A Guide to Mastering SEG

While silicone edge graphics have certainly dominated the tradeshow space of late, SEGs showing up a lot more places than you’d expect. From displays at sporting events to red carpet ceremonies, SEGs popularity continues to skyrocket.

What should print service providers keep in mind when it comes to SEG? Wide-format Impressions talked to industry experts from UltraFlex and Fisher Textiles to tackle SEG trends, tips, and common misconceptions about this popular graphic application.

Everything is Bigger and Bolder

Sharon Roland, key accounts, midwestern sales for Fisher Textiles, says that thanks to the evolution of print technology and fabrics, SEG framing structures are now a lot larger and more eye-catching than they were five to 10 years ago.

Credit: WFI

“I can say that, as a fabric supplier, the biggest innovations are that a lot of these fabrics are now available at five meters wide, and there's a lot more machines that can print 5 meters wide. So, a lot of that is kind of driving the industry, because it can increase production and have less seams and better visuals,” Fisher says.

Ryan Buy, regional sales director- Central, Great Lakes, Midwest, and Western for UltraFlex, agrees.

“The ability to knit and weave at 10 ft. and at 16 ft. really has what's changed the visual communications media landscape. I would say that that was the big, quantum leap that's changed everything,” Buy says.

Backlit is Better Than Ever

If you ask Roland, she believes that one of the main drivers of SEG is backlit fabrics because it has always had that “wow-factor.”

“As a supplier, it's always our priority of, ‘What backlit can we come out with now? What's going to be bigger and better than it has been before?’ And they have come a really long way,” Roland says. “And, throughout the years, I feel like weaving techniques have improved, and treatments have improved. So, there are a lot more options now than there have been ever before.”

Roland says that just recently she was reminiscing with a customer about fabrics in the past that needed to be washed in order for  printed designs to “pop” the right way.

Buy also reflects on the past of backlit:  “10 years ago, the standard was to use a diffuser and then your image. So you'd have two layers of fabric offset from one another as diffusion layer. Now, the next thing is knit direct print, which is non-transfer print backlits with the least amount of creasing. That seems to be the trend – that a lot of people are moving towards direct,” Buy says.

All Shapes and Sizes

Thanks to the shift from heat transfer to direct print, paired with the improvement of fabric and production capabilities, Kylie Schleicher, director of product development and product management, UltraFlex, believes this has allowed more opportunities for interesting projects when it comes to SEG.

ReSource Backlit Event T202 is a 5.96 oz woven polyester fabric made with 100% GRS-certified recycled yarns. | Credit: Ultraflex

“I think there's just a big expansion [that] the knitting and the production capabilities on that side are fueling,” Schleicher says. “I think some of the unique opportunities here, whether it's film for backdrops to simulate a beach scene, or something instead of going to a beach. It's just changing where it is. I'm sure the Super Bowl had tons of fabric as well.”

Schleicher and Buy also believe that to an increasing degree, we’re going to see SEG in different shapes instead of the standard rectangle or square we’re so often used to seeing. In fact, Buy recalls a site visit he recently had where the client was using a CNC machine to chop quarter inch marks to make the entire extrusion bend, making it almost accordion-esque.

“They did that to be able to do S-shapes, curvatures, non-symmetrical polygons, these sorts of things, moving more into an architectural-like display outside of the standard squares that we have seen in the past. So, there's a lot of really neat stuff, and that part of that fits in with the knit materials because of the stretch to them.”

Put The Proper Time into It

Even though SEG sounds appealing, thanks to its less labor-intensive installs, and the ability to easily swap our graphics or take them down, Schleicher wants to remind print providers who are looking to get started, that entering this area requires an investment of time and effort.

“I think they must remember it's an art form. It's definitely not plug and play, so it's not something where you'd be like, ‘I'm going to do dye-sub printing and print fabric today to be an expert at it.’ I think it takes a lot of time and patience and trial and error. And I think you need to be a little bit more technical and have some finesse,” Schleicher says.

Buy agrees, saying that an industry colleague of his went into SEG “kicking and screaming.” And even after dropping over $1.5 million of equipment, hiring consultants, etc., she still didn’t feel comfortable with SEG until about a year into the endeavor – and he says, it largely came down to sewing and installation.

“Kylie [Schleicher] calls it an art form, I call it a trade, but it's kind of, it's a little bit of both. The material gets printed, it prints fantastic, and then it goes to the sewing room and for some reason it doesn't pull, doesn't sew properly, or something like this, and you have a sewing person who basically kills your product right there. So, the sewing technical capability, no matter how great they make these machines, comes down to a human factor,” Buy says.

The FASTSEWN CNC sewing and cutting system contains 2D sewing and cutting in one automated operation. | Credit: Wide-format Impressions

Buy continues, “a lot of people don't recognize the fact that the technical aspect of sewing and the personal art of sewing is still the portion that is the biggest bottleneck. And as we move into these different shapes, that is going to become even more important for those companies to differentiate themselves.”

If you’re a print provider who is already struggling to find someone who can sew, Roland assures that there are ways around this, thanks to evolving sewing technology.

“Now there's a lot more machines that can sew the silicone [keder] on to kind of dummy-proof it, where basically thread the silicone into your sewing machine, put the fabric up against it, and then it just let it go. It makes the process a lot simpler,” Fisher says.

Where is SEG Going?

When asked to look into the future of SEG, Buy, Schleicher, and Roland all had predictions for what’s in store a few years down the line.

Buy: You’re going to see it everywhere

“I think you're going to see it everywhere and more, but I think that you're going to start seeing it in permanent architectural, especially like lobbies and corporate headquarters.”

Buy also hopes that the next “quantum leap” for SEG will be dye-sublimation inks that are colorfast in outdoor conditions.

Schleicher: Sustainability in SEG is on the rise

“I think sustainability will continue to increase. You're going to see more products with recycled yarns, [and] hopefully someday something recyclable. Just the recycling system in general needs a little fix before we before we all get there, but overall, I’m hopeful.”

Roland: Creativity is Top of Mind

“I've noticed different SEGs where it's made to look like a different substrate. I noticed some SEG that look like wood panels and it was really cool. Even in our own trade show booth, we have a ceiling part that looks like metal, and it's very detailed, and it doesn't look like fabric either. So, I think just trying to, like, constantly be creative, and test things out, and see if it sticks is what’s down the line.”