Celebrating 150 Years: A Snapshot of Our Evolution 1873 - 2023

Your branding and signage can have a significant contribution to your marketing and the success of your business.

Here at Albert Smith Signs we understand how important it is to perfect your company brand and signage and we are able to offer solutions that are innovative, deliver quality and reinforce your brand.

The following are the main elements you need to consider before choosing the appropriate signage for your business:

Visibility:

Your sign placement is crucial. Your signage should be in an optimal location to deliver the best return on your business investment. We can assist you with advice on this element.

Design & Legibility:

After choosing a good location, the next elements are crucial: sign design, font style and colour

Good design is essential and should reflect the nature of your business and clearly show what you do and if appropriate incorporate your company colours. Legibility often adheres to the mantra “less is more”

What is the message you want your branding and signage to deliver?

Our Signspec department is All About Design – we can assist you with your design development, art work and photo montages

Quality:

At Albert Smith Signs we pride ourselves on being able to design and manufacture quality signage which will both enhance and add value to your business and brand.

Quality runs deep in our company’s DNA – and means doing the right things right and is uniquely defined by each individual customer’s needs.

Our manufacturing quality procedure ensures individual department checks on their product quality as it moves from department to department and a final overall quality check on despatch

Our total in-house manufacturing facility allows us to achieve the highest quality and standards for your signage products.

Installation:

When your signage is complete, the final step that is as equally important as design and a quality product is quality sign installation.

Our Brandcare department has a network of signage installers responsible for all our onsite installation activities that operate Australia-wide and throughout the Asia Pacific Region.

Your checklist considerations prior to your sign installation:

• Has your sign installer of choice conducted a site audit to ensure they have all the necessary site information?
• Have all local authority approvals been procured?
• Is there a safety plan and a work method statement in place?
• If required, who is responsible for connecting your building signs to power?
• Has your installation date been reconfirmed?
• Is there a final approval sign off process?

Durability:

Naturally, your sign must be able to withstand all weather and environmental conditions. You can choose from our range of sturdy and durable materials and components such as acrylic, poly carbonate, steel, aluminium and vinyl all able to be illuminated with our LED technology

To protect your signage investment and ensure your brand stays looking good for the life of your sign we recommend a preventative maintenance agreement, tailored to suit your individual needs.

Some of our key checklist items:

• Inspection of signs for defects and or failure
• All external sign graphics and faces fully cleaned
• All sign electrical components checked

A maintenance report will be provided to you, evidencing attention to each of the comprehensive check list items.

In today’s marketplace brands need to stand out from their competition – Albert Smith Signs can assist you with all elements of your business signage decisions!

Maintaining a consistency of quality and service is the key for any corporate brand strategy.

Albert Smith Signs has been a leading supplier in providing corporate signage solutions to a range of corporate clients throughout the years and still maintain these relationships today.

But what makes a corporate brand roll out consistent?

Many clients do provide their own style guides and standard to adhere to; However, what creates the consistency over most is the:

• Ability to adapt to the site-specific requirements while still maintaining your corporate brand.
• The knowledge and experience to manufacture your required signs to council and state regulations from the get-go & provide you options that are within these requirements.
• Working with you to provide finishes and materials that will improve the longevity of your signs in Australia’s sometimes extremely harsh climates.
• Working with a project management team that oversees the entirety of the roll-out from start to finish and across the country.
• Working with a team of credited installers throughout Australia and overseas which follow our guidelines and work to our high level of quality and service.

It’s not unusual for companies who have not updated their corporate branding for an extensive period, to require additional resources and knowledge to provide a corporate signage strategy that meets both their brand and can be reproduced as a physical product that works!

Our team from sales, design, manufacturing to installation have the experience to work in creating and implementing your brand, providing design and manufacturing solutions to create brand standards that will work for you now and in the future.

We don’t just preach it, we do it! And more!

We have prepared signage specifications and have carried out corporate branding roll outs for companies such as BP Australia & New Zealand, CEVA Logistics, Bunzl Group, Amora Hotel Group, KFC just to name a few! & most recently working with and carrying out the corporate roll out of FEDEX Australia wide.

Quick Service Restaurants are a common sight in both urban and rural landscapes, and we are proud to provide signage solutions for some of the most iconic QSR brands known throughout Australia.

Boasting over 1311 stores Australia wide, Subway with its key colours of yellow and green, “as if its meant to be”, is Australia’s largest fast-food franchise. Even though Subway are one of the youngest QSR’s in terms of entering the Australian market, they have firmly embedded themselves into our food culture.

Albert Smith Signs has been a dedicated supplier to Subway since the early 2000’s. The branding has continued to evolve since then, and today you’ll see their refreshed Corporate Image rolling-out in full swing.

