Case Studies

Struck by a Cyclone

Iowa State gets massive scoreboard graphics.

Published

5 years ago

October 27, 2019

Kelsey Johnson

The Clients
Iowa State University
Cyclone Sports Properties

The Players
LRI Graphics

Tools & Supplies
3M Controltac IJ180Cv3 film, 3M Scotchcal 8519 luster overlaminate, HP Latex 1500 printer

The Job
In 2018, the field at Iowa State University’s Jack Trice Stadium was named MidAmerican Energy Field to honor the company’s partnership in supporting a new Student-Athlete Performance Center. (Only the field was renamed – the stadium continues to honor ISU’s first African American athlete.) With a new name comes new graphics – 5919 square feet of scoreboard imagery, to be exact.

Production
Iowa State University Athletics and its management company Cyclone Sports Properties tapped local PSP LRI Graphics to tackle the job. Started in 2016 as an offshoot of Laser Resources Inc., a printing hardware supplier, LRI Graphics is a family- and ISU alumni-owned shop with established relationships among a number of major Iowa companies through its Laser Resources origins. Having worked with ISU since LRI’s inception, the scoreboard project “is, by far, our largest and most ambitious project with Iowa State,” says Thomas Lashier, LRI director of graphics solutions. The process began in June, with printing and installation occurring in October in between home games.

LRI printed 222 panels in two weeks using 3M Controltac IJ180Cv3 film and an HP Latex 1500, painstakingly comparing each panel to ensure there was no color shifting. “We knew we had one shot to get this up, so we wanted to make sure everything was absolutely perfect,” Lashier adds. After lamination with 3M Scotchcal 8519, each piece was packaged and labeled separately, with installation taking two weeks – involving swing stages and repelling 60 feet in the air. An athletic building is nestled directly below the board, making lifts and cranes unfeasible.

“We had to be very cautious printing to make sure the colors didn’t shift. The installers were so close to it, they wouldn’t have noticed until they got down, which would have been a huge issue.”
— Thomas Lashier, LRI director of graphics solution

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