Diversified technology company 3M is proud to have played a part in promoting Richard Parks’ 737 Challenge: a world first race to climb the 7 highest summits on each of the world’s continents and stand on all 3 poles in 7 months.

The Cardiff branch of the UK’s largest signage company, Signs Express, was commissioned by the endeavour to wrap a new Audi A1 to raise awareness of the 737 Challenge. They chose the high-performance, ultra-conformable Controltac Graphic Film IJ380 by 3M, printed with striking graphics for the perfect finish. The fully wrapped vehicle made an appearance at the Dragons vs. Blues rugby match, televised in April 2011, and helped raise funds for the Challenge.

Richard Parks made history on 12 July 2011 becoming the first ever person to climb the famous 7 summits and stand on all 3 poles (The North Pole, The South Pole and the summit of Everest) in the same calendar year. He achieved his incredible world first in 6 months, 11 days, 7 hours and 53 minutes and aims to raise £1 million in aid of Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Part of his epic fundraising is a competition running until midnight on 12 July 2012, in which supporters wanting to help Richard raise £1 million in aid of Marie Curie have the opportunity to win a brand new Audi A1 (without its wrapping), donated by Mon Motors Audi. More information is available at: http://www.737challenge.com/

It was a perfect mix of graphic design and implementation, according to Emma Assender, fundraising executive for the 737 Challenge. “We engaged limegreentangerine, our design partners based in Cardiff, to design an eye catching wrap and Signs Express to carry that forward into the car graphics. They have done a fantastic job, enabling the 737 Challenge team and Mon Motors Audi to carry our message out on the streets. The car looks fantastic”.

Controltac Graphic Film IJ380 was used to provide the eye-catching look that combines black-and-white photography with rugged rough edges and complex typography. Suitable for high-quality screen printing and piezo inkjet printing, the film is combined with 3M’s Controltac Adhesive, which allows vehicle wrappers to slide and reposition the graphic before using pressure to activate the adhesive. Furthermore, using vinyl wrapping film rather than traditional car graphics means the vehicle remains immaculate with its original paintwork protected from stone chips and every day wear-and-tear.

Grant Zehetmayr, co-owner of Signs Express (Cardiff), commented, “As a keen extreme sports fan and graphic arts enthusiast myself, it’s been a great project to be involved in. My skilled sign makers have completed vehicle wraps for previous customers on this scale but never with such a high profile and for such a worthwhile cause. The recently reformulated 3M film was a dream to print and wrap.”

As part of its continuous improvement policy, Controltac Graphic Film IJ380 been optimised further for high quality print performance, as Kim Brewer, marketing manager with 3M’s Commercial Graphics Division, explained: “We recognise that graphic quality and finish are of utmost importance and are delighted that 3M was able to perform such an excellent job for Signs Express and the 737 Challenge. This is yet another demonstration of how vinyl wraps can create unique, attention-grabbing and impressive results.”

More than 500 fans of 3M Commercial Graphics recently voted in “Wrap Battle: 1080,” a contest to choose the next color and finish for 3M Scotchprint Wrap Film Series 1080. By an overwhelming margin, voters selected Brushed Black Metallic from the nine color/finish contenders. The new film will be available in January 2012.

The contest was held on the Facebook page of 3M Commercial Graphics. After fans voted on their preferred color/finish combination, they were encouraged to share their choice with their Facebook friends, and then were entered in the sweepstakes to win a roll of the selected film.

Brushed Black Metallic received more than twice the votes of the next nearest finisher. The breakdown of the 554 total votes in the contest was as follows:

·     Brushed Black Metallic: 38%

·     Gloss Red Metallic: 15%

·     Carbon Fiber Blue: 12%

·     Matte Pink: 9%

·     Matte Blue: 7%

·     Carbon Fiber Gold:  6%

·      Matte Orange: 5%

·     Carbon Fiber Red: 5%

·      Matte Red: 3%

In the U.S., Evan Chan of La Habra, Calif., was the winner of a free roll, while Craig Stratton of Mount Pearl in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador won the prize in Canada.

“We are constantly evolving and improving our products to give our customers what they want,” said Doug Blackwell, business development manager for 3M Commercial Graphics. “This contest allowed us to communicate directly with users of our products, and we are thrilled with their response. Brushed black metallic will make an outstanding addition to our line.”

Scotchprint wrap film series 1080 has been embraced by car enthusiasts thanks to its variety of finishes, textures and colors. Film series 1080 is a long-term, removable, dual-cast film that offers graphics installers the same convenient installation features found on 3M Controltac Graphic Films with 3M Comply Adhesive. The film is slideable and repositionable, with a pressure-activated adhesive and non-visible air release channels to allow virtually bubble-free applications. The film is also backed by the industry leading 3M MCS Warranty, bringing peace of mind to discriminating users who require optimum performance.