The multi moulded design of the contour signs have now been replaced with a sleek and modern Permasign letterset. These have been designed to be set either as individual, on rails or on a staging panel to provide continuity throughout the brand whilst maintaining the flexibility to work within the constraints of the franchisee’s unique building situation.

The internal Neon signage have now been replaced with the Halo lit Choice Mark, a combination of the Subway arrows to create the internal “S”, applied to the green textured wall print maintains brand recognition and working within the confines of the internal space.

The new Subway brand design has developed with a more modern approach, including their digital printed graphics. With increased brand recognition, Subway have developed a range of exciting and interpretive window and wall graphics that clearly reflect the Subway brand in a lighter and more playful aesthetic.

We have been working with Subway Systems and their franchisees to manufacture and install their new signage Australia wide. With the projected roll out to be completed by the end of 2021, keep your eye out for their new look at your local Subway store.

Subway Cannon Hill

Subway Cairns

Subway Rockhampton

Subway Shepparton

Our fleet of Brandcare vehicles have had a makeover in celebration of the launch of our dedicated print division ASPrint!

The vehicles are designed to catch your eye from all angles whether it be while on the road or stationary. The chosen imagery highlights the range of products and brands we specialise in and provides the chance to show off our vinyl application expertise.

Although Albert Smith Signs do not provide vehicle wrapping services, we are proud to house a team of professional vinyl applicators that are skilled at all vinyl application practices.

The Brandcare team are our internal installation and project management specialists!

Running multiple projects from QLD to WA, our team of qualified project managers & installers whether in the office or out on site are fully equipped to get your job done!

Visit our Brandcare Website for more information https://www.brandcare.com.au/

The council process in many ways can be a mind field with 537 councils within Australia alone; not only that, but no two councils are the same. Each state & council has their own criteria, documents and processes that need to be addressed before approval can be obtained.

The signage industry is no different and many external signs these days require approval from your local council before it can be installed.

Do we provide Local Authority Application services?

Yes! Albert Smith Signs have a dedicated council application team with years of experience working with councils locally & internationally.

We can provide the service of obtaining Developmental Planning Approvals & Building permit Approvals. (Depending on your state this can be referred under a wide range of different name such as a Construction Certificate or Development Planning Permits)

Our Current Management fees for the base service as of the 07/04/21 as per below:

DA & BA Approvals – $1565.00 + GST

Development Approvals – $1000.00 + GST

Building Approvals – $800.00 + GST

Albert Smith Signs & our dedicated Council Application Administrator can provide you with:

• Pre-lodgment advisory services
• Obtaining the application forms
• Collation of documents – Preparing Site Plan & Signage Montage
• Project Management
• Lodgment of the application forms
• Certain post lodgment advisory services
• Following up Local Authority Status
• Processing Town Planning Applications
• Processing Sign License Applications
• Administration of Public Notice process
• Supply/Installation of Public Notice Display
• Statement of Environmental Effects or SEPP 64 Statements
• Writing Reports Addressing the Council’s Development Control Plan’s
• Building Reports
• Fire Engineering Reports – Engaging our independent fire engineer to provide performance outcome solutions.

Always consider when designing your next signage scope:

• Property zoning and heritage listing
• State controlled road or motorway
• Visually not distracting to motorists
• If the signage is offensive
• Any environmental impacts
• The size of the sign and engineering standards
• Current Fire Regulations & Requirements
• Sign is Illuminated

If in doubt contact Albert Smith Signs, where we are happy to provide you with the guidance & Services you will require.

Whilst designed for a long life corporate signage can deteriorate in our outdoor environment of sun, rain, wind and pollution and there is a legislated duty of care to protect the public from harm due to structural degradation and potential failure.

Our long term customer Big W, engaged us to conduct safety audits of their signage and branding across 50 sites nationally 

This  involved full site audits and inspections of all external building  signage for any degradation and replacement leading to the gradual upgrade and installation of  Big W’s corporate image and building signage. 

The product elements that we have replaced have all been externally located:

Tenant face panels in the centre pylons – both acrylic and flex face.

External building identification signage of varying sizes – Permasign building letters LED illuminated.

Store entry bulkhead signage .

Flat panel loading dock and ID signage.

Maintenance is about projecting your business, it’s also about safety and public protection!

Contact us for maintenance and site safety audits.

What are your signs saying about your business?

At Albert Smith Signs we pride ourselves on being able to design, manufacture and install Quality signage which will both enhance and add value to your business and brand.

