Exhibitor's Journal

Some say we are killing the earth by our dependence and use of fossil fuels. Whether you are an economist or an ecologist you, our environment, and the price of gas can win by going green on your trade show display. Below are a few ideas on how to accomplish this.

1. The majority of companies are using popup style trade show hardware. These displays have approximately 100 square feet of graphics. Dye, UV, or BioInks (Usually Corn-based) can be used to produce trade show graphics in lieu of traditional petroleum-based solvent inks.  Especially, the BioInks have lower production costs than any of the other inks. They also have the advantage of being UV fast. The only downside is they are hard to find. The leader in this segment is VUTEK with its BioVu inks. When ordering your next set of graphics ask your provider if they have Dye, UV, or BioInk capability.  Take a look at this article.

2. Use LED or CCFL for lighting and light boxes instead of traditional incandescents or fluorescents. These lighting choices are significantly more energy efficient that traditional bulbs or tubes. For example a 100 Watt incandescent bulb consumes 5 times the power of a ccfl or led lamp with the same brightness. Plus, the other two last 50 - 100,000 hours or 5-10 years without having to change them. All of these are fairly new, but none-the-less available. One source is here.

3. Other areas you can focus on this trade show season are using recycled paper for business cards and brochures, take public transportation to and from your next show, use ad specialty items that made from recycled plastics, ceramics, and paper. You can find some of these items here.

We are probably still a long way from making Al Gore or your CFO happy; however we have made progress. Whether the ice caps are melting because of a natural cycle or our over use of fossil fuels these steps are good ones to take. They make good business sense and they may just help turn the tide for our environment.

Happy Exhibiting