PILA group® advises businesses and companies not to compromise on the poles when installing signage at their premises.
Banner poles or signage poles are an elegant way to display advertising; however, many businesses try to save money during installation by using existing infrastructure to retrofit signage. While this may save money in the short-term, the risk outweighs the benefits and can even cause fatal consequences.
A banner pole is an engineered structure, designed specifically for the purpose of bearing an appropriate banner or flag and compliant with Australian standards for wind action and aluminium structures. When installed properly and used for its original purpose and within its wind rating, a banner pole is an extremely safe structure.
Banner poles and flag poles are supplied by PILA group® complete with the assurance of safety, as represented by the industry-leading 7-year warranty.
There are businesses that contribute to risky banner installations by manufacturing and selling bracket systems as a cheap option for attaching banners to existing poles. This practice places both the manufacturer and the owner of the site at risk, especially in the event of an accident.
When using a bracket system, the pole and its footing must be engineered to support the brackets and the banner. Certifying the safety of these after-market bracket systems would involve the costly and time-consuming practice of contracting an engineer to retrospectively certify the pole. It would be far more sensible to simply purchase already compliant new banner poles.
A recent tragic event in Melbourne demonstrates the gravity of inappropriate retrofitting of signage. Australia’s largest privately owned construction company, Grocon is currently facing charges over the death of three people when a wall carrying a sign collapsed. The sign had been hung on the wall without proper safety checks or permits. Grocon did not obtain a risk assessment on how wind would affect the wall with the added sign, nor did they have an engineer assess the wall after the sign was installed. As the site owner, Grocon is facing six charges while the manufacturer, Aussie Signs is facing two charges.
PILA group® recommends the use of banner poles specifically designed for the purpose, and to only install the pole and fit banners in accordance with the manufacturer’s product guide.
