Some vehicles spend their days cruising along freshly tarmacked roads.
Others spend theirs knee-deep in mud.
For Hortlands, the latter is very much the case.
We were tasked with producing and installing bespoke machinery graphics for one of their large telescopic handlers, creating custom-fit branded panels that could stand up to the demands of a busy landscaping environment.
Bright green machinery. Smart black panels. Crisp Hortlands branding.
A relatively simple design.
Just with a few more challenges than your average van signwriting job.
Project Details
Client: Hortlands
Industry: Landscaping / Horticulture / Grounds Maintenance
Vehicle: Specialist telescopic handler (telehandler)
Location: Iver, Buckinghamshire
Project: Bespoke plant and machinery branding
Service: Graphic production, precision cutting and specialist installation
Graphics: Custom-shaped printed panels and individual branded decals
Materials: High-quality printed wrapping vinyl and bespoke cut-to-shape graphics
A familiar brand. A slightly different vehicle.
We've worked closely with Hortlands on their wider branding, helping develop a distinctive identity that reflects their approach to landscaping and horticulture.
From their logo and brand identity to commercial vehicle graphics and branded materials, we've helped bring a consistent look to the business.
This time, the job was a little different.
Hortlands specialises in everything from garden landscaping and grounds maintenance to mature tree planting, instant hedging and irrigation systems.
And when you're working on projects of that scale, you need some pretty serious machinery.
Enter the telehandler.
Designed for lifting and moving heavy materials around demanding sites, this isn't exactly the sort of vehicle that spends much time looking spotless.
But that doesn't mean it can't look professional.
Making the most of that green.
There's certainly no missing this machine.
Finished in a particularly vibrant shade of green, it already has plenty of visual presence.
Rather than fighting against the existing colour, we used it as part of the overall design.
The Hortlands graphics feature smart black background panels with the company's distinctive green emblem and lettering, creating a bold contrast that works brilliantly against the machinery.
The graphics were positioned across several areas, including the telescopic boom, side body panels and rear section.
Each application was carefully sized to sit within the available space, following the existing shapes and lines of the machine.
The finished result is clean, recognisable and surprisingly understated for something that bright green.
Although we suspect understated might not be the first word that springs to mind when you see it coming across a muddy field.
Not every surface needs a sticker.
Specialist machinery presents a rather different challenge from a commercial van.
There are moving components.
Exposed mechanical parts.
Heavy-duty working areas.
And plenty of opportunities for vinyl to get caught, rubbed or damaged.
So while it might be tempting to cover every available surface with branding, that isn't necessarily the cleverest approach.
For Hortlands, we created bespoke printed graphics specifically shaped to fit selected panel areas.
The larger side decals were designed to sit neatly within the machine's existing recessed body panels, while the boom graphics follow the long, narrow surfaces available.
This careful positioning helps protect vulnerable edges and reduces the likelihood of the vinyl lifting or peeling through everyday use.
It also means the branding looks properly integrated with the machinery.
Not like somebody found a spare sticker and decided to give it a home.
Built for a working environment.
Mud. Dust. Water. Vibration.
And the occasional close encounter with a branch.
Landscaping machinery has a fairly demanding working life.
Which is why choosing the right materials and installation approach is particularly important.
For this project, we used high-quality printed wrapping vinyl and bespoke decals, cut to fit the individual sections of the telehandler.
Rather than applying oversized sheets and trimming them around awkward components, the graphics were produced to suit the specific areas they would occupy.
Careful positioning and application helped achieve a clean finish while reducing exposed edges in areas likely to experience regular contact or wear.
Of course, no vinyl is completely immune to damage on a working machine.
But good material selection and sensible placement can make a considerable difference to how well the graphics hold up.
Because there's not much point having beautiful branding if it's going to disappear after its first encounter with a hedge.
Keeping the Hortlands identity consistent.
One of the things we particularly enjoy about working with Hortlands is seeing how their brand translates across different applications.
A logo that works beautifully on a website also needs to look good on a uniform.
And on a van.
And, apparently, on a rather enormous piece of landscaping machinery.
The trick is maintaining that recognisable identity while adapting the artwork to suit whatever it's being applied to.
In this case, the simplicity of the Hortlands emblem works particularly well.
The clean lettering and distinctive icon remain easily recognisable, even when positioned within relatively narrow or irregular panel shapes.
And by using the same visual identity found across the company's other branded materials, the finished machine feels like part of the wider Hortlands fleet.
It's a small detail that contributes to a much bigger impression.
The finished article. Mud included.
The completed telehandler looks right at home on site, with its black and green branding sitting neatly against the existing bodywork.
The boom lettering gives the machine visibility from the side, while the individual panels and rear graphic provide recognition from other angles.
The design doesn't interfere with the machine's working appearance or overwhelm its existing colour scheme.
It simply gives it a smart, professional finish.
And looking at the photographs, it certainly didn't take long for the machinery to get back to doing what it does best.
We didn't supply the mud.
That came free of charge.
Plant and machinery graphics in Iver and Buckinghamshire.
At Toy Creative, vehicle branding isn't limited to vans, cars and lorries.
We also design, produce and install bespoke vinyl graphics for specialist machinery, construction equipment, agricultural vehicles and landscaping plant.
From digger decals and telehandler graphics to excavator branding, machinery lettering and custom-fit printed panels, we create signage to suit the equipment and the environment it works in.
Based in Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, we work with businesses across Iver, Uxbridge, Slough, Beaconsfield, High Wycombe, Hertfordshire, Berkshire and throughout the UK.
Whether you need a few carefully positioned logos or a complete set of branded graphics for your machinery fleet, we can help with the design, production and installation.
Got something a bit unusual that needs branding?
If it's got wheels, tracks, a telescopic arm or an especially complicated shape, chances are we'll enjoy figuring out how to brand it.
From simple machinery decals to more complex printed graphics, we'll help find a solution that works for your equipment.
And importantly, where it's going to be used.
Explore our specialist vehicle graphics and wrapping services, or get in touch with Toy Creative to discuss your next project.
