Die Cutting

Steel Rule Die Cutting is the method we use to produce special shapes on products such as vinyl decals and many different varieties of plastic items in gauges from .005 - .060, these plastic products include but are not limited to:

We use the Steel Rule Die Cutting method to manufacture special shapes for specific product purposes. This method is used to cut many different plastic units that come in gauges ranging from .005 to .060. These particular products include, but are not limited to:

	Parking Hang Tags – hang from the interior rear view mirror in a vehicle.
	Rigid Vinyl Samples – these can be made into books, swatches, and many other things.
	Polycarbonate Control Panels
	Polycarbonate Name Plates & Name Tags
	Polystyrene & Polyethylene Car Tags and Other Promotional Items – magnets, binders, keychain tags, and so on.

We can also use the steel rule cutting method for kiss cutting simple shapes in pressure sensitive materials such as vinyl, gold, chrome, clear polyester, and so on. Kiss cutting is used to cut pressure sensitive material through to the liner without penetrating the liner. This method is used in, but isn't limited to, creating sheets with decals, signs, and other labels with multiple instances of a design printed on it.

Screen Printing

For more than 25 years, Dixie Signs & Decals, Inc. has been using screen printing to bring you quality printed products. Screen printing has been advanced in the last decade to a point where, while the process is essentially the same as it has been for hundreds of years, we can achieve and measure repeatable excellence in color and quality.

With the help of advanced technology and developed skill sets we have moved away from a hit and miss traditional silk screen process to a much more precise and dependable form of printing.

Dixie Signs & Decals is constantly acquiring the latest tools, equipment, and skill sets that are required to prove to our customers that we can not only quickly produce their products and do it with competitive pricing, but that we can also present to them the finest quality available anywhere today.

Because DSD has continued to improve upon the production and quality as new innovations become available our employees enjoy a clean, almost entirely stress free working environment. Because of this, we are able to pass on the sense of stress free production to you with streamlined customer service, easy ordering and fulfillment, great pricing, and above all, a quality product.

The screen printed products that come out of Dixie Signs & Decals are unmatched in flexibility; durability; crisp, clean, and colorful images; and a very wide range of choices in base materials. Screen printing creates such a durable and crisp looking image because, unlike any other printing process, it lays down a thicker layer of ink. More ink equals deeper, crisper colors and lines which make the images much more visible and much less prone to fading.

We take the time and proper care when we study your needs in order to produce a product for you that will resist the sun, natural outdoor elements, and exposure to most chemicals and cleaning agents. You can expect a long-lasting, durable product even if it will be placed in the harshest environments. Our vast range of color and material choices provide you with an almost infinite number of possibilities in order to achieve that functionality and look you need for your business.

DSD has a wide range of standard colors to choose from, but we also have the ability to mix custom colors for you. The materials available for screen printing include aluminum and other metals, pressure sensitive vinyl (decals & labels), polycarbonate (known also as Lexan), polyethylene, styrene, and so many more. Once you've chosen your colors and base materials, you have a ton of choices for finishing procedures which include, but aren't limited to clear laminating materials (extra protection for your graphics and text at the front) or adhesive and/or liners (for the back), die cutting, pre-masking, and embossing.

Embossing

Embossing and De-bossing produces a raised or depressed effect in a variety of different materials. When we emboss, we press a die into the back of a nameplate (or other product) to raise letters and other design elements at the front. De-bossing is the exact opposite of embossing where the design element is pressed down into the material at the front and is usually used to add texture to a background, but can be used for many other things as well. Embossing adds depth and provides a sense of class and elegance that other processes simply fall short of.

Dixie Signs & Decals, Inc. offer embossing or debossing on a variety of materials. Finished products range from metal nameplates, polycarbonate labels, decals and polycarbonate control panels. Some of our customers have replaced cast aluminum and injected molded zinc nameplates with our embossed nameplates because of reduced cost and ease of application. Our metal or plastic nameplates can be laminated with up to 1/8" foam adhesive over the entire back for application to textured surfaces or surfaces such as tread plate using no screws or rivets.

DSD, Inc. offers embossing and de-bossing on a number of different materials. We use this process in the manufacture of metal nameplates, polycarbonate labels and control panels, decals, and more. We've even had some customers use our embossed nameplates to replace cast aluminum and injected molded zinc nameplates in order to reduce cost and make application easier.

The metal and plastic nameplates we make can be laminated with up to 1/8" foam adhesive over the entire back which will make it easy to affix them to textured surfaces and other surfaces such as tread plate – all without the use of screws or rivets.

Digital Printing

From 1981 (the year Dixie Signs & Decals, Inc. was founded) to 2003, we had fabricated and installed all kinds of outdoor signs (internally illuminated, architectural, shopping center pylons, etc.) as a separate division.  It took us 8 years, but we systematically eliminated these products and services from our product and service line.  While this separate division was gone, we reincorporated the elements that were well suited to screen printing into our screen print department.

At the time these were "cash and carry" (computer driven, plotter cut) pre-spaced vinyl, aluminum and plastic signs and small format vinyl decals printed on a resin ribbon, print and cut system "older technology" which has improved.

