Watchfire Announces Winners of 12th Annual LED Sign Awards

Signworks, Inc. earns Grand Prize for Riverview Health Arena at Innovation Mile installation in Noblesville, Indiana.

Watchfire today announced the winners of its annual LED Sign Awards. Now in its 12th year, the Watchfire LED Sign Awards celebrate the achievements of dealer partners who excel in creating high-impact sign solutions that incorporate digital message centers.

This year's competition featured one Grand Prize winner and 11 Gold winners representing a range of industries and communities across the United States.

The Grand Prize was awarded to Signworks for its installation at Riverview Health Arena at Innovation Mile in Noblesville, Indiana. The project features a 21'4" x 33' 16mm Watchfire electronic message center (EMC) integrated into a large architectural pylon along the I-69 corridor.

The EMC, framed in a clean black cabinet that complements the pylon's darker architectural elements, serves as the visual centerpiece of the pylon, positioned between Riverview Health Arena identification above and Innovation Mile branding below. Its scale and placement create a prominent communications platform for arena events, promotions, and community messaging, with strong daytime and nighttime visibility.

"We designed the EMC to be integrated into the overall architectural form of the sign, rather than treated as a separate sign element," said Andy Chapman, CEO and founder of Signworks. "Its placement creates a clear visual hierarchy while giving Riverview Health Arena a high-impact communication platform for event promotions, graphics and real-time messaging. The result is a dynamic gateway feature for Innovation Mile with a strong visual presence along the I-69 corridor."

For Riverview Health Arena, the digital display provides the flexibility to keep communications timely and relevant. Using Watchfire's Ignite OPx cloud-based content management software, the arena can update event promotions, welcome messages, and other information in real time, from virtually anywhere.

"The combination of the large-scale branding and electronic message centers gives us a much stronger presence and, more importantly, a way to communicate directly with the people coming to the arena," said Jayme Thompson, project manager for the Noblesville Mayor's Office.

The display's location along I-69 also extends the sign's reach beyond arena visitors. According to Thompson, the installation helps Riverview Health Arena reach thousands of people traveling through the area and build awareness of events and activities at both the arena and throughout Innovation Mile. What began as a wayfinding feature has also become an important tool for connecting with the community and introducing visitors to everything happening at the destination.

"Our sign company partners are central to Watchfire's success and to the value we deliver to customers," said Chris Kelm, vice president of on premise sales at Watchfire. "These awards recognize the creativity, craftsmanship, and dedication they bring to every project. Together, we're focused on delivering high-quality, innovative sign solutions that help our customers move their businesses forward, communicate more effectively, and strengthen connections within the communities they serve."

2026 Gold Award Winners

The 11 Gold Award winners are:

• Horst Signs | Bell & Evans, Fredericksburg, Pa.
• Baldus Company | Huntington First Church of the Nazarene, Huntington, Ind.
• Empire Graphics | Patuxent Baptist Church, Great Mills, Md.
• Holiday Signs | The Highlander Studios, Kilmarnock, Va.
• Creative Sign Company | Honeymoon Acres, New Holstein, Wis.
• Phillips Signs | Holly Lakes Campsites, Millsboro, Del.
• Fritz Signs | Fritz Signs, Spring Arbor, Mich.
• Ace Sign Co. | Scheels Sports Park, Springfield, Ill.
• City Sign Service, Inc. | National Constitution Center, Philadelphia, Pa.
• North Shore Sign | American Legion Post 771, Gurnee, Ill.
• North Shore Sign | Lifespring Community Church, Libertyville, Ill.

The annual program honors on premise installations completed between September 1, 2025, and August 31, 2026 that stand out for their design quality, legibility, and advertising effectiveness. To see the complete list of winners and the photos, visit watchfire.com/signawards.

About Watchfire

Watchfire designs and engineers the best-looking, most durable outdoor LED signs, indoor displays, digital billboards, and video scoreboards, helping businesses and organizations communicate effectively, increase visibility, and drive growth. Headquartered in Danville, Ill., Watchfire has manufactured electric signs for more than 90 years and LED signs since 1998, using meticulously sourced components from around the world. Watchfire has more than 70,000 LED signs in operation worldwide and more digital billboard customers in the U.S. than any other brand. For more information, visit watchfire.com or follow Watchfire on LinkedIn.

Media Contact

Christine Roe, Watchfire, 1 610.241.2170, [email protected], https://www.watchfire.com/

SOURCE Watchfire