Guide to Exit Sign Requirements

They’re there when you need them most, but essentially unnoticeable otherwise. Exit signs are an essential component of a safe environment, and every industrial and commercial facility needs them. They’re typically only used during power outages or very poorly lit spaces, but when you need them, you really need them. Designed to help facilitate safe evacuations during both emergencies and everyday operating procedures, they are an important part of any facility’s lighting plan.

In fact, for the vast majority of workplaces and businesses, they are mandatory. You need exit signs to be hardy and reliable. This means that if you’re looking for the best light for the job, you’re looking for LEDs. They have zero warm-up time, which is essential during emergencies, and their long lifespan will ensure that they last as long as you need them, which is important if you plan on leaving them on continuously.

Types of LED Exit Signs

• Edge-Lit Exit Signs – This type of sign is slim in profile and lit by the edge rather than inside the frame of the sign.
• Single Face Exit Signs – These signs display the; Exit lettering on one side of the sign and are placed directly above doorways
• Double Face Exit Signs – These signs display the Exit lettering on both sides of the sign and are placed in a perpendicular fashion above doorways.
• Wet-Rated Exit Signs – These signs are used in buildings that have indoor fire sprinklers and are protected against water damage.
• Exit/Emergency Light Combo – These signs have emergency lights attached to the exit sign. These battery-powered lights will activate in the event of a power failure.

Exit Signs: The Red Tape

Unsurprisingly, as they are primarily safety fixtures, there are several different exit sign regulations that businesses and other facilities are required to follow. And, because they are considered a safety mechanism in so many different situations, several organizations developed these regulations, including the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), in addition to building and fire codes (both local and international).

These organizations include the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), International Building Code, and International Fire Code.

In addition to following the regulations of these organizations, facility managers must also be aware of any local, whether it be state or county, exit lighting requirements. For example, some larger metropolitan areas have their requirements for emergency lighting and exit signs. If you are curious about the regulations in your community, contact your fire marshal or inspector’s office.

OSHA Exit Regulations

The primary committee that regulates exit signs is OSHA. You can find their requirements for lighting and marking exit routes, under 1910.37(b). But, we’ll summarize them for you here as well. These regulations require that all exit routes must be adequately light so that an employee with average vision can clearly see the exit and the exit route. In addition to this, OSHA requires that each exit be marked with a lit “exit” sign.

The general requirements for exits are set out by OSHA and the NFPA in 29 CFR 1910.35, which states that an exit is defined as an unobstructed path for exiting any place in a building to a public way. That egress is defined in three parts.

The Exit Route

An exit route is defined by OSHA under the 29 CFR (Code of Federal Regulation) 1910.34(c) as

“a continuous and unobstructed path of exit travel from any point within a workplace to a place of safety (including refuge areas).”

These regulations concern the whole route that people may take (not just near exit signs), so it is important for building managers to understand.

• Exit access− This is the part of an exit route that leads directly to the exit. An example of this would be a fourth-floor office corridor leading to an enclosed stairway (the exit) that is rated with two-hour fire resistance.
• Exit− The exit is usually a separate area that allows easy, protected travel to the exit discharge. A good example of an exit is the enclosed stairway from the above example.
• Exit Discharge− Finally, the exit discharge leads from the building to a street, refuge, public way, or other open space where people have full access to the outdoors. An exit discharge in our office corridor example is the door at the bottom of the enclosed stairway which opens directly to the street, allowing people to exit the building and immediately retreat to a safe distance.

