Circle Graphics has now shipped more than 9,000 Eco-Flexx bulletins to several hundred posting companies throughout the U.S. Your feedback has been positive and extremely encouraging for the first new billboard-flex material in almost 20 years. Large advertisers such as Land Rover, Qwest, Nike, and Coors have rolled out national campaigns on the product and they are convinced of the significant environmental benefits that Eco-Flexx delivers. Many other advertisers are making plans to switch to the product for their 2008 campaigns.

Many Operations Executives have relayed the advantages of the product's light weight and the prospects of reduced back and other injuries for their crews.

Nevertheless, you have also given us very valuable feedback identifying needed improvements to make Eco-Flexx the billboard material of first choice. The following are the changes we are making in response to your input:

Puncture & Tear Resistance

Customers have reported that the Eco-Flexx can be punctured and then tear when tensioned over sharp corners or stringers on some structures. Likewise, sharp points between metal sections on certain structures have also punctured the Eco-Flexx material. Rotating an Eco-Flexx that has been punctured makes it more likely that the holes will spread on each subsequent installation.

We have addressed this issue by adding an extremely strong 12"-wide reinforcement around the perimeter of the Eco-Flexx. The reinforced Eco-Flexx is significantly more puncture and tear resistant than a standard PVC-flex.

A photo of a reinforced Eco-Flexx is included below.

Wrinkle-Free Installation

Installation crews have reported instances where installing a wrinkle-free Eco-Flexx has proved challenging. A study of successful installations revealed that additional ratchets on the sides of the bulletin are extremely helpful to ensure a good result.

We also learned that the material was getting caught on the corners, stringers and misaligned panels. The same obstacles that could puncture the material were concurrently making it difficult to apply sufficient tension for wrinkle free installation.

The new reinforced perimeter is made of a very low-friction, smooth material that is much easier to tension over any part of the billboard structure. Field tests of the improved product have shown that the product is easier to tension and that wrinkle free installation is quite standard.

The semi-transparent edge reinforcement material is a 5.0 mil thick polyolefin laminate designed to give outstanding tear, puncture, and abrasion resistance. This material is adhesive coated with a permanent pressure sensitive adhesive that is used to affix the border to the backside of the Eco-Flexx material.

In addition to the edge reinforcement, we have improved the base substrate with a re-engineered resin compound that does not hold creases and enables wrinkle-free installation.

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