The systems and technology has been improved for “cash and carry” (computer driven, plotter cut) items such as pre-spaced vinyl and aluminum plastic signs and small format vinyl decals printed on resin ribbon.  Large format digital printing that was done with inkjet technology has been improved to the point where we can now provide you with photo quality images that come with an outdoor life of 3 years off the press that increases to 5 years when we apply a clear UV protective laminate over top. 

The process has been improved further since computer driven plotters have been re-designed to incorporate the ability to read inkjet printer output.  It’s given us the ability to print and then contour cut the design to many different shapes.  With this technology we have been able to use a wide range of software, like Adobe’s Photoshop & Illustrator and Corel Draw to bring you products and services such as these:

Digital Banners:  These can now come in  in full color or regular copy and add design enhancements such as chiseled lettering, chrome lettering, feathered shadows, gradated shadows, and so on.

Prototypes:  These can be made from materials that are flexible and may come in roll form in sizes ranging from 1/4” x 1” up to 5’ x nearly any length you can come up with.  The materials are a little limited compared to screen printing because of the need for flexible and/or flat materials, but there are many to choose from.

Trade Show Graphics:  We can provide you with translucent panels to use with your internally illuminated headers and many other graphical items such as table skirts, floor graphics to lead people to your booth, posters made by taking graphics printed on vinyl and applying them to rigid card or plastic materials that are then mounted with Velcro or on easels.  There are many accessories available, as well.

Short Runs:  These have been made much more cost effective and especially so with multi-color jobs.  If you need product that come in quantities of a few hundred then you will save a lot of money because a lot of the expensive screen printing costs are eliminated from the equation.  We can bring you multi-color or single color decals and even provide some die cutting with the digital process.

Fast Turn-Around:  Because we don’t have to go through the lengthy process of film making, screen making, using the screen print presses, and/or using custom cut dies and waiting for dies to arrive in our shop you can receive your digitally printed jobs in as few as 2 or 3 days.

Laminating

Laminating Diagram Dixie Signs & Decals, Inc. has an amazing laminating capability and a large variety of adhesives available from trusted companies like 3M and Avery (to name a couple). With these elements available to us, we are able to make it possible for you to have labels made from a wide range of materials:

• Lexan
• Polycarbonate
• Rigid Vinyl (Clear, white, and many different colors)
• Aluminum, Brass, Stainless Steel

These materials are available with a number of different finishes such as high gloss, matte, and an assortment of textures from silky smooth to sandy. They come in your choice of gauges from .005 to .125 thick, as well.

Our over-laminates share quite a few of the same finishes available with the regular laminating process, but they tend to have slightly different uses. The reasons you may want over-laminate are:

• Ultraviolet exposure
• Chemicals exposure
• Decorative qualities
• Humidity exposure
• Protection from a painting process that come off after painting (paper pre-masks)

Punching/Piercing

Punched Plate Punching & Piercing are achieved using hard tooling in order to cut through heavier and harder plastics and metal. It can also be used to form metal and we can punch, pierce, or cut metal that is up to 3/16 inch thick. We use a two part system, called a "punch and die set", as cutting tools for punching, piercing, and shaping metal.

The punch and die set for any given project is installed in a press that works differently from the machine that cuts a die. The main difference between these machines is that the amount of pressure that can be applied in a punch and die set is much greater and they can penetrate much heavier materials.

We also use punch presses to complete products that need multiple stages or progressions to finish. Multiple stages or progressions are used for many reasons and they include:

• Proximity of holes to be punched.
• Changing pressures required to pierce any given material.
• A tooling life of many thousands of hits.

Etching

Etched Diagrams: This type of etching is recommended for any indoor or outdoor applications where the product will be exposed to weather, extremes in temperatures, direct sunlight, chemicals, solvents, fuels, and lubricants. You may not know it, but etched plates are commonly used on aircraft, in marine applications, heavy construction, the military, and other industrial areas.

Etched Stainless Steel Images: These images are chemically etched into the substrate surface and can be filled with ink for additional aesthetic and functional values. Because of its hardness and longevity properties, the most commonly used material for etched plates is stainless steel. We can also use brass, nickel, and aluminum for your etching needs.

Metalphoto®

Metalphoto® is an anodized aluminum product that combines unusual durability and stability with an appearance that lasts a very long time while looking fantastic.

Nameplates and panels made with Metalphoto® will function perfectly for many years while maintaining the high quality appearance they had the day they were printed and they will do so when put into a wide variety of challenging environments. Whether you subject your Metalphoto® products to high temperatures, abrasions, salt spray, many chemicals, or long term outdoor exposure, they will continue to look beautiful and represent your company and information for a long time.

Metalphoto® gets its durability from its unique process which embeds the image within a saphire hard anodized layer.

Where does Metalphoto® get its durability? A unique process is employed which embeds the chosen image within a sapphire hard anodized layer. For over 40 years, Metalphoto® has been used for military data plates and panels to ensure pristine conditions and it meets the extremely stringent MIL-spec standards like MIL-DTL-15024 Type G & H and MIL-P-19834.

When you have a challenging environment to deal with and you want to ensure that ID plates within this environment endure in appearance, legibility, and longevity, then Metalphoto® is the product for you. Beyond all these excellent properties, it ideal whether you have a few or many one-of-a kind parts needed for your projects.