The Quality and reliability of our company’s products and services are the concern and responsibility of every person in our organisation, and runs deep in our company’s DNA – Quality means doing the right things right and is uniquely defined by each individual customer’s needs and Quality is measured by the satisfaction of our customers. Our manufacturing Quality procedure ensures a number of checks on product Quality as it moves from department to department. As each department checks its work a signed Quality sticker is placed on the product before it moves to the next department and the new department cannot accept the product unless it has been Quality checked and sticker applied. At its final packaging department destination a gold Quality sticker is applied and the product is photographed for our customer records.

Whether your branding needs include building signs both internal and external, illuminated LED signs, high level signs, pylon signs, way finding, 3D building  letters, we manufacture and deliver a Quality product. Our total in-house manufacturing facility allows us to achieve the highest Quality and standards for your signage products.

Your site branding reflects on your business and Quality branding delivers a message of a Quality business and should do so for many years.

There is a saying “A picture says a thousand words” and the images below do just that – The corporate branding at Woolworths Ballina was manufactured and installed in 2013 and seven years later, is still a Quality product, and looking looking great and still shines bright!

ALBERT SMITH SIGNS – 100% AUSTRALIAN OWNED, 100% AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING 

The journey between BP Australia and Albert Smith Signs began over 50 years ago in 1964, with the refurbishment of a number of BP locations throughout Queensland. Our journey together has continued on from that time with a number of major national brand roll outs.

Our journey with BP continues – Bright Green Beacon (BGB) –includes the manufacture and supply of pylon signs some over 20M in height, new entry portals, directional signs and fascia cladding.

The Northern New South Wales, Ballina Travel Centre is our most recent BP BGB project – BP offered a unique opportunity testing all our in-house skills delivering on such an array of identity products.

The travel centre provides fuel sales, a convenience store, a drive-thru food outlet, two quick service restaurants, outdoor dining and playground, rest areas and a trucker’s lounge.

The standout design element of this project is the suspended under canopy fully illuminated Australian indigenous art installation – Four by eight and a half meters of beautifully coloured combined images, constructed in one piece and the magnificent art created by renowned artist Marcus Ferguson. Face tensioning was with our Albert Smith proprietary Smith Flex system and illumination was with our ASTech LED’s.  We designed and engineered the supporting structure from aluminium and our key design challenge was delivering a minimum depth of 100MM for the art capsule for perfect illumination. Due to the size of the art work it was transported in one piece and required specialised lift installation.

At Albert Smith Signs there are no limits to our capabilities and experience with pylon signs. At BP Ballina the “Can’t be missed” BGB pylons have fully illuminated multi vacuum moulded high impact acrylic heads – our design delivering a shadow and blemish free illuminated beacon. The 12M and 9M in height pylon signs maximise the sites visibility from the Pacific Way.

Other project elements are the Travel Centre Permasign LED building letters, site branding and an array of our speciality crafted external directional signs, internal custom directional & braille signage.

A striking  internal design feature are the internal wall murals, locally themed to capture the ‘essence” of the Northern Rivers and printed in house on 3M egress print media with a matte over laminate for protection.

As an Australian sign manufacturer all product’s for BP Ballina were designed and manufactured in Australia, in house at Albert Smith Signs

We are proud of our journey with BP – it has definitely stood the test of time – over 50 years of quality designs and products!

Imagine signage and branding without paint – Paint is what “dresses” your product and brand and makes it look good!

At Albert Smith Signs we operate a fully equipped paint shop with an experienced team of 9 painters, spread over two shifts.

Glen Walsh is our paint team leader and has been on our team for around 12 years. Glen learnt his trade at Wattyl Paints over a 20 year period, becoming a paint technician in the manufacturing division – Glen sure knows paint!

With a mixing area and 3 spray booths our paint shop achieves a flawless high quality finish and look for all your signage, branding products and projects.

We have a booth specifically for powder coating with a 6M long racking system in an 8M oven, another for 2 pack wet spray and the third for back spraying acrylic and poly carbonate.

The benefit of powder coat is that it is user and production friendly with a quick turnaround time and provides a great finish and look for your product.

However there are limited standard colours which restricts its use and ACM products cannot be powder coated.

Where it is practical our preference is to powder coat what we can to provide your signage with that great look and finish.

Our two pack wet spray booth has a catalytic oven that uses medium wave infra-red energy to create heat quickly and efficiently for rapid drying, to fully cure the product in around 45minutes.

The benefit of this process is that your product is fully cured with a hard finish and ready to pack so very time efficient with your corporate signage shipping –  as well as an extensive range of available colours

Our back spray booth is for exactly that – back spraying your product for illumination purposes. It delivers fine atomisation of the paint to ensure a smooth finish with no lines ensuring perfect illumination for your branding.

Often a final anti-graffiti coat is applied to products for protection and to ensure a longer life in its environment.

Our paint team have over 50 years of combined experience with all types of paint and are multi skilled over the different methods of application

OUR PAINT SHOP – THE ART OF PAINT!