Ever wonder how artwork is reproduced on glass with such close precision and depth?  Engraving glass is a skillful craft and the industry gold standard is a process called sandblasting.

The term sandblasting is actually quite descriptive of the process itself.  It involves a mixture of air and an abrasive material which is blown at a high velocity toward the material.  The abrasive then etches or cuts away the material surface.  Here at EDCO Awards & Specialties we utilize the sandblasting process for decorating glass and crystal recognition awards as well as engraving on marble and metal trophy components.

Sandblasting has many applications.  Aside from engraving crystal trophies, it is frequently used in the auto industry to remove rust from metal parts and burrs from castings.  Dentists also use a form of sandblasting in production of crowns and bridges to roughen surfaces so cement or porcelain can attach easier.  In the sign business, it is used to decorate messages on a wide variety of products.

Sandblasting items such as glassware is a straightforward process. First you adhere a stencil to the item to be blasted.  A stencil is a mask containing cutout areas of the design and message.  Stencils are commonly made from vinyl, rubber or in our case a photoresist film.  When engraving glass or crystal we use photoresist, a film that is photographically exposed and processed.  Usually black and white artwork is used in the photographic process where a negative is used to selectively allow light to pass through and develop the stencil.  The non exposed areas "resist" the stream of sand while reproducing an image on the crystal surface.  

When the stencil is in place, a steady stream of abrasive particles, such as aluminum oxide, is aimed directly at the item.  The best abrasive varies with the material being blasted and the type of cut desired.  The abrasive particles cut those surface areas not covered by the stencil.  The etching process for "frosting" typically only takes a few seconds, but if depth is desired can take much longer.  Explore our glass awards and crystal awards collections to get a better idea of what sandblasting looks like on trophies.

Three fraternity brothers stand at a counter in a trophy shop, discussing which recognition award to purchase for a new house sponsor.  After a store employee helps the three young men select a particular crystal award, he shows them a handbook that is opened to a page presenting layouts and messages specifically for crystal recognition awards.

Within a few minutes the young men decide that they particularly like a message and layout shown in the handbook.  With little difficulty, the employee substitutes the recipient's name, the date, the fraternity name, etc, for the information displayed in the handbook.  In less time than they expected, the young men selected a gift with a message that they know the recipient will appreciate.

In this example, a gift message handbook helped both the customers and the employee. EDCO Awards & Specialties offers an "idea book" called the Inscription Guide.  We created this guide to help our customers develop great sounding messages to be engraved on our awards, as well as our sales representatives who always strive to create great looking and sounding awards!

While checking out our Inscription Guide, be sure to explore our brand new selection of Employee Recognition Awards.  Recognition awards show appreciation and can help develop positive feelings about the company also improving employee morale and performance at the office.  Start building your awards program today by checking out our beautiful awards selection.  Motivate your staff with our featured awards;  Featured awards are our brand new designs just released for June 2013 and include the Together Recognition Award, Teamwork Art Glass, the Dedication Award and the Teamwork Recognition Award.  All awards are produced from optical crystal and deep engraved with precision craftsmanship.  Your congratulatory message will look amazingly beautiful on any of these high end designs. We ship to the entire U.S. and all awards include a premium quality presentation box.

If you have any questions please call one of our friendly Recognition Specialists today at 800-377-8646.

Glass Awards receive 5-Star Recognition

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. – Several glass awards were recently recognized in EDCO Awards & Specialties inaugural recognition of the best quality and design for its corporate awards.

The glass awards receiving the 5-STAR rating demonstrated the best of class in precision craftsmanship.  Awards were closely examined for glass clarity, thickness, edge finish, depth of engraving and accuracy in detail reproduction.  Other elements used for consideration were overall design and the ability to combine media such as wood, steel and colored glass.

Glass awards recognized with this year’s 5-START RATING are:

• Liberty Diamond Jade Glass Award:  From EDCO’s Jade Glass collection, this sleek design attracts the best light with its series of angles and opposing bevels. This corporate award is available in three heights (9, 11 and 13 inches) at a starting price of $69.95 for a single award.
• Flame of Excellence:  Available in two sizes to recognize different levels of achievement, this striking award is constructed of glass, wood and metal.  Low-volume pricing for this award is $79.95.
• Executive Glass Award:  This tall, 12-inch award combines stainless steel, jet black crystal and jade glass.  A single award is available for $159.00. 
• Glass Peak Duet Award:  This 9.5-inch award combines blue and clear optical glass elevated on a brushed silver base.   Single-award pricing is $98.95.
• Ribbon of Success:   New to EDCO’s Jade Glass Collection, this corporate award features a beautiful metal ribbon die-struck with a star pattern that wraps around the length of the jade glass.   Low-volume price is $189.00.
• Expression Art Glass Award:  This 15-inch art glass award features a creative glass rainbow flame.  A single award is available for $149.95.

Each of EDCO’s corporate awards is thoroughly inspected during the quality control process and comes packaged in a premium-quality gift box.   EDCO specializes in delivering high-quality customer service and fast turnaround times, EDCO can provide trophies typically within one week of order and faster for urgent orders.  In addition to Glass and Crystal awards, EDCO Awards & Specialties also specializes in laser engraved acrylic trophies including custom cut and custom printed awards.  The 40 person staff at EDCO is ready and eager to help!  The next time you need a trophy or an award choose EDCO Awards & Specialties and you will be glad you did.

For assistance with your corporate awards order, call EDCO at 800-377-8646.