PM Signs - Canopy Signage

Canopy Signage

What Is Canopy Signage?

Canopy signs are essentially extended awnings. They provide a bigger coverage area to deliver shade and weather protection to customers, and they are a very effective branding tool. Canopy signs can also be affixed to tent structures to allow you to market your brand at events; this is one of their most defining features. Canopy signs will need additional support aside from their attachment site to buildings.

How Big Is It?

Canopy signs are quite large. When attached to a building, they can extend anywhere from a couple feet to several meters in length. They may only be wide enough to cover the entrance and a foot or two on either side, or they may extend several meters in this direction as well. They can even be large enough to cover outdoor seating areas or all of the pumps at gas stations. Canopy signs may also stand separately from a building in tent form, allowing your business to be visible even when you aren’t at the location. These canopy signs can be made in all the standard tent sizing. Canopy signs can be as thin as a single layer of fabric, or several inches worth of solid materials. It all depends on their purpose and location.

What Is It Made Of?

The frames for canopy signs are nearly always made of aluminum. This is because it is a highly durable, rust proof material that is lightweight and easily customizable. Essentially, every feature you could need in a frame is a benefit of aluminum. The cover material for a canopy can vary quite a bit. Standard canopies will have a vinyl fabric cover, as this material is resistant to damage from the sun and highly customizable to help advertise your business. Canvas is another popular fabric for canopy signs but it isn’t as durable as vinyl. It does produce a unique look though, which can be preferred by many business owners. If you’re looking for a more permanent, durable material for the canopy cover, both aluminum and corrugated metal are great options. Metals like steel will need a coat of zinc to make them rust proof, but they will be more durable than aluminum. Stronger canopy covers are frequently used for gas station canopies, in order to be highly durable and weather resistant.

Why Is This Sign Type Needed?

Canopy signs can be useful for a number of reasons. Free standing canopy signs are essentially the only way to appropriately market your business when attending events, as they provide a way for people to find your business from a distance, and they provide comforts like shade and protection from rain. This will create positive associations and give people a reason to remember your business. Canopy signs attached to buildings offer the same comforts to patrons as well; they can also protect the interior from the sun’s rays and make waiting customers more comfortable. Canopy signs are also great for navigation purposes; it is pretty hard to miss a structure so large, and it makes your business very easy for new and existing customers to find you. That is why they are so popular and so essential to all sectors of business. Some will benefit more than others from canopy signage, but choosing canopy signage would never be the wrong choice for any business, big or small.

When Was This Sign Type Invented and Why?

Canopy signage evolved from awnings. Although awnings offered some protection from the sun and rain, they weren’t large enough to cover groups of people. Canopy signs maintained all of the benefits of awnings while expanding their service numbers; this was highly convenient for restaurants with outdoor seating and businesses like clubs, bars, and other entertainment centers that would have many people waiting in line to get in or waiting for cabs or other driving services to get home safely. Since canopy signs can be quite affordable with the right design choices, many businesses began using them.

Types of Canopy Signage

The three main types of canopy signage you should be aware of are freestanding canopies, entranceway canopies, and extended canopies.

Freestanding canopies are ones that are not attached to a building in any way. They are usually supported by 4 legs/poles, but this number can vary based on the size and support needs of the canopy structure. Freestanding canopies can be permanent or temporary structures, and they can be made of a soft or hard cover material. Freestanding canopy signage is really used for only two things. Soft cover free standing canopies are used for representing a business at an event, and they will be temporary structures, similar to a large tent; this tent just has graphics on it. Hard cover freestanding canopies are usually used at gas stations only; here, they protect the customers from inclement weather while they are refueling and offer the area highly effective sun protection. While all businesses can make use of soft cover freestanding canopies, hard cover ones are really only used in the petroleum industry.

Entranceway canopies will be the smallest type. These ones are most accurately described as extended awnings. They offer more protection for both interior and exterior purposes. The interior protection offered by entranceway canopies mainly refers to sun protection, as the canopy will help keep the interior cool. This can protect products, keep waiting customers comfortable, and reduce the air conditioning costs. Outdoor protection offered by canopies mainly refers to weather protection; these canopies can keep customers out of the rain and sun while they are waiting to enter the business, or while they are waiting for a driving service to come pick them up. Every business type can make use of entranceway canopies, and they are one of the most customizable types of canopies.

