When you’re investing in an outdoor 3D sign, choosing the right material is just as important as choosing the right design.

Unlike indoor signage, an outdoor sign has to deal with constant exposure to sunlight, rain, wind, temperature changes and general wear. A material that looks fantastic when it is first installed may not look quite so impressive after a few years outside if it wasn’t designed for those conditions.

At Formify Labs, we specialise in designing and building custom signs for businesses in Toronto, including signs intended for permanent outdoor installation. Material selection is therefore an important part of our design process.

There are several materials that can be used to manufacture outdoor signage, but they each come with different advantages, disadvantages and costs.

So, what is the best material for an outdoor 3D sign?

What Should You Look for in an Outdoor 3D Sign Material?

Before comparing individual materials, it helps to understand what an outdoor sign actually needs to withstand.

The biggest challenge is usually UV exposure. Over time, ultraviolet radiation from sunlight can cause some plastics to fade, become brittle or lose their mechanical properties.

Outdoor signage also has to cope with:

• Rain and moisture
• Hot and cold temperatures
• Repeated temperature changes
• Wind
• Direct sunlight
• Impact and general wear
• Long-term colour fading

For a 3D sign, there is another consideration too: manufacturability.

The material needs to allow us to accurately reproduce detailed lettering, logos, curves and other three-dimensional elements without unnecessarily limiting the design.

That is one of the reasons our preferred material for many outdoor 3D signage projects at Formify Labs is ASA.

But first, let’s look at the alternatives.

1. ASA

ASA — Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate — is one of the materials we recommend most strongly for custom outdoor 3D signs.

It is particularly well suited to products that will remain outdoors because it offers very good resistance to UV exposure and weathering. ASA is frequently used for outdoor 3D-printed components specifically because it retains its appearance and mechanical properties better under sunlight than many common 3D-printing plastics.

Advantages of ASA

ASA provides a very useful combination of:

• Excellent UV resistance
• Good weather resistance
• Good impact resistance
• Good heat resistance
• Resistance to moisture
• Strong dimensional stability
• Good colour retention
• Suitability for complex 3D shapes and lettering

For Formify Labs, that last point is particularly important.

Because we specialise in custom three-dimensional signs, we aren’t restricted to simply cutting letters out of flat sheets. ASA gives us significantly more design freedom when creating detailed logos, lettering, shapes and bespoke branding elements.

Disadvantages of ASA

ASA isn’t necessarily the easiest material to manufacture with.

It is more demanding to 3D print than materials such as PLA and can be susceptible to problems such as warping if the manufacturing environment isn’t properly controlled.

That makes ASA more suitable for professional manufacturing than someone attempting to produce a large outdoor sign on a basic desktop 3D printer.

How Formify Labs Makes ASA Outdoor Signs More Durable

At Formify Labs, we go a step further with outdoor ASA signs.

Our outdoor signs can be sprayed with UV-protective chemicals/coatings, adding another layer of protection against prolonged exposure to sunlight.

The purpose is simple: although ASA is already an excellent outdoor material, we want to minimise long-term degradation as much as possible and maximise the useful lifespan of the finished sign.

For that reason, ASA combined with an appropriate UV-protective finish is our preferred solution for many custom outdoor 3D signs.

2. Acrylic

Acrylic has been used throughout the signage industry for years and can produce an extremely clean, premium appearance.

It is particularly common for illuminated signage because translucent and coloured acrylic can interact very effectively with LED lighting.

Advantages of Acrylic

Acrylic offers:

• A smooth, premium finish
• Excellent visual clarity
• A wide variety of colours and finishes
• Good compatibility with illumination
• Good weather resistance when the correct outdoor-grade acrylic is used

For signs where glossy surfaces or illuminated faces are central to the design, acrylic can be an excellent option.

Disadvantages of Acrylic

Acrylic can be more brittle than some alternative materials, particularly when impact resistance is important.

Standard acrylic shouldn’t automatically be assumed to be suitable for every long-term outdoor application either. The exact grade and UV resistance matter considerably.

Most importantly for highly customised 3D signage, working primarily from acrylic sheets can impose different manufacturing limitations compared with additive manufacturing using ASA.

We therefore see acrylic as an excellent component within certain sign designs, rather than necessarily the best universal material for an entire custom 3D outdoor sign.

3. Aluminium

If you’re researching outdoor signage, you’ll almost certainly come across aluminium.

There’s a good reason for that.

Aluminium is extremely popular for permanent commercial signage because it doesn’t rust like conventional steel and performs well against rain, sunlight and temperature changes. It is widely regarded as one of the strongest choices for long-term outdoor sign substrates.

Advantages of Aluminium

Aluminium offers:

• Excellent outdoor durability
• Corrosion resistance
• Good structural strength
• Relatively low maintenance
• A premium appearance
• Excellent longevity

It can therefore be an excellent material for sign panels, structural components, backing plates and certain types of fabricated dimensional lettering.

Disadvantages of Aluminium

The disadvantage comes when designs become more complicated.

Producing intricate three-dimensional shapes from metal can involve cutting, bending, welding, machining and finishing multiple individual components.

That can increase manufacturing complexity and cost.

For certain projects, aluminium makes perfect sense. For highly customised 3D shapes, however, ASA manufacturing can provide significantly greater flexibility.

4. Aluminium Composite Material (ACM)

Aluminium Composite Material — often referred to as ACM — typically consists of two thin aluminium sheets surrounding a central core.

It has become extremely common within commercial signage.

