Rout it right

Vectors dance across the screen, relief models fly through the RIP, blades buzz into motion, and the chaff starts to fly. Before you know it, an iridescent peacock struts into life out of the wood or a long-legged giraffe strides out of high density urethane.

In years gone by, the only way of creating what many refer to as ‘bas relief’ signs would have taken days of concentrated effort from the design stage, through hand routing and carving. Today, it can be done in a couple of hours by just putting your substrate on the router bed, loading a vector model and clicking a few buttons in a CAD programme.

“The approach we take when developing our software for CNC is that we want our customers to be both successful and also enjoy creating parts with their machines. This will encourage them to use the flexibility of the software as part of the creative process and so offer products to their customers that will stand out from the crowd, which translates into more business down the line,” says creative director at Vectric, James Booth, who adds: “The aim is to take a low value design and add quality and, most importantly, value when it is transformed into a CNC routed sign.”

Booth highlights that it is essential for sign-makers to think about marketing their capabilities properly. He explains Vectric’s most successful clients highlight just what a difference 2D or 3D routed signage can make, in terms of impact over standard vinyl lettered boards, by creating a full series of product examples to inspire their own customers.
 
Vectric’s current range of CNC software has been created to cover a graduated scale of need from hobby level CNC users through to professional sign-makers who produce 2D and 3D signage. This product range includes Cut2D, Cut3D, VCarve Pro and Aspire. 

These latter two are its flagship systems, VCarve Pro 6.5 providing the tools for creating routed parts ranging from simple cut-out shapes through to ornately V-Carved or prismatic text. Aspire 3.5 has all the functionality of VCarve Pro but also adds the tools to model 3D elements, which can be incorporated into the full sign for machining or cut as separate components to add interest and value to a standard 2D sign.

Aspire 3.5 also sees a number of new features added to its predecessor, such 3D Clip Art Browser for faster previewing and relief manipulation through to sculpting enhancements and cross section extraction capabilities. Among a range of toolpath and usability enhancements, VCarve Pro 6.5 also introduces Vectric’s new ‘Create Arc’ design tool, which allows the creation of a single arc span by using, ‘precise input values or by dynamically drawing within the 2D view’. Both new versions are also available as a free upgrade for users of the two previous versions. 

Despite the technology’s ongoing evolution, it is still a considerable investment to buy a router and the required CNC software systems to run it. But on the other side you can produce a lot more signs, much more quickly, to far greater degrees of accuracy and complexity. The bottom-line is that if you can convince customers new and old of the value to their business of 2D and 3D signage, then a very profitable business model awaits you.

New directions

One company faced with this quandary is Totem Woodworks, which is based 20 minutes from Edinburgh in the Midlothian countryside. The company’s traditional services centre around fine wooden furniture design and manufacture, with a series of industrial and non-CNC hulking Wadkin routers, cutters and sanding machines bought at auction complemented by a number of small Festool power woodworking tools. With a workforce of highly skilled craftsman and a huge stock of wood, the next obvious step was to tap into the lucrative market for bas relief signs to create a steady lower margin income for the firm.

Faced with the investment costs into decent routers to diversify into doing 2D and 3D signage, the company’s development director, Susanna Montoya, points out that it is still a bridge too far for many smaller companies: “We looked at what it would cost to effectively diversify into signage as we very often get asked by our customers if it’s something we can do for them. But creating 2D or 3D signs out of wood or even synthetic materials is just too expensive for people to afford if you are machining it by hand.

“You just can’t compete with sign-makers who can do it far quicker and much cheaper due to their CNC software and automated router capabilities.” 

Montoya stresses that Totem’s workforce has some skilled designers in their midst and testing out CNC software can see the huge potential, but for now it is that capital investment leap in a depressed market that is hamstringing the move. But every cloud does have a silver lining, as Montoya explains: “Today’s CNC software is capable of doing some pretty astounding things with creating textures on wood and the end-result of combining beautiful pieces of wood with the technology is stunning. But that is all for nothing if you can’t get the right wood to work on when you need it.

“So, with the investment hurdle in place we saw another opportunity, as from our research we found many sign-makers with CNC capability could do all these amazing things, but couldn’t get a reliable supply of top quality and decent sized wood at trade prices.”

Montoya continues: “Another problem they have is sourcing more exotic wood for clients who want a really special sign for their business. A final factor was that there is a growing demand for wood that is sustainably sourced from British suppliers—as shipping in sustainable wood from Europe is a paradox due to the carbon footprint the transport creates.”

As a result, Totem has now set up a bespoke wood trade supply service for sign-makers, using their connections across Scotland and England, gathered from its furniture manufacturing wing. Montoya highlights that the output quality of a CNC system can be improved dramatically if the right substrate is used.

“We consult with sign-makers now to find out what they want to achieve with a sign and then can give them options to use from Bur Elm, which adds that extra dimension to job through its own natural curves, through European and French Oaks, to lower-cost options such as Ash, Poplar, Douglas Fir and Pine.

“The important thing is we source from local Scottish suppliers who we have built up relationships with so what we supply is 100 percent sustainable and unique.”

You can do it

Totem’s story is perhaps something CNC software developers should consider, perhaps using their connections with router manufacturers to support better credit deals or even hire agreements if they come bundled with a software brand.

For those sign-makers who already own all the right kit, or can muster the investment, then today’s CNC software can simply be described as a box of magical tricks.

Another big player in the field is Delcam, which is soon to launch its ArtCAM 2012 range—Express, Insignia and Pro. The company’s systems are already well respected, but this latest instalment seems to be upping the ante in the field in terms of the complexity it can now deal with, although many sign-makers in the UK have yet to stretch the capabilities of today’s CNC software to its full extent.

