The Linq Hotel + Experience presented a unique challenge to maintain visual interest throughout the guest
experience, while also providing standard information any visitor would expect, such as floor numbers. Originally designed to encompass a single floor – in this case, the lobby – the 657 square foot project quickly turned into over 4,000 square feet of Panel Grilles, lining the elevator corridors on floors 2-20. The original layout also included smaller wood components placed between the wood blades to create raised lettering in the form of floor numbers, ultimately proving to be cumbersome, expensive, and requiring a significant amount of hand labor – a step further increasing the cost and the lead time.
Rulon International suggested a unique solution new to the Division 6 industry: graphics printing. Instead of using wood pieces to form the numbers, they would be printed on the Panel Grille system. Integrating an age-old technology commonly used in billboard printing or other wide format scopes, Rulon’s wide format printer can distribute and cure layers of ink onto any wood substrate mitigating the need for additional artwork or sign purchases. This creates a one-stop shop from the manufacturer to the installer.
LINQ’s custom Panel Grille module is a one-foot section composed of eight 3/4” thick by 2” deep wooden blades evenly spaced with dowels and wood backers, minimizing flex and allowing for an easy, direct screw attachment method. Floors 2-19 would be manufactured at 6’-11” and floor 20 would be manufactured at 7’-11’’, barely fitting within the printer’s size parameters.
A total of 27 3’x7’ panels were sent to print immediately following their manufacture. They were assembled and placed on the printer table; with the fi nal artwork loaded, the printer printed and cured ink on the panels using ultraviolet (UV) light. Each digit spans three 12” wide modules, with a single 7” wide module creating space between double-digit prints.
Custom crates, made by Rulon’s shipping department, were fabricated to fit the pre-assembled printed panels for easy, consecutive installation at the job site.
