I occasionally give tours of our Plainfield, Indiana facility. I enjoy showing visitors around our building, sharing insights about each department, and explaining how they interact. One of my favorite stops on the tour is our installation bay. We have more than 100 certified vehicle graphics installers, some travel, many work off-site at trailer manufacturing plants, and some work in Plainfield. The best case scenario for my tour is when there’s a difficult installation in the bay. It’s a chance for me to not only brag about the integrity of our installation team, but show the quality of work we deliver.

The little Things add up

I’ve learned that applying adhesive vinyl graphics to a vehicle isn’t as easy as it looks. The professional TKO Graphics applicators just make it look easy.

Trimming – Cutting too deep while trimming vinyl can cut into the surface of the vehicle causing damage, which will eventually rust and could lead to graphic failure.
Heating – Adhesive vinyl is often heated to conform to complex curves and corners. Heat it too much and you stretch the vinyl, heat more than that and you may damage the paint.
Applying – I’m not sure if using a squeegee to properly seal the vinyl to the substrate is a science or an art, but I know this, if it’s not precise, air bubbles and pockets will create problems in a short time.
Removing Equipment – Have you ever painted interior walls of a home? Did you try to paint around light switches and outlets, or did you remove them, paint behind and reinstall? The latter is the best practice, and it’s the same for vehicle graphics. Remove the equipment that can be removed and work the vinyl behind it.
Working around windows, doors, and unmovable equipment – Improperly edging door frames, and windows lead to shabby looking graphics, and that’s not how most organizations want to be represented.
Corrugated trailers, rivets, and other configurations – Knowing how to design and apply graphics to various styles of trailers can mean the difference between an outstanding installation and one that looks out of whack.

It’s not as easy as it looks

Our teams of certified installers are not only well trained and competent—they care. They care about a job looking good for a customer. They care about an installation lasting, about it holding up to weather and wear because it was properly installed. And they care about how the final product looks. They care because they take pride in their work. If you’d like to see our team in action, I’d be happy to give you a tour.