directory boards

Blueprint Concepts Case Study -May 2012-

How to navigate in corporate buildings: a review of directory boards In Sydney

HOW TO NAVIGATE IN CORPORATE BUILDINGS: A

REVIEW OF DIRECTORY BOARDS IN SYDNEY

Sydney’s CBD is only three kilometers long and includes over thirty skyscrapers, featuring up to

73 stories and hosting hundreds of companies. When entering a corporate building for the first

time, it is not easy to find the right person in the right place.

To provide an immediate focus and source of information for visitors, directory boards are

present in every single business building. Strategically placed in reception areas or lift lobbies,

directory boards are a prominent feature presenting two main functions: assisting users in their

navigation around the structure and reflecting the overall image of the building and its tenants.



When designing directory boards, the challenge is to ensure that they are in line with the

environment’s aesthetics, secured from vandalism, and allow for simple replacement of

individual tenant names while providing clear and legible information about the occupants of a

building. Directory boards can be manufactured using a variety of different shapes and

materials such as: acrylic, stainless steel, aluminum, illuminated panels and many others,

depending on their environment and image of the building.

There is an infinite number of options to choose from when it comes to developing directory

boards. This is why Blueprint Concepts decided to take a closer look at the decisions made by

building managers in Sydney’s CBD. What are the main challenges and current trends for this

type of corporate signage? What shapes, materials, and visual tactics did Sydney building

managers deploy to ensure their directory boards have

an immediate, positive impact on visitors?

To answer these questions we scrutinized directory

boards all over the city. (See map).

In order to complete this study we analysed among

other things, each board dimension, legibility, content,

location, materials, colours used, lighting systems and

use of LCD screens.



Most popular materials

Most of the directory boards (40%) are made from acrylic.

This material is very robust, relatively cheaper and light

weight. It is generally good value for money. This is certainly

the reason why the vast majority corporate buildings visited

chose this type of material.

We found more than 65% of the acrylic panels used were

clear or white acrylic. It is a smart option: sober but classy and

very legible.

We also discovered that vinyl is the most common material

applied to the acrylic as it is very easy to apply and remove in

order to change the content of the board.



Digital screens take 2nd place. 24% of the directory boards are electronic which is not

surprising: even if they are more expensive than acrylic panels, digital screens are interactive

and very convenient when the time comes to change the tenants’ names on the board.

Changing the content on digital screens takes less time and cost less money than with any

other materials. Another advantage of going digital is that you can flash advertisements,

weather updates or other general snippets of information across the screen where and

whenever you like.

Aluminium is the third most popular material when it comes to directory boards, favoured by

20% of the corporate buildings.

Most of the time, signage companies will use aluminium slat systems with magnetic backings.

This is the most popular option as it is relatively cheap and relatively easy to install onto an

existing wall.

Stainless steel and Timber are

increasingly more popular.

However, only 8% of the

directory boards are made from

these materials.



Wooden directory board with acrylic panel onto the front Stainless steel directory board with acrylic on the bottom



Illuminated Directory boards

The vast majority of directory boards (79%) are traditional

directory boards, that is to say they are non-illuminated. This is

not surprising. Even if illuminated directory boards are more

eye-catching, it is not an essential but a premium option. Since

directory boards are located at the entrance of buildings, near

the lifts or at the reception, they are not hard to find so

illuminating the boards is not always a necessity.

Illuminated signs look more professional and make a great

impact on visitors when they first walk into a building but

require additional maintenance costs and their installation can

be more expensive because of the need to run power to the

location.



Size and boards configuration

Directory boards can be either freestanding or mounted on a wall, with landscape or portrait

orientation.



It seems that the most conventional and popular type of boards are portrait oriented and

mounted to the wall. However, we found some unusual boards, such as this 4-meter-long

slopping board:

The average size for freestanding boards is somewhere between 1.70 and 2 m high by 0.5 to 1m

wide. The tallest one was 3m high. Wall mounted signs are usually smaller, with an average size

of 1.40m high by 0.7m wide.

The majority of directory boards are composed of one directory board but some places have

decided to use a set of two similar boards (Please, see image below.). This is a good way to

improve legibility and to ensure that all the content of the boards are at eye level.



Set of two boards Tallest directory board: 3meters high.

It seems that tall narrow directory boards are the most popular. However, this presents certain

challenges in terms of legibility because the information located at the very top or very bottom

of the board is not always easy to spot at first glance. Landscape oriented boards are more

reader-friendly but are surprisingly less popular (32%). This is probably due to the fact that they

take up more space, which can be an inconvenience in small lobby areas.



Colours and fonts

- Colours:

The spectrum of colours and combinations used are very interesting. Most of the time,

directory boards have a very sober and classic style but professional and suitable for corporate

identity. The most common combinations are white and black (with either black background

and white lettering or white background and black lettering), and grey background and black

lettering (for aluminium and stainless steel directory boards).

Since directory boards are quite sober and have a minimalist style, what about adding the

tenants’ logo? Apparently, it may not be such a good idea. On one hand, the lease conditions

may include “naming rights” in certain buildings which may prevent the corporates to add

their logo on the directory board.



On the other hand, in terms of design, adding the logo may provide too much information,

which will harm the main purpose of a directory board: being informative and legible.

Including the tenant’s logo can be a good idea, (if we consider there is no “naming rights”

preventing the corporates to do so), but only if there is a few tenants or if the directory

board’s size allows it .The following photos properly illustrate this statement:

- Font size

The size of the font is usually small or medium, which is

understandable. The number of tenants in a corporate building can

range from just a few tenants to more than 80.

Therefore, adding the tenants’ logo, as well as the name and the

level where they are located would take up too much space and

would require an oversized directory board, which may not be

feasible from an architectural point of view.



CONCLUSION

Most directory boards in Sydney’s CBD are very simple, feature few colours and standard

shapes. We were hoping to see a larger spectrum of colours and definitely more logos. Most

boards chose simplicity and legibility over originality. Acrylic and aluminium portrait boards are

the first choice for most buildings, whilst the popularity of digital screens is growing slowly.

The most professional and minimalistic looking boards seem to be the trendiest ones in Sydney,

with a few exceptions of course:

Blueprint Concepts can assist with the design, manufacture and installation of any type of

directory board throughout Australia. Please phone one of our consultants today on 1300 784

540 to discuss your options and requirements.

directory boards

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