Tackle Wide-Format Sports Floor Graphics with Ease

When it’s game time, the graphics on the court, on the field, and under the ice must look sharp. Here’s a glimpse at what it takes to enter this arena.

Wide-format graphics are an integral part of sports events, from banners hanging up above to graphics on the court . Whether it’s on basketball courts or hockey rinks, high school or professional level, there are almost always printed elements beneath the players’ feet.

For wide-format print providers, sports floor graphics can be a viable service to tack onto their current offerings to bring in some extra revenue. Here’s a look at how these graphics go from concept to realization.

Strategically placing your seams along lines in the design can help you achieve a clean look. | Credit: Graphic Image Flooring

Creating Floor Graphics for Sports

Graphic Image Flooring in Manitowoc Rapids, Wisconsin, frequently turns spaces into sports havens for its clients, which can be installed to last for a couple days to a few months. To make sure the graphics hold up, it’s critical to use durable media, says Tim Wirtz, CEO and founder of Graphic Image Flooring.

“We use what we call our Endurance Vinyl,” Wirtz says. “It is a 1.9-mm-thick clear vinyl that we print on the underside or second surface. What that does is provides a 75-mil wear layer, which is the thickest wear layer of any vinyl floor on the market. It'll handle … pretty much anything you want to throw at it.”

Wirtz adds that Graphic Image Flooring also has a thinner material, called Prestige Flooring, which comes in at 50mm thick.

At Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based Mandel Graphic Solutions, they often print temporary graphics for halftime events on basketball courts. These are designed to be placed and then removed shortly after.

Ice graphics are laid as the ice goes down, so the graphic is embedded in it rather than on top. | Credit: Mandel Graphic Solutions

“For the basketball side — more on the latex side of printing — we would use a low-tack pressure-sensitive vinyl so it's easily picked up,” says Rick Mandel, president of Mandel Graphic Solutions. “That would have to be reprinted each time that they needed that; it’s not a reusable product. Sometimes people will use it with … a neoprene sort of thing on the back of it, so it could be reused, but we haven't had too much success [because of] the sliding. Sometimes they have to stand on the circle or shoot from the circle, so they want it as flat as possible.”

Scott Burnham, CEO of Kansas City, Missouri-based LargePrinting.com, says making sure the adhesive doesn’t damage the floor is a top priority when it comes to temporary graphics in particular.

As Mandel mentioned before, latex printers can be a viable option for creating graphics. Burnham agrees but says his company usually uses UV printing technology due to timing within its workflow.

Creating graphics for ice hockey is a bit different. Because these graphics are placed within the ice rather than on top of the surface, there are different requirements for the materials used. For instance, Mandel says his company uses dye-sublimation on flag fabric, while others may use mesh. He explains that it’s critical to make sure the media stays under the ice and doesn’t float to the top while it’s freezing.

Not all sports are played inside, however. While there are many ways to protect outdoor graphics from deteriorating quickly with sun exposure, Burnham points to laminates as a great option.

Installing Floor Graphics

In terms of installation, Wirtz says vinyl jobs are fairly simple to install.

“They just simply roll the material out, butt the seams together, and then use a double-sided tape,” Wirtz says. “Then just tape that down at the seams, tape the perimeter, and then it's good to go. When the event is over, then you just simply peel it back up.”

However, some graphics are meant to hold up for longer than the course of one event. Some floor graphics may be required for a few days while others a year or more. And Burnham points out that “removeable graphics” doesn’t necessarily mean easy.

While customers typically provide the dimensions needed for printing, it’s important to make sure everything is to scale. | Credit: Graphic Image Flooring

“The idea behind removable is that it doesn't leave adhesive behind,” Burnham adds. “That doesn't mean you don't have to use heat or a lot of elbow grease even to pull them up. It just means that ideally, when you're done with it, you're not going to have damaged what's behind it.”

When it comes to ice-based sports, the graphics are placed within the ice as it’s being laid instead of being adhered to the surface.

“It'll go down to the bottom of where — when they're finally flooding and going layer by layer — it stays put, versus some of the other ones that tend to float, like mesh or things like that,” Mandel says of the flag fabric his company typically uses. “They tend not to use anything with adhesive because usually the ground is not nice and pristine, so the adhesive would kind of stick to dirt.”

While clients normally provide the measurements they want, it’s prudent to check the sizing before you get to the point of installation.

“Typically, the client is providing that information to us, but then when we get the art, we are double-checking it and verifying it,” Wirtz says. “For example, an ice rink — there's college, there's professional, there's different sizes, and so we narrow it down to what size or what scale [they want].”

Challenges with Sports Floor Graphics

According to Wirtz, one of the biggest challenges with creating floor graphics for sports is making sure the scale is right.

When creating graphics for outdoor use, there are several ways to protect graphics from sun exposure. | Credit: LargePrinting.com

“Sometimes, they want it to be exactly to the proper proportions — the whole floor is the size of the space,” he says. “Other times, it's going to be a scaled-down version of it for an event, for example, like a football field. And so, from there, you want the scale and the proportions. Let's say that the whole space is a third of what a football field is going to look like. Well, we want to make sure that the yard markers, instead of 3 ft. for the yard, they're down to about a foot.”

Additionally, Wirtz says Graphic Image Flooring will typically print substrates up to 30 ft. long and 10 ft. wide, so to get a clean look, it’s important to make sure the seams are not obvious.

“We try to hide the seams within the graphic,” Wirtz says. “If you're doing, for example, a basketball court, ideally, you try to hide the seams along the free throw lines and those types of things that are less visible.”
Final Thoughts
Overall, creating graphics for sports flooring can be a great way to bring in more business to your company, especially when it comes to those printed on vinyl.

“I think it isn't a unique application,” Mandel says. “The hardest part is knowing the right pressure-sensitive vinyl and the right laminate to use for it. Otherwise, almost all the printers can print them.”

Tina Burnham, director of marketing at LargePrinting.com, adds that there will certainly be a learning curve, as there is with adding any new product to your list of services.

“The hard part is understanding the behavior of the substrates and what the specific circumstances you're trying to address,” she says.

Scott Burnham suggests talking with your sales reps to fill any gaps in your knowledge.

“Asking your rep the right questions — ‘Am I using the right material? Is this OK to put down on a basketball court?’ — those are kind of important questions to know the answers to,” he says.

And, as with any project, it’s important to keep your customers’ particular wants and needs in mind.

“Everything is very situational,” Tina Burnham says.

Sometimes clients have feedback, and you have to rethink the project. That could mean trying different substrates while still ensuring laminates pair well to find the right solution for your client’s vision.