Manufactured in-house in Canton, Ohio: Designed and printed in one building. Installed in the other.
One shop from your first proof to the day you drive away.
No broker in the middle.
Buy a wrap through a broker and the company that sells it is not the company that installs it. We are both.
- Design and print
- 1103 Whipple Ave NW, Canton
- Prep and install
- 3920 12th St NW, Canton, by our own installers, never subcontracted
Every proof we draw is designed to pass the stranger test.
Picture someone who just moved to Canton for a new job and has never heard of you. Driving past your current vehicles, or seeing one from across a parking lot, could they tell exactly what you do and what makes you different from the competition? Someone driving by gets about three seconds, so a list means they read nothing.
The strongest wrap carries your business name, your industry, your logo, one easy-to-read call to action per side and one way to reach you. That also builds a recognizable look that gets noticed over time, until people start saying "I see those guys everywhere."
Your first proof is drawn on a template of your vehicle, every side, and usually shows more than one option, from lettering to a full wrap. Every option is checked for what still reads from a distance, and the owner checks every proof before you see it.
Ask for changes and we refine the proof with you. Nothing prints until you approve the proof in writing.
$0 design fees on layout and revisions.
Up to three rounds of revisions, at no design charge.
What no design charge covers: laying out your graphics, and the rounds of revisions that refine the proof. Creating a logo from nothing is separate work at a flat rate of $200, and a re-design that abandons the direction you approved rather than refining it is a flat rate of $100. Neither is charged on a fleet account or for a returning customer, and we confirm the price in writing before that work begins. Once the project it was made for is paid, a logo or re-design we create is licensed to you for good, to use and change for your business or your own use and to pass on with your business, and Fleet Herald keeps any copyright in it. A logo we create uses no stock images; font files, and any stock image in a re-design, stay under their own licenses, which we name for you; and logos and artwork you send us stay yours.
Send the logo you have, even a blurry one. Redrawing it so it prints sharp is part of the job, not a separate charge. If it is too unclear to redraw faithfully, we ask you for a better file, and the proof clock waits until you send one or tell us you have none.
Once the project it was created for is paid in full, a design we create is licensed to you for good, to use and change for your business or your own use, including on your vehicles and in your business and marketing materials, and to pass on with your business; Fleet Herald keeps any copyright in it. Font files, any stock image in a re-design, and any other material we license from others are not ours to license: you may use them as part of these graphics, and otherwise only as their own licenses, which we name for you, allow. Logos and artwork you send us stay yours, and a redraw of a logo you send us, however closely we can match it, is not a new design of ours.
You'll see your first proof within 72 hours of us receiving your artwork and details. Usually it comes within 24 hours.
When the clock starts: the 72 hours run from us receiving your artwork and details during shop hours (Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 8:00 AM to 6:30 PM; Tuesday and Thursday, 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM; Saturday, 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM), and from 8:00 AM the next time we open when they arrive outside shop hours, the same day if they arrive before we open that day, not from first contact. We need all of it to start: print-ready artwork or a request for design help, your vehicle or fleet details, and your package choice. A delay on your side pauses the clock for as long as it lasts, and so does anything outside either of our control.
Printed about a third of a mile from the install bay.
Approved artwork goes to our design and print studio at 1103 Whipple Ave NW and is printed on cast film only. Printed graphics are laminated for the road; lettering is cut from cast vinyl.
Clean paint first, then film.
Every vehicle gets a strip wash and a final alcohol wipe before installation, at no charge. Every vehicle on an order of two or more vehicles, meaning one written quote that covers them all, gets the full prep detail at no separate charge, however dirty it arrives. On a quote for one vehicle, clean the vehicle before it comes in and pay nothing more, or leave the cleaning to us and it gets the full prep detail before installation, at a flat rate of $150, or a flat rate of $250 on a box truck, a dump truck or anything larger, and we confirm the price in writing before that work begins. Removing old graphics, adhesive or a ceramic coating is not prep and is quoted separately, and prep never includes paint or body repair.
Your vehicle comes to 3920 12th St NW and goes into a climate-controlled, air-filtered bay.
Then you drive away.
A reminder from us before drop-off, and progress photos by text or email while it's in the bay. If you can't pick it up right away, it waits in our fenced lot.
Full wraps leave with a ceramic coating on the finished film.
Print and installation are complete within 14 days of your proof approval.
When the clock starts: the 14 days run from your written proof approval, not from drop-off. A delay on your side pauses the clock for as long as it lasts, and so does anything outside either of our control.
Your wrap is protected by our one-year direct installation workmanship warranty, and the film carries its maker's own warranty, on its maker's terms.
