Avery Dennison OL-1200 Anti-dew film protecting the traffic signs in the UK

Traffic signs provide guidance and warning for drivers, and because of their importance, they must be legible to drivers in all weather conditions, day and night. There are several temporary weather phenomena that can have a severe effect on the legibility of traffic signs on the road.

Neha Madan, Associate Manager-Marketing, Reflective Solutions / S. Asia & EMEA

March 10, 2023

A challenge in many regions, especially in northern Europe, is increased moisture that appears on cold signs in the form of dew. Road users typically encounter this while driving at night during autumn and spring; in some climates, it can appear year-round. Studies have shown that dew can temporarily reduce the retroreflective performance of a sign by up to 87%. Since dew droplet deposition is typically not uniform across the sign face, it creates dark patches that affect the sign's legibility, posing additional risk while driving at night.

Under poor weather conditions, critical signs become difficult to read because of the effects of dew.

With its commitment to making the world’s roadways safer, Avery Dennison addressed this need and launched an Anti-Dew protective overlay film, OL-1200, which has a hydrophilic surface that attracts and reduces the contact angle of the water. With up to 12 years of UV protection as specified by EN 12899/1 or the EAD requirement, the OL-1200 film provides 10 years of anti-dew performance. The alternate anti-dew overlays sold across the industry lose their anti-dew properties quickly, long before the UV protection warranty ends.

The OL-1200 anti-dew protective film has been used in the UK for making traffic signs at multiple highway projects resulting in better-performing signs during such weather conditions. As Scott Horne, the Managing Director at Lakeside Group states, "OL-1200 brings us a lot of opportunities as the dew-resistant film market was previously only serviced by short-life products that just didn’t perform. Feedback from our customers has been extremely positive both in terms of the industry-leading durability and the dew-resistant performance that OL-1200 provides." Lakeside Group is an authorized Avery Dennison channel partner with over 30 years of experience in the traffic sign industry and provides a wide range of reflective products for temporary and permanent traffic signs.

The left side of this sign shows water droplets flattened on the surface where OL-1200 is applied. The right side does not have an anti-dew film, so the water remains as unique droplets.

Pairing OL-1200 Anti-dew protective overlay film with the digital print technology of the TrafficJet Print Systems allows you to produce better-performing, more creative traffic signs. See the many benefits of digital printing on our website.

Avery Dennison continues to innovate with retroreflective products engineered to improve road safety. Visit reflectives.averydennison.com to learn more about the industry-leading technology available from Avery Dennison.

Avery Dennison OL-1200 Anti-dew film protecting the traffic signs in the UK

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