Having effective signage and routes available can be critical during emergencies. With each exit sign, there are certain requirements that come along with the territory. Knowing those requirements can help create a smoother, more effective exit strategy.
For businesses everywhere, those requirements can literally mean the difference between life and death. Read on to find out more about the requirements that exit signs have and how to keep them properly posted.
What are Exit Signs & How are Routes Defined?
You will come across a litany of exit signs no matter where you go. Exit routes are a clear, continuous, and unbarred route of travel to a nearby exit. These are required in any business or industrial setup for the health and well-being of occupants during an emergency.
There are three parts to an emergency exit route. The access, the exit itself, and the exit discharge. Proper signage is also required in order to direct occupants through the right path to the nearest exit point. Without these, chaos may ensue, leading to unnecessary panic, injury, and accidents that could have been otherwise avoided.
Exit Sign Requirements
There is a litany of laws that have been enacted in order to create effective exit signage. The goal is to ensure that exit doors are quickly and effectively located when emergencies occur. There are some local and national codes that dictate proper signage, the location for those signs, and what defines an exit route in that area.
Those requirements are seven-fold. Every sign needs to be illuminated properly. Every sign should have “EXIT” both legibly and easily illuminated on a sign with at least 6-inch high lettering. Each letter should be at least 3/4” wide as well, though they can be bigger.
An exit sign should be posted at every exit door, aside from the primary exit. Each sign must also be clearly visible when approaching that particular exit. Each sign should have proper, clearly legible lettering that stands in stark contrast to the background color. Finally, a building that is more than two stories must have clearly marked exit ramps or stairs.
Exit Sign Illumination
In addition to those requirements, there are certain illumination requirements as well. There must be a reliable light source that lights the sign up so that it can be seen within five feet. That source must provide lighting to the exit signs and must have a backup in the event of a power outage.
Exit sign illumination requires a reliable source of lighting around internal, external, and photo-luminescent signage. There should be a minimum of 90 minutes of emergency lighting available should the main lighting in the building fail. Emergency lighting must be able to reflect at least one foot of candlelight.
Should there be photo-luminescent lighting used, then there must be a provision for charging the light so that it will stay lit for up to 90 minutes after the light goes off. Finally, exit signs that are internally illuminated must adhere to local standards.
Emergency Lighting
Emergency lighting, which also goes by the name of egress lighting, is used to illuminate and identify stairways, passages, hallways, ramps, and exit doors in order to provide a safe exit in the event of emergencies. These are required in law centers, educational centers, medical centers and hospitals, public houses, religious centers, and business buildings.
Codes and requirements must be adhered to in order to comply with ordinances. Failing to do so will result in fines and other penalties. More importantly, proper signage is critical to providing a safe exit in the event of an emergency.
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