Sign Maker Central

time 1:53

ADA , accessibility , signage">signage .

Try ADA, Design & Construction for related news, articles, blogs, events and online resources.

I?m Dan Hounsell, editor of Maintenance Solutions magazine. Today's topic is, accessibility and signage">signage.

Facility signage">signage can accomplish more than maintenance and engineering managers might expect. In addition to successfully guiding visitors and occupants through a building and alerting them to potential hazards, signs also can improve the accessibility of facilities for all visitors — especially those with disabilities — and help managers ensure their organizations comply with accessibility guidelines.

For example, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) mandates certain characteristics of signs designating permanent rooms or spaces and signs that provide directions or information. Consider these three characteristics:

• First, copy height. Signs identifying permanent rooms must have raised, uppercase copy at least 5/8-inch high but no higher than 2 inches. Grade 2 Braille must accompany the copy. Overhead signs must have copy that is at least 3 inches high. The speed of passing vehicles will dictate the size of copy on exterior traffic signs. When designing exterior pedestrian wayfinding signs, managers should avoid using copy smaller than 4 inches high. Copy in this range can cause drivers to slow down to read signs that might not pertain to them, causing delays.

• Next, contrast. The contrast between the background of the sign and the copy color must be 70 percent dark to light, or light to dark. Some managers do not like the contrast that stark, but that level of contrast improves legibility, especially for people with visual impairments.

• Finally, mounting position. Signs identifying rooms must be mounted on the knob side of the door at a height of 60 inches to the center of the sign. Overhead signs must have an 80-inch clearance.

View the original article here

time 2:40

maintenance management , ADA .

Try ADA, Maintenance & Operations for related news, articles, blogs, events and online resources.

I’m Dan Hounsell, editor of Maintenance Solutions magazine. Today’s topic is, facilities accessibility and ADA.
Nearly 20 years ago, Congress enacted the Americans with Disabilities Act. Among its goals is to improve accessibility to institutional and commercial facilities for people with disabilities.
A string of recent high-profile actions demonstrate that, while many facilities have made changes, many other have a ways to go.
In March, the U.S. Justice Department reached a settlement with the University of Michigan regarding the lack of accessible seating in the university’s football stadium. Under the settlement, the university will add at least 248 permanent wheelchair seats and 248 companion seats during the next two years. By the 2010 season, the university agreed to add at least 329 pairs of wheelchair and companion seats throughout the stadium.
Last November, the department reached an agreement with the owners and operators of Madison Square Garden to improve that facility’s accessibility. They agreed to provide expanded seating accessible by fans using wheelchairs.
By this October, the Garden will have 48 more wheelchair and companion seats and another 40 accessible aisle seats throughout the arena. Also, they will remove hundreds of architectural barriers along the routes between the entrances and the newly accessible seats.
Finally, three major New York City hotels — the Courtyard by Marriott Times Square, the Doubletree Guest Suites Times Square, and the Hilton New York Towers — have agreed to improve accessibility for customers.
All three hotels agreed to survey designated accessible rooms and make necessary modifications to comply with the ADA standards. They also agreed more accessible guest rooms among classes of sleeping accommodations and implement a written policy to provide service to persons with disabilities covering reservations of accessible guest rooms, service animals, and modifications in policies and procedures.
For more information, visit the Access Board Web site, www.access-board.gov, or the Department of Justices ADA site, www.ada.gov.

View the original article here

time 1:58

ADA , accessibility .

Try ADA for related news, articles, blogs, events and online resources.

I'm Dan Hounsell, editor of Maintenance Solutions magazine. Today?s topic is accessibility surveys.

