Things people ask before ordering a sign

Four things: size, whether it is lit, the materials and the installation. A cut-vinyl window sign and lit channel letters on a second-storey sign band are very different jobs; lift equipment, electrical work and permit drawings all add to the price. Quantity helps too: a fleet of trucks or a run of real estate signs costs less per piece. Send a photo of the spot with rough sizes, or design your sign online, and we will quote it for free.

Your quote spells out the payment options and when payment is due, before you commit to anything. Nothing is built until you have approved the proof and the price, and the quote itself is free either way.

Not for a quote or a proof: both are free. When you order a sign, the design work is part of the job, and we can supply the final artwork files so you can reuse the layout for cards, vehicles or a second location.

A vector file is ideal: AI, EPS, SVG or a PDF with the fonts outlined, because it scales to any size without going fuzzy. A large JPG or PNG often works for printed graphics, and if all you have is a photo of your old sign or a business card, our designers rebuild the logo first. We keep your colour references and artwork on file so every later job matches.

It depends on the sign, so we give you a firm date with the quote instead of a guess. Cut vinyl, banners and small print jobs are quick, often a day or two once the proof is approved. Lit signs take longer: the cabinet or letters are built in our shop, the permit has to be approved, and the install is scheduled around weather and lift equipment. Tell us your opening or event date and we work back from it.

In Surrey, most exterior signs need a sign permit, and lit signs also involve an electrical permit. Delta, Langley, Richmond, Vancouver and the other cities we serve each have their own bylaw and permit desk. We prepare the drawings, apply on your behalf and book the install once the permit is approved. Interior signs, window graphics and most temporary banners are simpler, and we will tell you which rules apply to yours.

Most plazas and malls have a landlord's document that sets the size, lighting, mounting and sometimes the colours allowed on the sign band. The landlord approves your drawing before the city does. Send us the criteria or the property manager's contact and we design to it from the start. Often the fastest route is a new face in the existing cabinet, and we can retrofit it to LED at the same time.

Our own crew installs everything we make, with a bucket truck and lift equipment for sign bands and pylons. Lit signs use CSA-certified electrical components, and the power is connected through a licensed electrician where the municipality requires it. We come back after dark to check the sign. We install across Surrey and the Lower Mainland, and any travel cost is shown on the quote, so there are no surprises.

Real glass neon has the warmest glow, suits restaurants, bars and feature walls, and can be repaired for decades. LED is bright with a small power bill, and it is the right choice for channel letters, programmable message boards and LED neon logos. A light box is the storefront workhorse: an LED-lit aluminum cabinet with a printed or cut-vinyl face in your exact colours, and usually the most affordable way into a plaza sign band. We make all three, so tell us where the sign will hang and we will recommend one honestly.

It depends on the materials and the exposure, and we would rather tell you the truth for your sign than quote a number that sounds good. As a guide: premium cast vinyl is rated for seven or more years outdoors, printed faces are laminated against UV, aluminum cabinets outlast their lighting, and glass neon can be re-tubed instead of replaced. LED modules and power supplies carry their manufacturer's warranty, and we stand behind our own workmanship. Ask when we quote and we will spell out what is covered for your sign.

Yes. We repair and maintain light boxes, channel letters, LED and neon signs from any shop, and we can usually source matching parts or fabricate them in-house. Our crew comes with the right lift equipment and checks the sign after dark once it is fixed.

A retrofit keeps your existing cabinet or letters and replaces the fluorescent tubes or old neon inside with LED modules and a new power supply. For most fluorescent cabinets it is worth it: lower power bills, brighter and more even light, and far fewer service calls. We quote the retrofit against a new sign so you can compare, and we can change the face at the same time.

English, Punjabi, Hindi and Urdu. You can call, email or visit in any of them. We typeset Gurmukhi and Devanagari correctly for signs, cards, flyers and menus, and you check a proof before anything is cut or printed.

Yes. We are at Unit 139, 12639 80 Avenue in Newton, Surrey, with parking out front. We are open Monday to Friday, 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM, and closed on weekends. Call ahead if you want to see samples or talk through a lit sign, so the right person is in. You do not have to come in, though: we measure and install on site across Surrey, Delta, Langley, White Rock, Richmond, New Westminster, Burnaby, Vancouver, Coquitlam and Abbotsford, and a photo with measurements is often enough to quote.

Yes. On our Design your sign page you pick the type of sign, type your wording in English or Punjabi, try fonts, colours and sizes, and send the design to us for a quote. There are no prices online: we reply with options and a price, then send a proof drawing for you to approve before anything is made. Prefer to talk it through? Call us, or describe your sign on the quote form.

Yes, and we make them often. We typeset Gurmukhi correctly and lay out Punjabi and English together so both read clearly from the road. You check every letter on a proof before anything is cut or printed, and you can talk the whole job through with us in Punjabi. You can also try your Punjabi wording first on our Design your sign page. We set Hindi in Devanagari too.

A good rule of thumb is one inch of letter height for every ten feet of viewing distance (about 2.5 cm for every 3 m). Letters that need to read from 100 feet (30 m) away, such as across a road or parking lot, should be about 10 inches (25 cm) tall. Your plaza's sign criteria or the city bylaw may set a maximum size. The letter-size calculator on our website does the maths, or send us a photo and we will size the letters for you.