External Signage Perth Explained:
Choosing The Right ExternalSign For Your Business
When people think about signage, it’s easy to think of it as simply putting a business name or logo on a building.
In reality, effective external signage is far more considered than that.
The right signage needs to work with the building, the surrounding environment, viewing distances, traffic flow, council requirements, brand guidelines, lighting conditions, installation access and the way people actually approach and experience the site.
At The Factory, we’ve spent more than 30 years designing, manufacturing, project managing and installing signage throughout Perth and Western Australia.
Our team has delivered signage for businesses, major organisations, commercial properties, education facilities, government sites and some of Perth’s most recognisable locations. We’re also proud to have team members who have worked with The Factory for more than 20 years – bringing decades of practical signage knowledge to every project.
That experience means we don’t just ask:
“What sign would you like?”
We look at the bigger question:
“What signage does this site actually need?”
What Type of External Sign Do You Actually Need?
There is no single type of external signage that works for every building.
A street-facing retail tenancy has very different requirements to a six-storey CBD office building, an industrial facility, a university campus or a large commercial development.
Before recommending a signage solution, there are several things we consider.
How far away does the sign need to be seen from? Is the audience travelling past the building by car or approaching on foot? Does the signage need to be visible during the day, at night or both? Is the building located within a busy visual environment where the sign needs greater impact? Are there existing architectural features that need to be worked around? Are there engineering, fire-rating, access or approval requirements?
These factors can influence everything from the size and positioning of the sign through to the materials, illumination and installation method.
Here are some of the most common external signage solutions we manufacture and install throughout Perth.
Fascia Signage
Fascia signage is one of the most familiar types of business signage.
Usually installed across the front fascia of a shopfront or commercial building, it gives your business strong street-level identification and helps customers immediately understand who occupies the premises.
Depending on the building and brand, fascia signage might include fabricated letters, flat panels, illuminated signage, printed graphics or a combination of different manufacturing techniques.
The most effective fascia signs balance visibility and brand presence without fighting against the architecture of the building.
For businesses located along busy roads or within commercial precincts, we also consider viewing distance and traffic direction so the signage can be read quickly and clearly.
Illuminated signage can significantly improve visibility, particularly for businesses operating after dark or buildings positioned on major roads.
Individual fabricated letters can be internally illuminated, face illuminated, halo illuminated or created using a combination of lighting techniques.
But illumination is not simply about making a sign brighter.
The lighting style should suit the brand and the environment.
A corporate office may benefit from refined halo illumination, while a retail or hospitality site might require stronger face illumination for greater nighttime impact.
The quality of fabrication also matters.
Well-manufactured illuminated letters should look considered during daylight hours — not just when they are switched on.
Pylon signage is particularly valuable for properties that sit back from the road, multi-tenanted developments and sites where the building itself is difficult to identify from passing traffic.
A well-designed pylon sign can act as a landmark for the property.
These signs can incorporate business identification, tenant directories, directional information and illuminated elements.
Because of their scale and location, pylon signs often require careful planning around structural engineering, footings, council requirements, access and installation.
This is where working with a signage company that understands the entire process becomes important.
Rather than treating the project as a graphic applied to a structure, the signage needs to be considered as part of the built environment.
High-level signage creates an entirely different set of challenges.
When signage is installed several storeys above ground, factors such as engineering, wind loading, lifting equipment, access, installation methodology and long-term maintenance become critical.
The signage also needs to be designed for significantly greater viewing distances.
One of the strongest examples from our own history is our work with GHD in the Perth CBD.
In 2015, The Factory manufactured, project managed and installed three large illuminated sky signs on GHD’s six-storey commercial building.
For more than a decade, those signs remained visible to thousands of commuters travelling through Perth.
When GHD’s brand evolved from its recognisable blue identity to a black-and-white brand palette, The Factory returned to the project more than 10 years later to deliver the next chapter of the building signage.
What made that project particularly significant for us was that several of the people involved in the original signage were still part of The Factory team when the replacement project commenced.
That continuity of knowledge is something we value enormously.
Fire-rated & Building Compliance Signage
Not every sign is designed to advertise a business.
Commercial buildings also require signage that performs an essential safety, compliance and navigation function.
