The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) produces official guidelines for their members to use their own personalised advertising site signboards.
When a new building or refurbishment gets the go-ahead ahead, these advertising boards are erected on the perimeter of the site.
The signs display the contact details of the architect. These boards are known as RIBA Signboards and they have a very distinctive design.
The purpose of a RIBA Signboard is to advertise an Architect or an Architectural Practice to anyone who passes the Construction Site. The RIBA stipulate that an official RIBA Signboard should be a distinct Poppy red colour, and have the RIBA crest and any lettering printed on in White.
The most popular sizes for RIBA Signboards tend to be 4' x 1' (1200mm x 300mm) or 8' x 2' (2400mm x 600mm). For ease of transportation the larger 8' x 2' sign can be cut into two pieces. The boards are printed on rigid 3mm foamex; this is a durable, lightweight PVC material with a very smooth surface.
Foamex boards are more expensive to produce, but have a much longer shelf life, and can be used many times over a period of years.
Self-adhesive boards are also produced, and these tend to be fixed onto hardboard. They are a cheaper option and tend to be discarded once the job on site has been completed.
Foamex boards are waterproof and can have the corners drilled for easy fixing onto site walls.
RIBA Signboards are screen printed by hand in batches of 5 or 10 as this reduces the individual unit coast of each sign considerably.
The Architect or Practice name will be written in large white lettering in the middle of the board and contact telephone and other details such as a website name will be printed underneath.
It is a rule of the RIBA that the design is simple and can be read from distance.
Boards can be purchased here at www.ribasignboards.co.uk
