Rangefinder Magazine
August 2004
First
Exposure by Dave Howard
The ProEDGE System
Most people engaged in framing photographs
and other art, whether as their main business or as a sideline
to supplement their imaging income, necessarily have to accommodate
a wide range of customer financial capability.
The carriage
trade may want their 30x40-inch canvas-mounted portrait of
mater and pater framed in furniture-grade moulding,
complete with velvet liner, triple matting and non-glare
glazing, and think nothing of the resulting healthy invoice.
But
as the collar spectrum dips towards blue, sticker shock becomes
an increasingly real issue. For those on a budget,
framing of any kind definitely falls within the category
of discretionary income, or “mad money,” if you
will. It’s something considered only after taking care
of all the necessities.
Many such potential customers will
have previously solved their framing needs via a visit to
the local Mickey Mart,
picking up a glazed 11x14-inch frame for $7.95; just remove
the lithograph of Liberace, pop in the faded photo of Grandma
and Grandpa, and the job’s done. Sure, you can see
daylight through the miters, and it will warp as the humidity
fluctuates, but the price sure was right!
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| ProEDGE 2000-S stand-mounted edging machine. |
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Should a teen want
to frame a cherished, autographed 24x36-inch poster of his
or her favorite rock star, however, Mickey
Mart can’t help her with that frame size. Nor will
most folks be willing to spend hundreds of dollars to have
a freebie or $10 to $25 poster custom-framed. Art of non-standard
proportions, such as panoramas or square format, is another
framing dilemma that’s hard to solve economically.
Enter ProEDGE Systems. This innovative and
affordable approach to framing handily addresses a pretty
untapped market. In
a nutshell, it’s a means of applying an ABS plastic
edging (EdgingCAP) to mounted art of nearly any size or proportion,
adding an affordable finishing touch. Appearance is similar
to aluminum, but weight, cost and labor-intensiveness are
much less.
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| ProEDGE 2000-W wall-mounted edging machine. |
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More specifically, the EdgingCAP is produced
in numerous profiles and seven sizes to fit mat board and
foam
board
in thicknesses from 1⁄8 through 3⁄4 inches, as
well as other backing materials (e.g. Masonite, aluminum,
plywood) of similar thickness. The EdgingCAP is reversible,
providing two choices of front edge width, also lending itself
to double-sided signage. A wide range of colors, including
gloss black, matte black, white, blue, bright red, pewter,
clear, plus shiny chrome and gold (matte chrome and gold
are coming soon) accommodates the tastes modern or conservative,
young or mature. The EdgingCAP is suitable for both indoor
and outdoor use, and will not fade or warp. An added bonus
with large art is the negligible weight of the edging.
Unlike
standard frame moulding, EdgingCAP is not assembled from
four separate pieces. The front and rear edges of one
single piece are notched at appropriate points, with the
outer spine remaining intact. The notched edging is then
fit to and bent around the mounted art, the edging channel
profile gripping the mount material. Metal hangers (for wall
mounting or ceiling hanging) are then inserted under the
edging on the back, and a light solvent glue is applied around
the rear perimeter of the edging where it meets the mount,
and at the single “free joint” corner.
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| ProEDGE 2000-S stand-mounted edging machine. |
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The measuring
and notching operation is easily and quickly performed with
any one of three ProEDGE 2000 series cutters.
There’s a wall-mount model (PE-2000-W), a desktop model
(PE-2000-D) and a floor-standing model (PE-2000-S), priced
at $1195, $1295 and $1495, respectively. All are of industrial-grade
metal construction, with surgical steel cutting knives that
remain sharp for upwards of one million cuts.
Operation is
simple and straightforward, requiring minimal training time
for studio employees. The cutting machines
feature an inverted “V” sizing bar (6 ft. standard,
8 ft. optional) with two movable stops, allowing measurement
of the mounted art without a ruler or marking. Just place
the narrow side of the art substrate (backing board) against
the center block and move the first stop up against it; repeat
for the long side with the second stop. You then place a “stick” of
the EdgeCAP edging into the cutter, sliding the end about
one inch past the knife, and pull the handle down to notch
it. Slide the stick to position this notch at the first,
narrow-side marker and make your second notch. Position the
second notch at the long-side marker and notch again.
Continue
the process, alternating between narrow- and long-side markers,
until you have four notches. Then nip the first and last
notches with the supplied nippers, creating the two free
45° ends that will be joined as the final 90° mitered
corner. The whole procedure can be completed in no more time
than it took you to read this paragraph.
The EdgeCAP edging
material comes cut in 98-inch (just over 8 ft.) lengths;
longer lengths for larger art pieces are
available on special order. It comes protected with a peel-off
translucent covering that should not be removed until the
framing operation is completed, thus remaining fingerprint-free.
Indeed, many ProEDGE distributors deliver the framed art
to the customer with the covering intact, instructing them
to remove it just before hanging.
OK, that’s great for
rectangles and squares, but how do you deal with round or
oval art? Edge it with ProFLEXX,
of course! This thin, 1⁄4-inch diameter, flexible “rope” moulding
accommodates backing boards of 1⁄8- to 3⁄16-inch
thickness. Just press it on around the edge of the board,
then cut and glue the single joint. ProFLEXX comes in 500-ft.
coils, in your choice of silver, gold or black, and is highly
adaptable. It looks the same from either side, making it
ideal for attention-getting, two-sided, “mobile-”style
hanging signs and other point-of-purchase “grabbers.”
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| ProEDGE 2000-D desktop edging machine. |
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Foam
board-mounted art finished with EdgeCAP is extremely light
in weight, presenting many creative display options.
By using the 7⁄8-inch-deep Wideside edging, which features
a front channel that accepts 3⁄16-inch mat board, you
can produce a substantial-looking shadowbox treatment without
the weight of thick substrates. Attaching a smaller square
of Styrofoam behind it makes it a contemporary “floater.”
Another
option is an accent panel, comprised of a larger fabric-covered
background panel, to which you mount a smaller,
easily interchangeable image, both edged in EdgeCAP. The
foam-backed background fabric accepts Velcro® hook strips
adhered to the back of the photo panel. You can vary the
two shapes to add interest, such as using a diamond-shaped
photo against a round background panel trimmed with ProFLEXX.
This is an attractive means of presenting employee- or student-of-the-month
photos.
Incidentally, ProEDGE Systems carries an
extensive stock of all the little mounting- and display-related
items that
can be a chore to track down piecemeal from multiple suppliers.
Examples would include easel backs, hangers and wire, glue,
54-inch-wide backing fabric in a rainbow of color choices
(sold by the yard), industrially aggressive Velcro®,
shims, etc. The company makes an effort to be a one-stop-shopping
resource for the convenience of its distributors.
So whether
it’s posters, graduation pictures, event
photos or myriad signage applications, ProEDGE Systems is
a clever and practical solution worth investigating. There’s
simply no longer a financial or sizing excuse for mounted
art to leave your facility with ratty looking raw edges.
Your customers will appreciate the budget-conscious service
and contemporary, high-tech look, and you’ll appreciate
the boost to your bottom line.
Forms, profiles and colors of EdgeCAP edging, the protective covering keeps product fingerprint-free. |
To view a six-minute video
presentation of the ProEDGE System, its operation and ease
of use, visit the company’s
web site at www.proedgesystems.com/. Call or write for further
information: ProEDGE Systems, 183 E. Highway 54, Camdenton,
MO 65020; (800) 346-1111; fax (573) 317-1212.
Dave Howard
is a photo industry journalist and former industrial photographer
involved for more than a decade with NASA’s
Space and Flight Research programs.
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