Salesforce.com's Bellevue Office Tower Signage
Behind the Scenes of the Salesforce Signage
Although we are a full-service sign company capable of handling everything in the signage process from design to installation, we were only required to fabricate and install the signage for this particular project. Harkess-Ord has an established relationship with Salesforce and were responsible with providing us the drawings for the signage.
The fabrication process was a bit tricky due to the shape, size and color we were looking to achieve. To customize the cloud shape of Salesforce's logo, we were required to hand bend all of the returns to match all of the curves. This was something that we've done in the past so we were completely comfortable but it can always be a little finicky hand bending to very specific dimensions.
We hand brushed and clear coated the returns of the sign to give the sides a brushed aluminum look, which contrasted beautifully with the bright blue face of the sign. We then welded the face retainer of the sign to the returns to ensure durability and longevity. Since we welded it, we didn't need to use a trim cap, which helped maintain a very clean look. Like the bending of the returns this was also all done by hand.
When it came to the paint job, our team needed to hand match the paint on the retainer to the vinyl face of the sign. Given the size of the face we had to be a little sneaky with the placement of the seam in the vinyl so that it wasn't noticeable from any onlookers of the sign.
The end product really shined on the shop floor and we were so excited to get it up in Bellevue. Next step was the installation process.
Signage Installation in Bellevue, Washington
Like all major metropolitan areas there is a lot of city code and permits that need to be taken into consideration. For this particular project, Bellevue had some sizing requirements that really limited how large we could make the sign. Due to these parameters, we had to work with Harkess-Ord to reduce the size of the sign not just once, but twice! It was a little hurdle to overcome but nothing that really threw the timing of the project off as it was all handled in pre-fabrication.
Luckily, the landlord of 929 Office Tower was flexible and gave us special permission to install a sign on their building. They were only allowed a total of 5 building signs, so we had to get a letter from the landlord stating that the Salesforce signage was allowed to be one of those 5 signs. In terms of permit processes, these were pretty standard and didn't cause any issues for the project outside of just having to adjust the drawings to meet their sizing requirements.
Other then working with the city to make sure everything we were doing was up to code the only other obstacles we faced were just your typical issues that come with working within a city. There's a lot of traffic, people and not a whole lot of space to work in. But everything went smoothly and we got the sign installed without any hiccups.
It would have been nice if the city allowed for a sign that was a little bigger but that's just always wanting to go a little bigger. The sign turned out great and it's a nice addition to the streets of Bellevue. We hope the new employees enjoy it and feel a certain level of pride as they walk into work underneath the glowing blue cloud that is the Salesforce logo.
It was exciting to work with Salesforce and Harkess-Ord to bring another highly reputable tech company to the skyline of Bellevue. We are hoping there are more opportunities in the future with the relationships we established with Salesforce and Harkess-Ord but we and you will have to stay tuned for now!