How can facility managers avoid litigation under the Americans with Disabilities Act? Truthfully, nothing can guarantee an organization will not be sued under the ADA. But doing nothing certainly increases the odds it will occur. If the organization has not performed a comprehensive ADA evaluation of its facilities, now is the time to do it. The survey process should include these components:

An on-site evaluation and report based on enforceable ADA standards. The evaluation should cover the exterior of the property, including path of travel from the street, public transportation, parking, and sidewalks. The interior review should include all areas to which visitors, customers or vendors need access.
Recommendations for removing barriers. Not all barrier removal requires demolition and reconstruction. Look for answers that address policies and procedures, as well as creative approaches to barrier removal.
Use the recommendations as the basis for an ADA compliance plan. Add critical information, such as resources needed to make the modifications, projected dates for completion, and remedial steps facilities can take on the way to full accessibility.
Ensure design professionals are engaged for the remedial steps, if they are familiar with and understand the requirements of enforceable ADA standards. Make that participation a provision in the standard contract language.
Hire an ADA consultant to review design documents before completion and handover to the construction team. This step can ensure full compliance with ADA standards.
Document changes with photos and measurements.
Finally, consider bringing the consultant back to evaluate renovations or new-construction projects during punch-list time. Gaps often form between what might have been designed as compliant and the end result. This contract-warranty review provides critical information managers can use to identify the person responsible for remedying the errors or omissions.

View the original article here

time 2:32

signage , ADA , restrooms .

Try ADA for related news, articles, blogs, events and online resources.

I’m Dan Hounsell, editor of Maintenance Solutions magazine. Today’s topic is, restroom accessibility.

Numerous areas of institutional and commercial buildings continue to present barriers to accessibility, and restrooms often are high on this list. Facility managers have a series of tested and proven strategies at their disposal to successfully renovate and remodel restrooms to address trouble spots in restrooms and ensure compliance with Americans with Disabilities access guidelines.

One common trouble spot related to restrooms involves signage. Even before building occupants and visitors get to the restroom, codes require directional signage indicate the shortest route. Directional signage provides assistance and information about the location of restrooms for all individuals, but they are especially important for persons with disabilities. In comparison to permanent signage, directional signage does not need Braille and raised lettering. But it must be located at the proper height for viewing.

One common and easy-to-fix compliance item is accessible latch-side signage at a restroom’s entrance. Workers should center latch-side signage at 60 inches on center above the finished floor. All plans should specify that compliant, permanent, latch-side signage contains raised letters and characters, Braille, and the international symbol of accessibility.

While federal requirements specify only latch-side signage, some state codes require additional signage. For example, California requires that doors to restrooms also feature gender symbols — a triangle-shaped sign for men, a circle for women, and a circle on a triangle for unisex restrooms.

One size does not fit all when it comes to restroom accessibility requirements. Remodeling or renovating restrooms to meet accessibility standards and requirements requires research, attention to detail and the selection of products that best meet individual situations.

View the original article here

time 2:02

accessibility , ADA .

Try ADA for related news, articles, blogs, events and online resources.

I’m Dan Hounsell, editor of Maintenance Solutions magazine. Today’s topic is accessibility.
Restrooms generally receive the lion’s share of organizations’ attention ensuring the accessibility of facilities for visitors and occupants. But before these people reach a building’s restrooms, they often face a host of challenges related to other facility components, including entrance doors, ramps, water fountains, handrails, wheelchair lifts, and elevators.
But in addition to these higher-profile components, facility managers must consider a host of other items and elements that can affect the use of a facility by individuals with disabilities.
Take alarms as an example. Audible alarms are only effective for people who can hear. Where audible alarms exist, the Americans with Disabilities Act also requires the installation of visual strobe alarms. Managers should take a serious look at their facilities to ensure visual strobe alarms accompany audible alarms.
Other items of importance include water fountains and coolers, pay phones, cash machines, and vending machines. When negotiating for the lease, purchase or placement of these items, managers need to make sure the items themselves meet ADA requirements.
The mere presence of the international symbol of accessibility on a product does not signify the item indeed meets ADA requirements. There is no Underwriters Laboratory for ADA.
Instead, managers must ask questions, make sure the vendor answers them satisfactorily, and be sure the new water fountain or cooler complies. Then make sure it is installed in an accessible location. Nothing is worse than a compliant water fountain located at the top of a flight of steps.
Managers must be vigilant about the accessibility and safety of their facilities. Using the ADA requirements as a template is an excellent way to ensure a facility is safe and user-friendly for people with disabilities, seniors, parents pushing baby strollers, and even aging baby boomers — basically, everyone who visits a building each day.

View the original article here