PUBLICATION CENTER

According to the International Sign Association, this year’s International Sign Expo in Las Vegas was a resounding success. The association claims that even in this tough economy the event attracted 18,000 participants from 92 countries.

One new feature at this year’s show was a New Product Showcase, in which exhibitors were invited to highlight products that had been introduced since last year’s show. More than 200 attendees then voted on what they regarded as the “Coolest New Product.”

Tred Displays walked away with this honor for its Reflective Digital Display Panels. These thin, lightweight numeric displays can be used to produce graphic signs that include changeable digital content, such as time, temperature, gas prices, or lottery jackpots. The numeric displays can be placed into a larger sign, then overlaid with inkjet-printed vinyl.

Based in Albuquerque, N.M., Tred Displays was founded in 2006 after coming up with a way to manufacture low-cost “green-tech” displays that use essentially no power compared to LED message boards and don’t contribute to light pollution.

The president of the Tred Displays happens to be Chuck Edwards, the innovative entrepreneur who founded ONYX Graphics in 1989. At Onyx, he led the development of the groundbreaking Postershop color image-processing software that helped make the commercial production of large-format graphics possible.