The following regulations go even further into the specifics of exit signs and routes:

• 1910.37(b)(3): Each exit route door must be free of decorations or signs that obscure the visibility of the exit route door.
• 1910.37(b)(4): If the direction of travel to the exit or exit discharge is not immediately apparent, signs must be posted along the exit access indicating the direction of travel to the nearest exit and exit discharge. Additionally, the line-of-sight to an exit sign must clearly be visible at all times.
• 1910.37(b)(5): Each doorway or passage along an exit access that could be mistaken for an exit must be marked “Not an Exit” or similar designation, or be identified by a sign indicating its actual use (e.g., closet).
• 1910.37(b)(6): Each exit sign must be illuminated to a surface value of at least five-foot candles (54 lux) by a reliable light source and be distinctive in color. Self-luminous or electroluminescent signs that have a minimum luminance surface value of at least .06-foot-lamberts are permitted.
• 1910.37(b)(7): Each exit sign must have the word “Exit” in plainly legible letters not less than six inches (15.2 centimeters (cm)) high, with the principal strokes of the letters in the word “Exit” not less than 3/4- inch (1.9 cm) wide.

National Fire Protection Association Exit Sign Requirements

Another thing you should be familiar with is the NFPA’s Life Safety Code. The Life Safety Code is the most widely used source for strategies to protect people based on building construction, protection, and occupancy features that minimize the effects of fire and related hazards. And, in the Life Safety Code, you’ll find several sections that reference acceptable illumination of exit signs.

Under section 7.10.1.2, exit signs need to be illuminated by a reliable light source (one that isn’t prone to malfunction), and must be easy to read during normal and emergencies. This is further specified with external and internal illumination types.

External illumination is sourced from outside of the exit sign, while internal illumination comes from a light source within the sign. Externally illuminated signs require at least 5 foot-candles (54 lux) as measured on the illuminated surface, and a contrast ratio of more than five tenths.

In addition to this, internally lit signs must be in accordance with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/Underwriters Laboratory (UL) 924, Standard for Emergency Lighting and Power Equipment. However, the Life Safety Code does allow for three exceptions to these rules, under certain approved existing exit signs.

Lighting Safety Code Exceptions

• They have approved existing signs.
• Existing signs include the required wording in legible letters more than 4 inches (100 millimeters) high.
• They are signs that are by Exit Door Tactile Signage (7.10.1.3) and Floor Proximity Exit Signs (7.10.1.6).

As a part of the Life Safety Code, restrictions for emergency lighting (7.9) state that emergency illumination must be provided for at least 1.5 hours in the case that normal lighting fails. This lighting must provide at least one foot-candle (10.8 lux) of illumination, and at least 0.1 foot-candle (1.1 lux) along the floor-level path of egress.

Once the 1.5 hours of emergency illumination is up, lighting can decrease to 0.6 foot-candle (6.5 lux) and 0.06 foot-candle (0.65 lux).

At any time, maximum illumination should never be higher than 40X the stated minimum illumination, so that areas of extreme brightness and shadow are not created (7.9.2.1.3). Emergency lighting systems should also activate without delay in the event of any lighting interruption (7.9.2.3).

Exit Signage Requirements

Exit signs should feature an arrow signifying the best direction of travel, especially in areas where the direction toward the nearest exit is not clear.

Also, any signs marking an exit should have the word “Exit” in legible letters no smaller than six inches high. The main stroke of the letter should be 3/4 inches wide. If the path to the nearest exit isn’t obvious, an exit sign that includes an arrow directing the reader to the nearest exit will be required. In some places, like New York and Chicago, the letter must be at least 8 inches. So, as we mentioned before, it’s always best to check your local codes as well.

LED Exit Signs

Emergency lighting is signage is something that many people take for granted every day. But, a lot is required of them. In order to ensure a safe evacuation during an emergency, as well as facilitate daily operations, exit signs are absolutely necessary. They should adequately light the exit route and be installed somewhere that makes sense, i.e. don’t install an exit sign with an arrow pointing to the right, above the exit door.

LED lights are ideal for exit signs for a variety of reasons (mentioned above) but primarily because of their non-existent warm-up time and long lifespan. These characteristics ensure that when you need an exit sign, it’s on and it’s on immediately. Because if it’s an emergency, you really don’t have time to waste. With this in mind, it’s to see why LEDs are the preferred choice for emergency sign lighting.