Resources
Spec Card
A working spec card for South African vinyl, marks, and shopfront jobs, written for trade teams who need sizes, substrates, finishes, and fitment notes in one place.
How Spec Card guides a production week
The Spec Card page sets out the job exactly as trade buyers need it. Use it to pin down sizes, vinyl or panel choice, finishes, and fitment notes before artwork moves to production. It keeps shopfront packs and brand mark jobs clear across quoting, printing, and install.
Begin the Spec Card with the exact application area, the measured size, and the installation constraint at the shop. Durban humidity, Cape Town salt air, Highveld dust, and scheduled power cuts all affect vinyl choice, laminate, and fitting times. Trade jobs moving between Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town, and outlying towns need those conditions written down before print is booked.
A clear first photo belongs on every Spec Card, showing the current fascia, window, panel, or wall where graphics will land. The card works as a quick production reference in the workshop and as a record on the order when a reprint or replacement panel is needed later. That small check often catches alignment issues, trims, conduits, and frame edges before installers get to site.
Spec Card details on one sheet
The finished card captures dimensions, substrate, print finish, and fitting notes in one place that trade buyers can pass straight into production. It avoids vague naming by listing whether the job is cut vinyl, printed vinyl, ACM panel, perspex mark, or a mixed shopfront pack. One accurate specification saves more time than multiple artwork versions with missing measurements.
Use the Spec Card alongside the related pages for shopfront packs and brand marks when one site carries several elements. Record final sizes, artwork version, quantity, edge finish, and fixing method before anything is packed for courier or collection. Vinyl and shopfront jobs are measured from the board size and a straight-on shot of the shopfront.
- Measured sizes for each graphic position
- Site photo linked to install notes
Site conditions that change specs
A useful Spec Card accounts for freight through OR Tambo, dispatch from industrial areas, ageing painted surfaces, and trading hours at shopping centres. Many South African sites are retrofits, not bare new builds, so previous holes, uneven plaster, old vinyl residue, and sun-faded fascias should be noted. When a branch pack is being topped up, separate the urgent replacement pieces from the wider branding rollout.
Material decisions shift with location. Coastal stores may need finishes that stand up better to salt exposure, while inland installs often need extra surface cleaning because of dust before vinyl application. Loadshedding can affect print scheduling and fitting windows, so the card should state any centre access times or after-hours installation restrictions.
Operated by Astros Marketing (Pty) Ltd from 2 Makro Place, Sunnyrock 1401.
What to record on Spec Card
Complete the Spec Card with branch name, site address, contact person on site, and photos taken square-on and from an angle. Add known issues such as window mullions, uneven walls, existing fixings, colour matching requirements, or artwork supplied at the wrong scale. Clear notes make it easier to quote the right materials and prepare installers with the correct hardware.
Store the card with the job file so production, dispatch, and installation can all refer to the same specification. It helps when buyers need a record of what was printed, what substrate was used, how panels were finished, and where each item was fitted. For repeat rollouts, the previous card also gives a usable baseline for branch-to-branch adjustments.