The winner of the Indy 500 is awarded $10,000 by the American Dairy Association of Indiana if they carry on a longstanding tradition of drinking a glass of milk in the victory lane. The tradition is taken seriously, and every detail is carefully considered from which milk the driver prefers, to who gets the privilege of transporting and guarding the milk during the race, and of course, the classic glass milk bottle it is served in.
With all eyes and cameras on the winner, the ADAI has enhanced the classic milk bottle into a powerful promotional tool by engraving their logo into an otherwise ordinary container. And for such an important moment, the ADAI only relies on professionals who treat engraving like an art form to make sure the commemorative bottle is camera ready.
This year, Custom Engraving Studio, LLC has the honor of engraving the Indy 500 for the first time! While this is a big achievement for the company, they are known for many other things too. You can find their work on the shelves of winners around the world! Custom Engraving Studio has engraved awards for the best of the best and is now extending the esteem of custom engraving to many different types of promotional products.
Beginnings Inspired by True Art
Darryl Wagner, the founder and owner of Custom Engraving Studio, had an interest in antiques. He went to an auction and was struck by the beauty of an engraved phonograph and how everyone else lingered to look at it too.
He began learning about engraving and carving techniques, purchased some engraving equipment, and took to his new hobby tirelessly each day. Soon enough he had honed his artform, producing outstanding quality engravings. At this point, he transitioned his garage hobby to a full-time business.
Producing Engraved Art with Speed and Agility
Rather than simply writing a name on a trophy, Darryl kept the spirit of the beautifully engraved phonograph and treats each project as a work of art. Winning an award is special, so the engraving should be special too. It was this attention to detail that grew the studio to be a thriving business.
Today, Custom Engraving Studio uses the fastest and most accurate lasers on the market and can create works of art on just about any material.
Their technology can engrave up to 140 inches per second, can accelerate up to 5 Gs, can fire thousands of times per second, and has an addressable accuracy of .0002 ten thousandths of an inch.
Additionally, they employ different types of engraving techniques that allow them to work on projects with plastics and metals all on one system.
In the last few years, they have adopted mature laser software that allows complete control from the computer screen or even an iPhone.
With these specs, they can produce the highest quality engravings and pass the time and money savings to distributors.
The Esteem of An Engraved Award, in Everyday Items
An engraving carries a rich prestige to it. It is what separates an award that speaks for itself from a fancy bookend. It shows the permanency of the event. It’s why the ADAI chooses to engrave their commemorative milk bottles rather than leave it blank or slap a sticker on it.
But after years of engraving within a single category of promotional products, Custom Engraving Studio decided to apply the tasteful esteem of an engraving to new unique products.
Distributors can now purchase everyday brands and items with designs skillfully etched to produce useful, novel, and memorable products.
Darryl’s latest project has been helping the Dover International Speedway celebrate its 50th anniversary with 325 flashlights. Engravings take a typical promotional item and make it special. It’s something to opt for when you are recognizing a win, whether it’s the race itself or just something worth celebrating.
