Signs of the Times - May 2017 - 34

to space 'County' on the right-hand
side, away from that [detail] the same
as how 'Hotel' was spaced on the
left-hand side, which gave us an even,
mirrored look."
To avoid possible misunderstandings, Coltun said, "Have an
understanding of everyone's wants
and goals on the project. Make sure
you're managing everyone's expectations accordingly." Rather than
pitching his signs on quality alone,
Coltun said Crown's motto is "service,
service, service."
Sometimes, that means dropping
everything to help a customer put
out a fire. At a five-star hotel in in
New York City, a hotel manager forgot to order room number placards
for the entire building. A Crown team
worked around the clock, fabricating
the signage in three days and installing it just in time for an upcoming
inspection. "Some people would say
it can't be done, but we do whatever
it takes," Coltun said.
FINISHING TOUCHES
For The County Hotel, the Mixit team
crafted illuminated letters and three34

SIGNS OF THE TIMES

MAY 2017

sided fascia around the entryway
comprising aluminum routed panels
topped by another front panel with
push-through acrylic lettering, and
a third, final layer of acrylic on the
signface. The channel letters are
router-cut out of aluminum with an
AXYZ 6010 router and illuminated
with a three-module Samsung LED,
with design work done in CorelDRAW.
As with the Urban Lodge project, a
design firm passed along font, design
and branding details.
During installation, Mixit mounted
the 35.4-in. (900mm) letters on an
aluminum rail in sections, then used
a scissor lift to place each section on
the original wrought-iron railing. Once
they were in position, the wrought
iron was drilled and tapped, then
secured into place using locknuts.
Because the front side of the building
is a mirror of itself, Nattrass and his
team installed two identical signs on
the front façade, as well as a single
set on the side of the building.
Once debates about spacing for
the lettering were resolved, the
Mixit team was ready to tackle
the next challenge: The fabrication

company crafting the hotel's wroughtiron entryway had fallen behind,
so signage installation had to be
squeezed into a tiny window.
(Remember that tip about timing?)
At Urban Lodge, keeping with the
contemporary touch, simple black
and white wayfinding signage hangs
from the unfinished ceilings with a
hand pointing the way for a touch of
humor. For contrast and contemporary flair, as guests exit the elevator,
an enormous, oversized number
denoting each floor is affixed to
wooden cupboards.
Opposite the reception desk, a
splash of white tile with black adhesive
vinyl affixed to the concrete wall
carries the exterior signage and logo
to the interior of the space. In addition, the logo was stamped into the
walls using an impression of the
Urban Lodge logo pressed into the
wet concrete.
Lancaster's design left not only these
literal impressions, but increased the
developer's estimation of her work;
they are currently collaborating on
a new project. As with any sector, a
happy client is a loyal one.
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