By Ed Avis
Many reprographics shops have found large-format digital color printing profitable. New APDSP member Tri-State Signs and Reprographics has taken that technology a big step further: The company is a growing player in the sign business in Pittsburgh.
“We started with things like wall graphics, window films, and presentation boards,” says George Marshall, the company’s CEO. “And in the last two or three years we’ve gotten involved in more traditional signage as well – channel letters, dimensional letters, illuminated cabinets, and digital LED signs. That is a whole different animal.”
Deep Pittsburgh Roots
Marshall represents the third generation of family ownership of Tri-State, which currently has 12 employees. The company was co-founded in 1942 by his grandfather, Jacob Marshall, who was a salesman for Dietzgen at the time.
Jacob partnered with two other men to launch the firm. One of the partners, Michael
George, Robert, and Debbie Marshall at the 50th anniversary party for Tri-State in 1992.
Baker Jr., had recently started an engineering firm. Tri-State’s first project was the blueprinting for an airstrip being built by that firm, Michael Baker Jr. Consulting.
After five years Baker stepped away completely to focus on his engineering firm, and Jacob and the other partner, George W. Leach, divided Tri-State into two companies -- Leach took the surveying business and Jacob took the reprographics.
When Jacob passed away in 1958, his son Robert took over the firm. He took the company away from traditional blueprinting and converted to diazo printing. George got involved in the early 1970s, beginning as a messenger when we he was 12.
“I think that was as much so that my mom and dad could keep an eye me,” he remembers. “They couldn’t leave the 12-year-old at home alone!”
George and his siblings worked at the firm in the summers, and his responsibilities grew over the years. In 1990 he took over the reins from his father.
“It’s been in my blood the whole time,” he says.
Color is the Future
Marshall entered the color world in the early 1990s with an Encad inkjet prin
Outdoor wall mural and vehicle wrap by Tri-State
ter. They printed posters, presentation boards, and other large-format color projects. The market was decent, but not a major part of their business at that time.
When the recession hit, Tri-State suffered like most reprographics firms did. Building in Pittsburgh shrunk, and with it much of Tri-State’s traditional reprographics work.
But partway through the recession color started taking off.
“About eight years ago we developed some good processes and started finding a
Sign installation, including digital portion, by Tri-State
different type of client,” Marshall says. “We got involved in installation work. At first, I learned how to install, and then we brought people on who knew that work.”
The installation at first was wall graphics, window films, murals, and other digitally printed items like that. But a few years ago Tri-State began handling more traditional sign work. The company bought a bucket truck, and has connections with an installer with cranes who can help with projects beyond the bucket truck’s capabilities.
About a year ago the company added a major new item to their sign arsenal: LED signs.
“We had a new guy come on board about a year and a half ago, and he had experience servicing LED signs,” Marshall says. “I always thought it would be a good market, but we didn’t have the core competency to enter it. He possessed the skills for that.”
Tri-State works with clients to determine the right size for the LED sign cabinets – which
are often affected by municipal restrictions – and then orders the signs from a supplier in China, who builds them to their specs. They install the complete unit, and train the customer on how to generate graphics on the signs.
The LED and other signs have become an increasingly important part of the company’s business.
“Last year we probably about 60 percent of our revenue was from color, and about 35 percent in traditional AEC services. The previous year was probably 50/50,” Marshall says.
AEC Still Important
That’s not to say that the AEC side of the business is unimportant – it’s just that color is growing faster.
“Our AEC sales aren’t dropping,” Marshall says. “Right now there’s a lot of construction going on. That’s been up in the last 12 months in our region. Additionally we’ve been going after more scanning projects.”
Naturally, the AEC and sign-making businesses sometimes intersect. For example,
Tri-State Vice President DJ McClary (left) and George Marshall
Marshall says the company recently began making braille signs for builders. They bought a digital flatbed cutter router with a component for doing braille, and they have an employee who is experienced in braille-creation software.
“There are other guys in the market who have been making braille signs for decades, but they’re looking at much bigger projects like hotel chains and hospitals,” Marshall says. “They don’t know we exist. We take on small office buildings – we had one order for 30 signs, and another for 150. For us it’s a nice revenue stream, but the competition won’t even notice the job is missing.”
Ultimately, Marshall sees more growth in color than traditional AEC work. “Our AEC work is alive and well, but we’ve been enjoying 20 percent growth over the past few years, and that’s been primarily in the world of color.”