Advantages of ACM

ACM is:

• Lightweight
• Rigid
• Weather resistant
• Relatively affordable
• Easy to mount
• Excellent for large sign panels

This makes it particularly useful for shop fascia signs, printed panels and backing boards.

Disadvantages of ACM

Its main limitation in this context is that it is fundamentally a sheet material.

It is excellent for creating the structure or background of a sign, but considerably less suited to creating complex three-dimensional forms on its own.

A bespoke sign may therefore combine an ACM or aluminium backing panel with separately manufactured 3D letters or logos.

5. PVC

PVC and expanded PVC boards are another common choice within the signage industry.

They are lightweight, easy to machine and relatively inexpensive.

Advantages of PVC

PVC offers:

• Low material cost
• Lightweight construction
• Easy cutting and fabrication
• Good moisture resistance
• Good versatility

For temporary or semi-permanent signs, these advantages can make PVC attractive.

Disadvantages of PVC

The problem is long-term exposure to the elements.

Standard PVC generally isn’t as well suited to prolonged direct UV exposure as premium outdoor materials. Over time, sunlight can contribute to fading and brittleness, making PVC more appropriate for shorter-term or partially protected signage in many situations.

If we’re creating a sign intended to become a permanent part of a business’s storefront, we’d generally prefer to invest in a material specifically suited to that environment.

6. ABS

ABS is another popular plastic within the 3D-printing and manufacturing industries.

It is strong, relatively affordable and capable of producing durable parts.

So why don’t we simply use ABS for outdoor signs?

Advantages of ABS

ABS provides:

• Good strength
• Good impact resistance
• Good heat resistance
• Relatively low material costs
• Excellent suitability for producing complex 3D components

For indoor products, those properties can make it extremely useful.

Disadvantages of ABS Outdoors

Its weakness is prolonged UV exposure.

ASA was essentially developed to provide ABS-like properties while offering significantly better resistance to outdoor weathering and ultraviolet radiation. The acrylate component used in ASA gives it better resistance to UV-related degradation than conventional ABS.

Therefore, if we’re choosing specifically between ABS and ASA for a sign that will spend years outdoors, we generally favour ASA.

7. PLA

PLA is probably the material most people associate with consumer 3D printing.

It is inexpensive, widely available and relatively easy to print.

That doesn’t make it the right material for a professional outdoor sign.

Advantages of PLA

PLA is:

• Affordable
• Easy to manufacture
• Available in countless colours
• Capable of producing detailed 3D objects

For prototypes, models and many indoor applications, it works very well.

Disadvantages of PLA

Outdoor signage introduces conditions that PLA simply wasn’t designed to handle particularly well.

Heat and prolonged UV exposure can cause problems, making it a poor choice for a professional sign expected to remain outside throughout the year.

For that reason, Formify Labs would not choose PLA simply because it is cheaper or easier to print if the finished product needs to perform reliably outdoors.

Which Material Is Best for Outdoor 3D Signs?

There isn’t one material that wins in absolutely every category.

Material	Outdoor Durability	Design Freedom	Cost	Best Used For
ASA	Excellent	Excellent	Moderate	Custom 3D outdoor signs
Acrylic	Good–Excellent*	Moderate	Moderate–High	Premium and illuminated signs
Aluminium	Excellent	Moderate	High	Permanent structural signage
ACM	Excellent	Limited	Moderate	Fascias and backing panels
PVC	Moderate	Moderate	Low	Budget/semi-permanent signs
ABS	Moderate	Excellent	Low–Moderate	Primarily indoor 3D components
PLA	Poor–Moderate	Excellent	Low	Prototypes and indoor applications

*Depending on the grade and specification used.

You’ll also notice that some of the materials aren’t mutually exclusive.

A high-quality commercial sign might use an aluminium or ACM structure combined with custom-manufactured ASA 3D lettering, for example.

The correct solution should therefore be designed around the sign rather than choosing a material simply because it is popular.

Our Recommendation: ASA With Added UV Protection

For the type of custom 3D outdoor signs we manufacture at Formify Labs, our preferred material is ASA treated with additional UV protection.

There are several reasons.

First, ASA is inherently well suited to outdoor environments. It combines excellent weather and UV resistance with the strength required for long-term signage.

Second, it works extremely well with the manufacturing methods we use to create genuinely custom three-dimensional objects.

That means we aren’t simply choosing from a catalogue of standard letters.

We can take your company logo, font, branding, colours and overall design and turn them into a physical three-dimensional sign.

Finally, once manufactured, our outdoor ASA components can be sprayed with UV-protective coatings to further reduce long-term degradation and maximise longevity.

For us, that’s the ideal combination:

A material designed to survive outdoors, combined with additional protection and virtually unlimited 3D design freedom.

Outdoor 3D Signs Designed Around Your Brand

A business sign isn’t something most companies want to replace every year or two.

It sits outside your premises every day, representing your business to every customer, pedestrian and driver who passes it.

That means material selection shouldn’t be an afterthought.

At Formify Labs, we specialise in designing and manufacturing custom 3D signs built specifically around your brand. For outdoor projects, we’ll consider the sign’s size, design, mounting position, sunlight exposure, weather exposure and intended lifespan before determining the most appropriate manufacturing approach.

For many of our outdoor 3D signs, that means using ASA with additional UV protection to maximise durability while giving us the freedom to create almost any design imaginable.

If you’re considering a custom outdoor sign for your business, get in touch with Formify Labs to discuss your idea and we’ll help you turn your logo or branding into a durable, three-dimensional sign built for the outdoors.