectVue 70/30 window wrap. In conjunction with Infinite Scale Design Group out of Salt Lake City, bluemedia was able to perfectly brand elements of the race, which was considered one of the most important F1 Races to occur in the US in quite some time.
Installations of these magnitudes require a full-blown repertoire of printing equipment. To print all of the NFL and F1 graphics, bluemedia utilized their stable of printers that includes the following: a Durst Rhotex 325 direct-to-textile digital printer, an EFI Vutek LX3 Pro LED printer, an EFI Vutek GS5500 LXr Pro printer, and HP Latex 3000 and 3500 printers. As for the media, dye sub carpeting was used for the Pro Bowl, various 3M films for all graphics, Sintra PVC sheets for signage, and ample supplies of polystyrene, Coroplast products, and sheets of standard fabric for the rest. In the big event space, it truly takes a village.
The 2022 World Lacrosse Women’s World Championship hosted elite athletes from all over the planet in Towson, Maryland, on the campus of Towson University. The games occurred on the university’s athletic fields, with Johnny Unitas Stadium and Tiger Field playing host to the majority of the games. The stadiums were already branded with Towson Tigers signage and colors, so it was Strategic Factory’s job to rebrand the facilities to display graphics for the Women’s Lacrosse World Championships. Players from the Czech Republic all the way to Australia made the trip to Maryland for the event. Strategic Factory wanted the global guests to feel as though their event was branded with the utmost professionalism.
To complete the jobs spanning across campus, Strategic Factory used an HP Latex R2000 printer onto 4mm Interplast white Coroplast and 13-ounce white banner vinyl sourced from various suppliers. For finishing, the PSP relied on their Kongsberg X Series Plotter Cutter. From the entry way of the stadium to the on-field graphics, everything was branded to the exact specifications of the Championship. The end result was Towson’s athletic facilities being transformed into an event space qualified to host some of the best female athletes in the world.
