Behind the Signage: Executing Large Scale Print for the Heritage Classic
When massive outdoor stadium events come to town, the pressure is on. Every camera angle, broadcast zoom-in, and fan perspective demands absolute perfection. For high-stakes events like the NHL Heritage Classic, delivering flawless graphics isn’t just about hitting “print”, it requires precision engineering, material mastery, and quick-thinking problem solvers on the ground.
Executing a project of this magnitude comes with unique technical challenges that showcase what true large scale print production can achieve. Here is a look behind the scenes at how our team delivered seamless graphics for one of hockey’s biggest outdoor showcases.
Pushing Material Capabilities to the Limit
Outdoor stadium graphics aren’t standard banner jobs. The scale alone requires custom engineering.
For the iconic NHL brands, designed to cover the grounds around the ice, the objective was to print larger than life Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames logos and players on breathable banner mesh. This banner was a single run, stretching 250 feet end-to-end and 32 feet wide. Because standard media rolls only come up to 16 feet wide, the project required staging, printing, and joining multiple sections in-house, a process rarely attempted on this scale.
Simultaneously, the center-stage area featured a 32-foot circumference NHL logo designed for anti-slip performance. With performers like Nickelback taking this logoed stage, safety and durability were paramount. The anti-slip material was tiled across 12 individual vinyl panels, requiring pinpoint accuracy during layout so every seam matched seamlessly.
Technical Precision and Print Tolerances
When joining massive printed panels together, the technical side of production gets complicated. As a high-volume media roll feeds through commercial print equipment, the tension changes. The stretch factor at the beginning of a roll differs from the end.
Compensating for material stretch across hundreds of feet of mesh required incredible engineering, implemented into both the design and production. These details allowed installers on-site to align every section precisely so the final product appeared as one cohesive unit under the unforgiving lens of stadium lighting and HD broadcast cameras.
Real-Time Adaptability and On-Site Solutions
In large scale print work, executing outdoors means mastering environmental variables and dynamic event timelines. When installing the central floor graphics in freezing temperatures, the installation team utilized tiger torches to warm the surfaces step-by-step, ensuring maximum adhesion for the vinyl.
At the eleventh hour, stadium organizers required an overnight update to the rink board configurations. Our team adjusted instantly, printing and installing fresh graphics to match the updated bench access layout. Final banner adjustments wrapped up two full hours before the players arrived at Commonwealth Stadium, ensuring every visual element was set long before the puck dropped.
The Ultimate Payoff
From the 250-foot mesh banners to the high-stakes floor graphics and perimeter rink boards, executing large scale print projects for events like the Heritage Classic comes down to experience, adaptability, and an unyielding commitment to quality. When the lights came up on Saturday night, the venue looked flawless on the global stage
Special thanks to our partners in this project: Baam Productions and Chad Jackson.