Depending on the building, this can include fire-rated signage, statutory signs, identification signage, evacuation-related signage and other building compliance requirements.
These signs still need to be clear, professionally manufactured and integrated into the overall environment.
For large developments, consistency across this signage becomes particularly important.
It is one of the reasons The Factory approaches signage as a complete system rather than a collection of individual signs.
For larger sites, building identification is only part of the signage journey.
Visitors also need to understand where to enter, where to park and how to find their final destination.
External directional and wayfinding signage can include entry signage, vehicle directional signs, parking signs, pedestrian signs, building identification and precinct directories.
Good wayfinding should feel almost effortless.
People shouldn’t need to stop and analyse a sign to understand where they need to go.
Our approach can include site audits, wayfinding strategy, graphic design, elevation drawings, manufacture, installation, project management and quality assurance.
This means the signage is considered as a complete journey through the site rather than designed one sign at a time.
Why Local External Signage Experience Matters
Signage is a physical product.
It needs to fit a real building, survive the Western Australian environment and often remain in place for many years.
That is why local knowledge matters.
Having worked throughout Perth for more than three decades, our team understands the practical realities behind commercial signage projects – from Perth weather conditions and building access through to working alongside builders, architects, property managers, councils, facility teams and other local contractors.
We have also built long-standing relationships with local businesses and suppliers across the industry.
Those relationships matter because signage projects rarely happen in isolation.
Successful projects often require coordination between multiple stakeholders, trades and project teams.
Being locally based also means our clients can work with a team that understands the project from concept through to installation.
More Than Sign Printing
There is an important distinction between producing a sign and delivering a signage project.
At The Factory, our capabilities extend across:
Signage consultation and strategy
Understanding the site, objectives, audience and practical requirements.
Graphic design and artwork preparation
Ensuring branding and artwork are appropriate for real-world signage production.
Elevation drawings and documentation
Helping clients visualise positioning, scale and design before manufacture.
Manufacturing and fabrication
Producing signage locally using the materials and construction methods appropriate for the project.
Installation
From straightforward shopfront installations through to complex high-level signage.
Project management
Coordinating the moving parts of larger signage packages.
Quality assurance
Checking that what leaves our workshop reflects the standard expected from The Factory.
It’s this breadth of capability that has allowed us to support clients across such a wide range of industries and project sizes.
Signage Experience You Can See Around Perth
One of the things we’re proudest of is that our work isn’t hidden away.
You can see it on buildings, vehicles, campuses, commercial developments and workplaces throughout Perth.
Some projects remain in place for years or even decades.
For us, that creates a responsibility.
The signage we manufacture carries both our client’s brand and our own reputation.
That is one reason experience matters so much.
Several members of our team have been with The Factory for more than 20 years, developing the type of technical and practical knowledge that only comes from delivering thousands of signage projects over time.
That experience sits alongside newer technology, modern manufacturing processes and evolving design tools.
The result is a signage company that combines established expertise with the capability required for increasingly complex commercial projects.
Choosing The Right Signage Partner
When comparing signage companies, price is naturally part of the decision.
But for commercial signage, it shouldn’t be the only consideration.
It is worth asking:
Can the company design, manufacture and install the signage?
Do they understand large-scale commercial projects?
Can they coordinate with builders, architects and property teams?
Do they have experience with high-level and technically complex installations?
Can they deliver wayfinding and multi-sign packages?
Do they understand compliance and statutory requirements?
Do they manufacture locally?
And most importantly – can they show you a history of completed work?
The best signage partner isn’t simply the company that can print your logo onto a panel.
It is the team that can understand the site, recommend the right solution and successfully manage the project from concept through to completion.
Talk To The Factory!
Whether you need a single external building sign or a complete signage package across a large commercial site, The Factory can help determine the right solution.
With more than 33 years of signage experience in Perth, local manufacturing capability and a team that includes people who have been with us for more than two decades, we bring significant practical knowledge to every project.
From fascia signage and illuminated lettering to pylons, sky signs, wayfinding and complex building signage, our team can take a project from early concept through design, manufacture, project management and installation.
Need help determining what signage your building actually needs?
Talk to The Factory about your next signage project.