SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb., - What’s 11 feet high, 45 feet wide and orange all over? It’s the new tower sign, installed last week at Regional West Medical Center in Scottsbluff. The sign was officially lit for the first time August 29 at a Sign Lighting Event that attracted approximately 70 people.

As Regional West launches its physician hospital integration initiative, one of the most visible changes of the new organization is the exterior signage.

“The tower sign serves as a landmark identifier for Regional West Medical Center,” said Stuart Fulks, Regional West vice president of marketing and strategic planning. “Affixed to the second tallest building in Scottsbluff, it can be seen from a great distance away.”

Perhaps the biggest difference from the old tower sign to the new one is the cross, which weighs an impressive 1,000 pounds.

“The cross of the Regional West logo was moved to the left, made bigger and is now orange,” said Fulks. To combat western Nebraska’s high winds, the face of the new cross is anchored to the sign with 30 hurricane clips.

The letters of the new sign are actually smaller than the old by about 4 inches, but still reach 44 inches tall. The total weight of the new tower sign is approximately 4,000 pounds. It is constructed with Designer Series 1600 neon tubes that will stay brighter longer than the tubes in the old hospital tower sign. The new sign uses fewer, more powerful transformers (10 versus 18) that are built into the sign itself.

The tower sign was originally erected in 1992 by Ferguson Sign Company of Scottsbluff. “When we put up the sign, the Birth and Infant Care Center north of the main patient tower wasn’t there yet,” said Mike Ferguson, owner of Ferguson Sign Company. “We backed a crane right up to the CEO’s office. Just as we were installing, a 40 mile per hour wind storm started, making installation incredibly difficult. Even with pre-drilled holes, it still took us about 14 hours to put up the sign.”

The sign shone brightly until 1999, when a hail storm damaged and nearly destroyed it. All of the letters and the neon tubes had to be repaired. According to Ferguson, the repairs were no easy feat.

“Because the Birth and Infant Care Center area had been constructed, we could no longer get a crane in there,” said Ferguson. “Instead, we had to go over the side of the building to repair the sign.”

In addition to the tower sign, Regional West has begun replacing other signs at the hospital including those located on the exterior of the building.

Regional West Health Services, with over 1,800 employees, provides comprehensive and innovative health care services for the people and communities of western Nebraska and the neighboring states of Colorado, South Dakota and Wyoming. With over 110 active physicians, 95 percent of whom are board certified or board eligible, plus an additional 25 consulting specialists, we offer care that spans more than 40 medical specialties. Regional West Medical Center, a subsidiary of Regional West Health Services, is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and is one of only three Level II Trauma Centers in the state of Nebraska.