“We are seeing more UK sign-makers get into 3D, as the Americans have been producing some really stunning 3D signs for a while now. A good example of a business that understands the potential of this sector is The Grain Sign Company in Cornwall, which won the award for the Multiple Sign Project of the year (one to nine employees), for their signs at Longleat Safari Park, and were also highly commended for the Green Award,” says ArtCAM marketing manager , Rebecca Freemantle.

This last point is undoubtedly true, as The Grain has pioneered taking 3D modelling and sign-manufacture to extremes of creativity. Speaking to its design manager, Pete Ratcliffe, he outlines what sign-makers need to think about when considering getting into the sector: “We started out using ArtCAM Insignia to create 2D signs and its more advanced elements for some more complex work. But we then quickly saw the potential of what could be done with a truly progressive 3D programme like Pro.

“3D modelling is a bewildering process and so you need to invest in a programme that makes the process as simple as possible.

“Today’s best CNC systems are intuitive and essentially allow you to short cut a lot of the skill base that would have been required a few years ago to do true bas relief work. But the fact remains you need to have done a fair amount of work v cutting in 2D and using the tool itself to achieve 3D elements before you take the step up. When we made the jump ourselves, we were pleasantly surprised though that we could take all the core skills we had learnt and then just expand on them without to much difficulty to create complex 3D signs.”

Having been able to invest in a Biesse router, Ratcliffe shares the view of Totem’s Montoya however when it comes to marrying CNC software to a router. He explains that it needs to be understood by both the software developers and machine manufacturers that often with two week lead times, 3D signs are only commercially viable for either large corporate clients or those customers who really need their sign to stand out for long-term usage—say for a themed restaurant, museum or attraction. And as such need to do more work to educate potential customers about not just how to create beautiful and complex signs, but signs that they can sell reliably.

“Our customers are always looking for something better and new, something with a wow factor. Take Longleat for example, they commissioned some 2D signage, but they realised to really make an impact on visitors they had to have 3D. The trick for us is then to use the right materials, skill with the software, and clever colouring to create something that looks great but doesn’t cost too much.”

Fine detail

Freemantle says that an ongoing trend from ArtCAM’s customers is that they invest in their starter system ArtCAM Express, which has 2D capability, before scaling the business up as more orders come in and investing in ArtCAM Insignia, the introductory 3D modelling package or Pro, the advanced artistic CADCAM package. She explains though that some clever companies without large investment capabilities invest in Express and use the profile of the routing tools themselves and multiple layers of material to create 3D effects.

“With Express, we are seeing people generally do things like batch signs for hotel rooms, whilst Pro is for those sign-makers with customers who want something special and unique,” says Freemantle.

Timothy Buck, ArtCAM project manager, says he is very excited about the launch of ArtCAM Pro 2012, describing it as a, ‘fundamentally different way of modelling’. And Buck’s top three new developments for the system revolve around his company’s motto, ‘imagine what you can create and create what you can imagine’.

The first addition is what Buck calls the creation of, ‘free relief modelling’, which is a new way of working within ArtCAM. Essentially this means that instead of just taking vectors and turning them into a relief model, you can take relief models from the systems clipart library, or a self generated relief, and fully manipulate them to create much more complex and realistic products.
 

The second is a brand new patent pending tool dubbed ‘texture flow’, which allows you to overcome a limitation with previous systems that The Grain’s Ratcliffe highlights: “The problem you used to have is that texture tools would work well on small 2 x 1ft signs, but if you took a complex texture like wood grain it would just not look right on a bigger project. Geometric patterns like scales were always easier to work with, but now being able to spread textures across a wider area and get them looking right saves a lot of time.”

Texture flow essentially now allows you to save a relief segment from dog hair, through to birds feathers into the clipart library. According to Buck, you can then spread that tile out across a design and manipulate, blend and distort that relief to overcome the problem Ratcliffe highlights to create a, ‘completely naturalistic effect’.

The third top new element to Buck’s mind is that ArtCAM 2012 has had the sculpting tools overhauled to enhance the efficiency of its workflow. This involves the use of a greyscale mode, which only highlights the relief layer you are working on in colour. It also has a fully flexible ‘undo function’ which Freemantle says means you, ‘don’t have to sculpt in fear of making any mistakes.’

The 2012 system also has interesting value added features, such as being able to generate 3D PDFs of a sign, which can be sent to a customer and rotated through 360 degrees to fully visualise and proof your design before it goes into production.

“We have concentrated on creating a system which has a workflow, which is simpler and more effective. It also allows for a cleaner work desktop with a number of short cut keys so you never have to take your eyes off your work,” enthuses Buck, who adds: “Another element that is important when using CNC software is to be able to have videos from the developer on hand that can show you not just finished models being worked on, but how to create them from scratch, in addition to a range of training options to suit a customer’s learning needs."

Get cutting

From a sign-maker’s perspective, the options on the market when it comes to CNC software are both wide-ranging and seemingly backed by an absolute wealth of value added extras. This is often the case with products sold into the sign sector, but when it comes to software developers in this sector it seems they really go that extra mile.

Where else could you choose from a range of training options, have technicians come down to write post-processing software to link your particular router to a CNC program, or have access to comprehensive video training guides that show you how to create highly valuable products end-to-end? Speaking to companies like Vectric and Delcam, you also have the ability to just do hundreds of clever little things with their new systems that make design and production that much easier, and allow for the finished product to not only be better quality, but more complex and ultimately creative.

“Once we have managed to find the right router for the right price, and got a steady number of customers we can sell 2D and 3D signage to, then we will be into the market like a shot,” concludes Totem’s Montoya, adding: “Our workforce come from a background where they design beautifully intricate products on paper and then use their hard earned dexterity and artistic talent to create beautiful products by hand. If you take all that and add in all the capability of today’s CNC systems, then the sky really would be the limit for us.”