The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a piece of civil rights legislation passed to protect individuals with disabilities from discrimination. Since the ADA became law in 1990, it has created standards and regulations to eliminate discrimination and create greater accessibility for disabled individuals as they navigate the built environment they encounter. The ADA has evolved with the passing of the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA) in 2008, and as technology becomes more sophisticated, the signage industry is evolving as well. As the signage industry and accessibility standards progress in the future, Acorn is working to be an industry leader for the ADA in relation to signage.

Bob Greenberger is the EVP of Sales and Marketing for Acorn Sign Graphics, and is one of few signage industry experts in relation to the Americans with Disabilities Act. Bob has dedicated his career to helping people of all ability levels navigate built environments, and we are so excited for him to have joined the Acorn team earlier in 2019. We talked with Bob about the future of the signage industry and how Acorn is working to be a pioneer for the future of accessibility in our industry.

From Bob’s experiences, he discussed how the signage industry has remained fairly consistent over the past few years. As technology is progressing, we see it playing larger roles in how signage is produced. Bob predicts that traditional signage is definitely here to stay, but that we will see traditional and digital signage being married to produce innovative accessibility options. Since technology is advancing at a rapid pace, greater options are becoming available to increase user experiences for individuals of all ability levels.

As a signage expert, Bob takes note of places that he sees excellent signage, and he explained that the Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) airport has one of the best built environments he has experienced. The MSP airport utilizes what he believes to be the future of the industry by integrating physical and digital signage to increase accessibility for different disabilities. As technology continues to progress, he sees the possibility for apps, smartwatches, or new technology to be able to help disabled individuals navigate various built environments.

Acorn Sign is committed to being at the forefront of signage industry innovation, especially in relation to the ADA and customer service. Our mission when working with our clients is to build a value/trust relationship with our customers. We strive to build a mutual trust with our clients so our client relationships are greater than just transactional. This is fairly unique in the signage industry, we work our hardest to set the standard for what relational customer service should look like. Not only do we provide the highest-quality product, we ensure on-time delivery and ongoing communication with our clients.

In addition to our client relationships and ADA, Acorn Sign is designated as a B-Corporation, which means that we hold ourselves to high ethical standards and social responsibility. We are committed to protecting the environment and upholding our company values. We are becoming the leading signage company for using environmentally-friendly materials in our projects in place of products that are not as green. We have researched and are integrating these greener products in our work as substitutes because we believe in contributing to protecting our planet by whatever means we can.

While some companies may claim to be at the forefront of industry, we at Acorn push ourselves forward by being certified educators on the industry. We teach both internal and external “Lunch and Learn” programs to architects, design firms, and more. Bob teaches certified AIA/IDCEC courses that are approved for industry CEU’s to an average of 30 firms and over 600 individuals each year. We also strongly believe in supporting organizations, and are highly involved with our local SEGD chapter (Society for Environmental Graphic Design).

Here at Acorn, we are committed to using our skills and knowledge to give back to our communities and to make built environments more accessible and inclusive. We believe in providing opportunity and pushing innovation in the signage industry as we continue to evolve into the future. If you are interested in learning more about our AIA/IDCEC-certified courses, or would like to discuss developments in the signage industry, contact us today!