Two Acuity F Presses Provide Fast Turnarounds and Increased Capabilities at Signs By Tomorrow

The Acuity F by Fujifilm (Booth 1119), a UV inkjet flatbed press with a blend of ultra-high quality and speed, enables Signs By Tomorrow to expand offerings at their Washington DC suburban location in Rockville, MD.

Within its 14,000-sqft production facility, Signs By Tomorrow of Rockville prides themselves on fast turnarounds, high quality products, and excellent customer service. With the recent addition of a second Acuity F, they have experienced immediate improvement to their bottom-line. By doubling its production capacity, they are earning new large businesses, including high profile clients within state and local government, and transportation department entities throughout Maryland.

Established in 1992, Signs By Tomorrow of Rockville is a family-owned operation. Mary Lou Goehrung, President, and her two sons Glenn, VP and COO, and Scott, VP and CTO, are involved in the day-to-day, going “above and beyond” along with their team of educated and talented professionals to provide a variety of sign and messaging solutions to their clients. 

In order to stay at the top of the sign industry Goehrung is always looking to increase quality, speed, efficiency and turnaround time. Bill Davison, production manager, recommended that any new technology addition to the center must have three things: speed, dependability and large capacity. After much research, the answer was clear. Purchase another large 8-by-10-foot high-speed Acuity F by Fujifilm. This second Acuity F makes the Goehrung’s at Signs By Tomorrow of Rockville the only center in North America with this capacity.     

“Being able to print white is also really beneficial,” says Lori Garber, Operations Manager. “We really do love the white ink on the Acuity F, it certainly exceeds our expectations. We recently won a new contract because of our capabilities.”

The Rockville location is successfully producing output on a variety of substrates, including MDO wood (a wood composite) for exterior post and panel signs, corrugated plastic yard signs, aluminum composite for real estate companies and rigid pieces like acrylic panels with stand-offs.

“With the two Acuity F presses we print on acrylic, and other hard substrates, and we often print white ink down on clear decals or clear vinyl; having that ability helps us stand out from the crowd,” Garber says. “When we print on MDO, those sheets are usually 4 by 8 feet so it’s nice to be able to print the whole sheet, bleed-off the edge if necessary, and finish the job very quickly. We can even print 5-by-10-foot sheets. Actually, with our two large Acuity F’s, we have the capacity to print four, 4-by-10-foot substrates all at one time.”

Signs By Tomorrow of Rockville is also heavily involved in the real estate market, managing a contract with a company that has offices in Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC, with more than 300 agents. They meet the needs of this specific client by turning jobs quickly and efficiently with their two Acuity F presses.

“We print on aluminum composite for the real estate agency,” Garber says. “We are able to turn around their jobs fast, and the client is very pleased. We also manage their ‘new development’ signs for properties and renovations, in addition to their ‘for sale’ and ‘open house’ signage. All these jobs go to the two Acuity F presses.”

The Acuity F is the most productive printer in the popular Acuity Series. It combines eight years of market leading image quality with leading edge engineering and ink technology to deliver a state-of-the-art platform capable of a wide range of print applications. With a maximum print speed of more than 1,600 sqft/hr, the Acuity F is built for production.

The Acuity F allows print service providers to select the right production speed and image quality to address a wide range of display applications. The addition of white ink further extends the application and media range to include clear and colored substrates. The Acuity F maintains all the advantages of the successful Acuity Platform, including near-photographic image quality, versatility and ease of use, but has been optimized for the efficient and high-speed production of rigid media applications.

“Not all sign shops have flatbed technology. Other sign shops are still printing onto a vinyl-type substrate and then mounting it by hand onto rigid substrates, which can lead to mistakes and errors,” Garber says. “We can print directly onto the substrate with the UV ink, and it always looks great. Having the two Acuity F presses allows us to print four, 4-by-8-foot sheets of material all at one time. This has really increased our productivity.”