Signs Express Chester meets zoo’s environmental demands

Signs Express Chester has undertaken a major project at Chester Zoo, focused on reducing the environmental impact of its signage, exhibition and marketing materials.

In 2018, Chester Zoo signed up to become part of a plastic reduction scheme, and as its senior exhibitions and interpretation officer Fred Howat explained: “As a conservation education charity, we’re always looking for new ways to reduce our footprint on the planet by ensuring the zoo is as sustainable as possible. This includes the signage, exhibition and marketing material we provide for our visitors across site. We’d been using PVC banners for some time as they were long-lived and also met our budget requirements, however environmentally they didn’t meet our needs, so we began searching for a recyclable option. Through some searches and previous contact with Soyang Europe, we discovered the Terra Banner product, which aligned well with our requirements.” Howat added: “Our close working relationship with Signs Express Chester allowed us to request they order some in for us to test. For us, those initial test banners proved a hit both in price and durability. They’re lightweight, have great colour and clarity and are simple to install. They’ve since become our standard product for any banner requirements we have around the zoo, with PVC-based signage being gradually phased out.” Terra Banner is a PVC-free, 220gsm polyester banner with a special resin coating for excellent whiteness and colourimetry. Another of Soyang Europe’s environmentally friendly materials, EcoStick, has been used for an ongoing project whereby the optically clear, PVC-free window film is installed outside of and, in some cases, within the animal habitats that have glass frontage.