Extended canopies will most often be used by restaurant type businesses, as they can offer a lot of protection from the rain and sun to keep customers comfortable. This is the most beneficial for businesses with outdoor seating since the area can be functional more days than not. Without extended canopies, these businesses would lose this valuable source of income on both rainy days and really hot days where customers cannot sit outside without getting sunburned.

How Is Canopy Signage Made?

The construction of canopy signs is a multi step process involving a few different components. Different types of canopy signs will have a different fabrication process, but in the end, you’ll have a large sign capable of marketing your business and providing a level of functionality that most other signs lack.

What Is the Manufacturing Process Like?

All canopy signs will begin with frame fabrication. Almost always, the frame will be made of aluminum, as this material is rustproof, highly durable, and easily workable into different structures and designs. The aluminum may be painted to fit the style of the canopy and its associated building, or it may not be. The frame components will be welded together to provide security and longevity to the frame.

Next, the cover for the canopy must be made. For hard cover canopies, more aluminum will usually be the go to choose since it is lightweight and can be attached easily to the frame. Graphics can easily be applied to a hard cover, and there is the potential for the use of dimensional letters as well for a more dynamic appearance. The one note to make about hard cover canopies, especially free standing ones, is that they will be completed on site. This is because the components are just too large to be able to ship the canopy in its fully completed form. It also makes the installation process easier. Soft cover canopies are much easier to make on site, since they are often smaller and more flexible. Whichever fabric type is chosen, it will have the desired graphics printed onto it before attachment to the canopy framework. Smaller awnings may be constructed fully before delivery, but others may need to be assembled at the location in order to set up the large frame and securely attach it to the building (common with extended canopies due to the sheer size and amount of material).

Some canopies may have reflective sheeting applied to make them more visible at night, so this task will also be performed before the cover is attached to the frame, wherever that process takes place. No matter how many steps are involved or how complex the manufacturing and installation processes are, your sign will come out exactly as you’d envisioned it.

How Can Canopy Signage Be Customized?

Canopy signs come in many forms, and that means there are a lot of aspects you are able to customize. First off, you’ll be able to decide what type of canopy signage best suits your needs. If you are looking for representation at events off-location, you’ll want a free standing canopy made so that your business can be effectively advertised even when away from the building. You can choose a few different types of canopy signage for on-property benefits. You will also have the opportunity to choose the materials used to create your custom sign. The biggest decision is whether you’ll be using hard or soft materials, and then there are a few choices in each category. If you are looking for a hard cover on your canopy sign, aluminum and other metals will be your choices. Soft canopy coverings include materials like canvas, vinyl, polycarbonate, and more. Once these decisions are made, you can choose your color scheme, and they your graphics. Some canopy signs are used to advertise specifics about a business, such as contact information or what they offer, and others are used to advertise the business itself, so will contain the business name and often the logo as well. Th sophistication of your graphics will affect the price of your canopy sign, but all of the details are up to you.

What Is the Price Range?

Canopy signage will usually cost you several thousand dollars. The price will depend on the materials used, the size, and how complex the graphics are. Larger, more sophisticated canopy signs can run more than $15,000, but simpler versions may cost only $2000. It is important to decide on a budget before committing to design decisions, since a lower budget will affect how much freedom you have when deciding on each aspect of your canopy sign.

Our Canopy Signage Manufacturing Service

Our company is dedicated to designing, fabricating, and installing high quality canopy signs for all business needs. As such, there are a few promises we make to you, our client. We promise to make your sign true to your vision, only compromising when we absolutely have to. We promise to use only the highest quality materials and equipment, and we offer you the opportunity to view our materials during a tour of our facilities, so you can see for yourself exactly what will be used to manufacture your piece. We also promise to uphold the quality you expect in all of our maintenance visits should you require them. You will never need to hire an outside electrical contractor to work on signs we had a hand in building.

If your vision requires us to work with other companies, we will do that. If you need us to help you decide on your design and come up with an appropriate budget to achieve your goals, we will do that. If you need us to get permits in order and consult with city officials to confirm regulations and guidelines we need to follow, we will do that too. Whatever it takes to get your sign in place, we will do it because we value your business and our goal is to help it succeed.

Our canopy signage manufacturing process ensures that your custom sign is completed on time and without error. Plus, we’ll stick to your budget without fail. We understand how important your sign is to your business, and that’s why your business is important to us.