ORACAL has extended the range of its 970 Premium Shift Effect Cast films adding five new ‘shade shifting’ colours. The new colours are: Pearl Symphony, Avocado, Amethyst, Aquamarine and Ultramarine violet.

As part of its increasing commitment to supporting young people in print, Hybrid Services has created the Mimaki Vehicle Wrap Lab (MVWL) at the country’s foremost motorsport engineering education establishment - Oxford Brookes University - supplying a Mimaki wide format printer, cutting plotter and software package in a partnership set to take wide format print to a whole new level in British motorsports.

When Esign Media’s team of 3M Approved Vehicle Wrappers were challenged by managing director Zak Pickering to come up with a wrap design project using 3M IJ180Cv3 (supplied by William Smith) for one of the firms company cars, he hadn’t anticipated that they would turn a brand new BMW 4 Series into a rusty, beaten-up old banger.

It has been said I’m quite partial to the odd old motor or two, and I would be pretty crap at my job if I didn’t actually like the subject matter, but when presented with a rather lovely looking V12 XJS Jaaaaaaaag, I was a bit surprised that someone wanted me to bung a load of sticky-backed-plastic around it! To my mind the XJS is a bit of a Marmite car, some people love it, some don’t, but I think it is pretty much an iconic design.

Large format specialist PressOn, based in Chatham, Kent has wrapped the next World Land Speed Record attempt car – BLOODHOUNDSSC - which was unveiled in London last month.

On 15 October 2016 Royal Air Force fighter jet pilot, Andy Green, will drive BLOODHOUND in Haskeen Pan, South Africa, in an attempt to break the current World Land Speed Record. The current holder of the Outright World Land Speed Record is Andy Green who drove ThrustSSC, a twin turbofan jet-powered car which achieved 763.035 mph - 1227.985 km/h - over one mile in October 1997. This was also the first supersonic record as it broke the sound barrier at Mach 1.016. Following the attempt, BLOODHOUND will then be readied to set a 1,000 mph record next year.

To prepare the car for the press event, PressOn, thanks to its ability to wrap large and unusual objects (the former Royal Navy warship, HMS President springs to mind), was asked to wrap the body of the vehicle and the tail fin in vinyl.

Managing director Nigel Webster says the job at PressOn was pretty simple; wrapping the body of the car and a 2m high tail fin that provides stability at high speed. “The fin was put in place for the first time at the debut. We are now in discussion with the project’s organisers to find the best solution for displaying over 200,000 signatures of the sponsors who have contributed to the project on the vehicle somehow. We just need to find a printable solution that can survive the extreme temperatures the body and fin will reach during the World land speed record attempt.”

You can watch the video of BLOODHOUND being assembled and the PressOn team wrapping it below.

“To be asked to be involved in the world debut of BLOODHOUND was an incredible honour,” he adds. “The wrap itself was a very straightforward job, but the opportunity to work with the collaborators on the BLOODHOUND project is an unforgettable experience. It’s definitely one of PressOn’s highlights.”

The car will be painted for the actual record attempt as no known vinyl can withstand the heat temperature generated at 1,000 mph. That said, if you have one, drop us a line.

www.presson.co.uk

www.bloodhoundssc.com

Mixing in the paddock with hi-profile race teams at the UK’s leading race circuits is not the sort of thing I usually do, but when the GDW Stig aka Jason Price invited me to be a guest of Ram Racing for the final round of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship at Donington Park last Sunday, I couldn’t resist. It also presented an excellent opportunity to spend the day with my teenage daughter where I could totally bore her to death about how the wide format printing sector is increasingly impacting the world of sports, particularly the world of motorsports. You can imagine how that went down blah blah blah yawn…

West Midlands based Sign & Graphics Services offers a full range of wide format print services to the retail, exhibition and sign and graphics industries, and in the process has established itself as something of a specialist in out-of-the-ordinary vehicle wraps including a number of complete double-decker bus wraps.

Mansfield based Classic Print offers a full range of printing services to its customers from outdoor and indoor banners, flags and POS graphics to car wraps, garment personalisation, soft signage, personalised furniture and décor, 3D engraving and promotional products.

Thanks to William Smith for sending us these fantastic pictures of Arlon’s first 2015 #Wrap Wars competition, with a sensational wrap to a modified Audi TT by Essex based Funkeefish.