Nimlok Articles:
Lightweight Tradeshow Materials Save Money

Shifting attitudes in the tradeshow industry have been changing the way booths are being built. The assumption that you need to make the biggest impression at a tradeshow despite the cost is being supplanted with a thrifty, targeted marketing. The impetus is to produce more with less as a result of the shrinking advertising budgets of recent years. Gone are the days of start-ups seeking to make a big splash with ostentatious exhibits. Companies are finding ways to make their marketing dollars work harder and that is pushing design houses to become more inventive with the ways displays are built.

A quiet revolution has been going on as tradeshow manufacturers struggle to provide solutions to changes in both our expectations of displays and the materials used to create them. Booths built with rigid infill panels and wooden construction have shown a sharp decline as the emphasis in exhibiting has shifted to such concerns as weight, drayage and storage. Designers today need to do more with less. Less weight. Less assembly. Less cost.

These challenging requirements are inspiring more constructions to be created with aluminum extrusion. Explains Steve Westcott, a designer at Nimlok , "It's the sensible solution. Aluminum extrusion allows you to build structure quickly with a minimum of expense. And it's strong enough to comfortably support product and graphics. It's cheaper, weighs less and assembles easily."

Nimlok's standard extrusion is four inches square with channel bars running the length to allow for attachments anywhere. They can be cut to any required length and the addition of in-house welding capabilities greatly expands their potential uses.

"Now we have more freedom to design," explains Steve Westcott. "The combination of aluminum extrusion and in-house bending and welding capabilities gives us significantly more flexibility in how we design. We have more control over the manufacture of the parts. How they are shaped. A panel is just a panel, but the extrusion can be shaped and bent. The designs we're creating now, you've never seen before."

With extrusion, structure is generated more efficiently. Height isn't achieved by a progressive stacking of panels and connectors, rather it is one clean piece thereby facilitating assembly. It reduces the amount of parts to be shipped, the intricacy of instructions, and the likelihood of losing a part. And because it's cast all in one piece, it's stronger and more durable on the show floor.

"The great thing about extrusion is the ability to create open structure, to divide up the space without obstructing the booth," says designer Aaron Edler. "You can create an impressive appearance without the visual mass of solid panels. With these structural components you can achieve height and do it cheaper than if it all had to be created out of individual panels. And everything is completely flexible, you cut off the extrusion at height, and attach the connector. It's that easy."

for re-design for different shows, and the best part is everything is still compatible with our old system of panel construction. We never really left the panel system behind, we've simply grown a new direction in materials out of it."

Another element which has catapulted to the forefront design is truss. As stylish as it is structural, truss often arcs over display space offering ample opportunity to attach graphics and lights. They are valuable stabilizers for such booth elements as towers or kiosks and bring a sense of cohesion to displays which otherwise might appear sparse or spread out.

"In years past people viewed truss as an accent or accessory, perhaps utilizing it to create a tower." says Westcott. "But now there is a greater understanding of what we can do with this resource. We're finding it's less and less an afterthought and increasingly being used as a structural element."

Truss of all kinds are gaining prominence as a high profile element of exhibiting. With a wide variety to choose from, such as square, triangular, folding and tubular, truss creates unique applications. These durable, reinforced items offer terrific support for lighting, graphics, shelving and monitors. But easily the most ingenious use of truss comes in conjunction with increasing popularity of fabric graphics.

Fabric graphics have advanced significantly in recent years as technology has advanced. Improved dyesublimation processes allow crisper and more colorful graphics to be printed which are less likely to run or fade.

"With the quality we're getting out of our dye-sublimated printers today, you can literally take the graphics down, throw them in your washing machine and have them ready for the next show. These aren't delicate elements anymore. They're more than sufficient to handle wear and tear of a tradeshow." says Edler.

Additionally, the new generation of printers is capable of printing at much larger sizes than before. Previously, large fabric graphics would inevitably involve unsightly seams where smaller prints would need to be sewn together and the elasticity of fabric would only complicate the process of creating a cohesive image. Current printers offer dimensions of up to 96 inches in width with the length limited only by the roll of fabric.

"Graphics have become bigger and cheaper to produce," continues Edler. "And with the trend towards larger graphics, there is no need to complicate it with a cumbersome panel structure. With the addition of a few sleek lines of extrusion or truss, you create a complimentary relationship that provides all the structural support you need. You can achieve structural components without solid walls."

Many of these new structures look like tents or canopies. The trend draws comparisons to sails but the impression they leave is hard to ignore. Back walls and inline displays which were once made up of laminate or fabric panels are liberated to become full height image.

"It used to be that you built a wall out of panels and hung a graphic on it," says Steve Westcott. "Now the graphic is the wall. There's a whole structural element that's been eliminated and this has opened the whole booth structure up to more image, more color, and ultimately, more exposure.

Another benefit of trends in lightweight materials is the potential to build top down. Shaped aluminum structures and truss are light enough that they can be suspended from the ceiling of tradeshows allowing design in a whole new dimension. Banners, rings, discs and many other intriguing shapes have found their way onto the show floor, many acting as de facto ceilings where fire restrictions don't permit enclosed spaces.

Tight times invite invention and the last few years have afforded ample opportunity to explore new potentials. Those who have the determination to adapt will thrive with innovation and the face of exhibiting will change where they lead. Extrusion, truss and fabric graphics are a few of the trends which have proven potential and are emerging as the directions of the future.

"Booth design is essentially about re-enforcing a company's message using a limited amount of material, space and time," sums up Steve Westcott. "We've shifted our emphasis towards more design driven and lightweight options. You have to catch your customer with the first impression. And you have to learn to do it on a budget".

Article by Chris Kowalski