EcoTek Lighting announced the design and manufacture of the unique Arched Graphics Indoor Menu Board with Direct Backlit LED Array technology. The Arched Graphics direct backlit LED menu board provides a clean contemporary look while allowing graphics to be changed easier.

This revolutionary product provides up to 25% more usable graphics space per square foot of wall than a typical lift-and-drop menu board. EcoTek Lighting’s direct backlit menu boards are the first of their kind in the industry. Rather than a sheet of Plexiglas lit by LEDs along the edge that try to stretch the beams to the center of the board like current inefficient edgelit menu boards or inefficient edgelit lamps, direct backlighting features grids of low-power LEDs directly illuminating the back of the graphic. In the fast casual restaurant industry, even, balanced lighting is extremely important, and direct backlit LED arrays produce even illumination across the entire graphics display area, optimizing light output with no hotspots.

“Both quick serve and fast casual units are considered energy hogs, in large part because their hours of operation can average 18 to 20 hours a day,” says Rick Farrell, president of EcoTek Lighting. New Federal regulations under consideration could raise energy costs by 62% by the end of 2010. LED illumination saves 80% of electricity compared to incandescent, and 55 to 75% compared to fluorescent lighting. Not only does it show off the proper colors of the graphics, but it helps reduce ambient air temperature to save on air-conditioning costs. The illumination life span of our high quality LEDs is more than eight years in Quick Serve Restaurant (QSR) and fast casual restaurant environments. In addition, a single Modular Power Supply will power multiple menu boards. Our Modular Power Supplies can be placed outside the air-conditioned area and allow our LED arrays to be thin, lightweight and easy to install.