Nov. 27, 2006—King Displays, Manhattan, is a shop with a steady and lucrative niche—the firm prints up to 90 percent of all the Broadway show signage. Founded in 1938 as a photographic shop, sending out negatives to a contractor, the company decided to bring the printing in-house in the early 1990s, with the purchase of a 36" Colorspan.

From that point on, King Displays embraced the digital world. Today, the firm owns an HP Designjet 9000s printer, two HP Designjet 5000 machines, and a newly purchased and installed HP Scitex XL1500, along with a Mutoh Falcon 2 Outdoor.

"As a company we are always ready to deliver any job, and with HP printing equipment we are consistently able to meet our cleints' expectations for top image quality and turnaround time," said Wayne Sapper, president of King Displays.

The company faces a host of unique challenges because of the work it does. Theatre jobs are printed on a wide range of substrates, from vinyl, to backlit media, to fabrics. As would be expected, color is critical. Matching colors across media and applications is one of the things this shop prides itself on. Consistency can be difficult to achieve. Some objects, like banners, are meant to be viewed in daylight, while others, like backlit signage, are viewed in evening hours.

To make matters more interesting, most jobs require a fast turnaround time. Most clients provide artwork, but the jobs themselves have as little as five working days to print, install, and be ready to go opening night. Some are even quicker?one of the more challenging jobs Mr. Sapper has done was creating and installing 12 theatre doors. The company received the files Friday night, and everything was completed by Monday morning. "It's exciting—it's crazy sometimes," Mr. Sapper noted.

The jobs themselves are not the only issue. Being a Manhattan printer comes with a variety of unique challenges, such as space concerns. In fact, the company is losing its current location next year, as the city wants to put in a new subway stop and pedestrian walkway at that location. While leaving Manhattan was an option, it was one King Displays quickly discarded.

Mr. Sapper noted that because of the nature of the work, everything has to be exact; most jobs have multiple press checks, which would be impossible if the firm left the city. He said everyone from production coordinators to the actors themselves have come by, wanting to verify that everything will be perfect on opening night.