What we need from you
- Your logo in the best format you have
- The exact wording for the sides and rear
- Your USDOT or MC number if you display one
- A photo of each side of the vehicle
- Whether the vehicle is owned, financed or leased
- Whether the vehicle carries old graphics or has been wrapped before
The specs
Tap a topic to open it.
Films and laminates
We run cast film only: 3M Print Wrap Film IJ180Cv3 and 3M Print Wrap Film IJ280. Every print is laminated with 3M Scotchcal Gloss Overlaminate 8518 or 3M Scotchcal Matte Overlaminate 8520.
Cast or calendered vinyl
Calendered vinyl is manufactured by rolling heated plastic through heavy rollers (like flattening dough); it retains mechanical memory and will continuously pull back and crack when stretched into vehicle body curves. Cast vinyl is poured as a liquid resin and cured in ovens; it has very low memory and conforms to complex recess channels, rivets, and contours. Fleet Herald exclusively deploys cast film.
The prep stages
What surface preparation covers: the full prep detail is our 4-stage decontamination of the vehicle's exterior: a strip wash that removes any old wax or sealant, chemical decontamination that removes iron contaminants, tar, bugs and sap, a hand clay-bar treatment, and a final alcohol wipe. Contaminants and old wax or sealant affect how vinyl adheres, and anything left on the panel, whether sap, iron or tar, shows through the finished graphic as a dust or dirt speck underneath it. None of it comes off in an ordinary wash or a wash at home; it takes industrial chemicals and process. Every vehicle gets a strip wash and a final alcohol wipe before installation, at no charge. Every vehicle on an order of two or more vehicles, meaning one written quote that covers them all, gets the full prep detail at no separate charge, however dirty it arrives. On a quote for one vehicle, clean the vehicle before it comes in and pay nothing more, or leave the cleaning to us and it gets the full prep detail before installation, at a flat rate of $150, or a flat rate of $250 on a box truck, a dump truck or anything larger, and we confirm the price in writing before that work begins. Removing old graphics, adhesive or a ceramic coating is not prep and is quoted separately, and prep never includes paint or body repair.
The install bay
The bay takes a tractor-trailer, and the fenced lot behind the shop holds a fleet drop-off of several vehicles at once. Tractors and trailers up to 53 feet are installed there.
How we compare with brokers and sign shops
| Production Step | Fleet Herald (Canton, OH) | Out-of-State Brokers | Retail Sign Shops |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prepress & Design | 2D Proof Drawn on a Template of Your Vehicle, Every Side | Varies by Broker | Varies by Shop |
| Print Production | In-House, Clean, Climate-Controlled Print Lab (Building 1) | Varies by Broker | Varies by Shop |
| Material Grade | Printed Graphics on Premium Cast Film (3M IJ180Cv3 / IJ280) | Varies by Broker | Varies by Shop |
| Paint Preparation | Strip Wash and Final Alcohol Wipe on Every Vehicle | Prep Varies by Installer | Varies by Shop |
| Installation Labor | Our Own Installers, Never Subcontracted; Climate-Controlled, Air-Filtered Bay | Varies by Broker | Varies by Shop |
| Warranty Reality | One-Year Direct Installation Workmanship Warranty; Film Carries Its Maker's Warranty | Seller and Installer Are Different Companies | Direct Shop Warranty; Terms Vary by Shop |
Caring for a wrapped vehicle
Hand-washing with a pH-neutral automotive shampoo is best. High-pressure commercial touchless wand washes are safe as long as the spray nozzle is kept at least a foot away from seams and edges. Never run commercial wrapped vehicles through harsh friction brush washes, which can abrade vinyl overlaminate over time. No wax on printed film. Full wraps with the ceramic coating rinse clean.
File formats
SVG, AI, EPS or vector PDF print cleanest. PNG or JPG can work for lettering and simple marks.
How the vehicle should arrive
It is your choice. Every vehicle gets a strip wash and a final alcohol wipe before installation, at no charge. Every vehicle on an order of two or more vehicles, meaning one written quote that covers them all, gets the full prep detail at no separate charge, however dirty it arrives. On a quote for one vehicle, clean the vehicle before it comes in and pay nothing more, or leave the cleaning to us and it gets the full prep detail before installation, at a flat rate of $150, or a flat rate of $250 on a box truck, a dump truck or anything larger, and we confirm the price in writing before that work begins. Removing old graphics, adhesive or a ceramic coating is not prep and is quoted separately, and prep never includes paint or body repair. Existing damage is photographed at intake so we both have the same record.
Send the artwork. We take it from there.
Tell us what the vehicle is and what it should say. We come back with a proof and a schedule.
3M Automotive Films Authorized Dealer · Est. 2018