What is the difference between standard (engineering grade or Type I) and high intensity (Type III) and diamond grade (Type XI) reflective signage material?
engineer degree
Engineer Grade Reflective Sheeting It typically meets ASTM D4956 Type 1 standards and is a closed lens or film using glass bead or prismatic optical technology.
This material is specified for use in non-critical street and traffic signs, such as parking signs or wayfinding signs. It has less reflectivity than the other types mentioned in the original question. Standard colors are white, yellow, red, blue, green, and brown.
Engineering grade reflective sheeting is also often used for reflective stickers and decals as it can be printed using both digital and screen printing methods. It can also be cut on a table with a die-cutter or vinyl plotter, making it useful for creating reflective decals that are cut to a specific shape.
Technical grade reflective vinyl uses an aggressive acrylic adhesive that makes it difficult to remove. Using heat from a heat gun or hair dryer will help remove EG reflective sheeting, but often the vinyl will separate from the adhesive and a glue remover will be necessary to soften and remove the adhesive.
Most EG reflective films have a 5-7 year outdoor durability guarantee and are not considered a “long term wear” material.
High Intensity Prismatic Grade
High Intensity Prismatic Sheeting (HIP) Meets ASTM requirements standards for D4956-09 Type III and Type IV, as well as ASTM 4956-07 Type X. It is a non-metallized microprismatic lens reflective sheeting primarily used for reflective traffic and road signs, barricades or other roads. construction zone devices and traffic delineators such as cones or barrels.
HIP sheeting is highly reflective and its durable topcoat protects signs and other traffic control devices from scratches and abrasion. Not only is it highly reflective at night, but it’s also an eye-catcher during the day.
HIP reflective sheeting is used for more permanent traffic signs, work zone devices, etc., and comes in white, yellow, red, orange, blue, green, and brown.
The manufacturing process for HIP sheeting is also considered more “green” as it produces 97% fewer VOC emissions than engineered reflective sheeting and 72% less energy to manufacture. However, the reflectivity value alone is a better reason to use HIP.
Finally, HIP reflective sign materials will outlast their EG reflective film counterpart. This material is considered to have mid to long range durability and will typically last around 10 years.
diamond grade
Finally, Diamond Grade Reflective Sheeting (DG3) is a full cube prismatic reflective sheeting that returns nearly 60% of the available light to vehicle drivers, which is approximately twice what HIP reflective sheeting reflects. DG3 reflective sheeting meets the specifications of the ASTM Type XI standard.
It is likely that with pending legislation in the US, this material will be needed to replace many existing signs. Currently, all new “critical” traffic control signs (such as stop signs, speed limit signs, etc.) are required to use this foil.
Similar to the other two foils mentioned above, Diamond Grade Reflective foil has a pressure sensitive adhesive and is (typically) applied to anodized or anodized aluminum foil with a hand roller or a mechanical roller laminator/applicator.
This material can be decorated with screen printing or a transparent film that comes in various road sign colors.
The DG3 foil was designed to reflect the newer headlights on the latest model cars, as well as help older drivers (like me) with higher luminescence, as well as truck drivers whose lights can detect signals using DG3 better and with greater distances
Colors available from stock include white, yellow, orange, red, green, blue, and brown. Another color, fluorescent yellow-green, is also available and is used primarily in school zones and has superior luminescence both day and night.
LAST UPDATE ON: July 30, 2018