Print Monthly

Jonathan Evitt heads up the company and can best be described as an innovator, imaginer, and pioneer. A modest, family man, he is the genius behind the Tecna Displays’ T3 Twist and Lock aluminium framework system for hanging/displaying wide-format printed graphics.

As a long-time exhibition contractor and product developer, Evitt could see the potential back in the late 90’s for wide-format digital print output in the exhibition and display world. At that time, painted MDF stands with a team of skilled carpenters was standard for trade show stands, which invariably involved huge trucks to transport the wood and equipment in and out of the show space.

The only problem with wide-format printed graphics at the time, was there was nothing to efficiently hang it off/display it on. He realised the future for the industry was graphics, and there was no structural system to capitalise on the obvious demand. The development of the T3 Twist and Lock cube took years to develop, with much trial and error, using his considerable experience in modular system development. This included the design, manufacture, and installation of the original Crystal Maze dome used on the cult TV series.

Tecna Display was awarded the accolade for outstanding achievement in the category of international trade. The award represents the highest honour that a UK business can receive. They are awarded annually on the Queen’s birthday. 

Since receiving that first award we have significantly increased our presence in both the US and Europe and our export turnover has been growing impressively year on year”

“Since receiving that first award we have significantly increased our presence in both the US and Europe and our export turnover has been growing impressively year on year,” explains Evitt. He adds: “We now sell into 28 countries and they sell into a further twelve, so we are now active in 40 countries. Exports comprise about 65 percent of our turnover and are increasing.

“Since receiving that first award we have significantly increased our presence in both the US and Europe and our export turnover has been growing impressively year on year. We now sell into 28 countries and they sell into a further twelve, so we are now active in 40 countries. Exports comprise about 65 percent of our turnover and are increasing.”

Rick Olson of Olson Visual, based in Los Angeles, has distributing T3 products from Tecna Display in the US for the last four years: “We order every month from Tecna because we continue to develop markets that find our products compelling,” he says, adding: “T3 has given us the ability to compete with much larger exhibition and event firms, winning contracts with innovative and efficient products that take less time to produce, ship and assemble.”

Tecna's display solutions are focussed on being ultra-strong but very light-weight

Display company Deleage based in Elancourt, France, has also been working as a distributor for Tecna Display since 2014. Its founder, Virginie de Neuville, explains: “Our customers regularly congratulate us on our productions with the T3 system. It has greatly increased the demand for modular construction in the field of stand or events, which has therefore increased turnover and allowed us to make additional sales.”

Zdenko Sudek, director at T3 Works, a distributor in Slovakia, says that the quality and innovation inherent in the T3 system has also helped two of its clients win awards, for the best stand in the Gastro Exhibition in Graz, Austria 2015 and the Fashion Exhibition in Trencin, Slovakia 2017. He says: “Offering T3 has changed our business into a unique company in the market. It is the best modular system in the world and that helps to sell this product to our clients.”

Innovation and investment

Evitt says that the company is once again using the Queens Award to help drive its work moving forward globally: “We are investing heavily in both time and money in the US market and we now have an office in Las Vegas, the centre of the US exhibition and conference industry. We are also investing in European exhibitions and will be present at four this year.

“Not forgetting the in the all-important home market, we have a very efficient and professional distributor, Tecna UK, who have worked with us for many years.

Virtual reality, projection mapping and LED screens are all becoming an important part of the display industry and we can easily incorporate all these visual technologies into our users displays”

“In line with our forward-thinking company ethos, we have been working on incorporating the latest industry trends into our new product innovations and offerings. Virtual reality, projection mapping and LED screens are all becoming an important part of the display industry and we can easily incorporate all these visual technologies into our users displays. We have even been able to include curved LED screens into displays as we are one of the only companies that can produce curved walls to exactly match any LED curve.

“We’ve come a long way since we first introduced our T3 Airframe system. We’re extremely proud of our British engineering heritage and from humble beginnings we’ve established and maintained a global reputation for high quality and reliability and will keep looking ahead to ensure our T3 products have future proof solutions.”