Sign letters are awkward freight: light for their volume, easy to scratch, and usually needed on a date that was fixed before anybody ordered them. Express courier suits them better than sea freight for all but the largest jobs, and these are the windows we work to.
Production windows
| Build type | Production | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Fabricated metal letters | 5–7 days | Fold, solder, dress, finish |
| Most LED channel letters | 5–7 days | Same construction plus LED and wiring |
| Some rim and custom colour builds | 7–10 days | Additional finishing steps before assembly |
| Lightboxes and flag signs | 7–10 days | Frame, acrylic and LED made separately then assembled |
| Thick solid acrylic and edge lit | 7–10 days | Acrylic is machined before the LED goes in |
Express delivery
DHL or UPS express door to door, approximately 4 to 5 days. Door to door means the site or office address rather than a freight terminal, which matters when the receiving party is a shopfitter rather than a warehouse. Import duty and local clearance charges depend on the destination country and are not included in the factory price unless agreed in writing.
What travels with the letters
- The fixing accessories for the specified method: studs, screw bolts or 3M tape
- A 1:1 scale mounting template, printed from the same artwork as the letters
- On illuminated orders, the transformer
- Protective film on polished, mirror and acrylic faces
Payment
T/T, Western Union and PayPal are accepted. PayPal matters more than it sounds on small orders: when the order is one replacement letter, a bank transfer fee can be a noticeable share of the goods value.
Consolidating
Shipping cost per letter falls sharply once several travel in one carton. If more letters are coming in a second phase, ordering them together is usually cheaper than two express shipments, and it also guarantees the finish matches across the whole set.
Work backwards: handover date, minus 4 to 5 days shipping, minus 5 to 7 or 7 to 10 days production, minus the time it takes you to approve the artwork. That last number is the one people forget.
