Safety Signs Blog

When it comes to choosing the right sign for you, size matters!

18th October 2010 | Health and Safety Signs

Every health and safety sign sold by safetysignsupplies.co.uk is price matched to ensure we give our customers the best possible value. However, the most common reason for product returns is when the buyer selects the wrong size.

This can come about for a number of reasons:

Not understanding millimetres
Failing to measure the size of the door or wall the sign is to be affixed to
Simply not believing the size of the sign really matters.

Often buyers make the mistake of selecting the smallest and cheapest sign of its type. After all, no one orders a safety sign to improve the appearance of their building. They order signs to comply with legislation, safe-guard their building and its occupants or to improve the way the business operates.

In some cases selecting the smallest sign is entirely the right decision to make. After all, how big do you really need the Caution Very Hot Water sign?

Caution very hot water sign

The water only poses a danger when you turn the tap on. So, if you are anything more than an arms length away form the tap, not being able to quite make out what the sign says is entirely inconsequential.

However, ordering the smallest No Parking sign or fire exit sign is not quite so inconsequential.

In the No parking sign example, if you have pulled into what seems like a car park and the wall is over 10 metres away, to have this sign as a 150x200mm (A5) size is not particularly helpful. So when someone does indeed park where they are not supposed to, whose fault is it?

Of course the danger of them parking there may not be great. It may just be inconvenient for the business itself, particularly if it has limited staff parking already or is expected to take numerous deliveries throughout the day. However, what about the second example of smaller fire exit signs.

From the moment where the first fire exit is seen, a fire exit sign must be positioned at every point along the escape route. According to the BSi, a 300x100mm fire exit sign can only be seen from around 6.6 metres away in average-to-poor light. If this sign is positioned at the end of corridor it may be too far away to assist a panicked evacuee.

At Viking Signs we implore all buyers to think about size. When selecting your safety signs, always remember how far away you realistically expect someone to take note of its message. If it is an ‘ear protection zone’ or ‘forklift operating area’, this sign should be large enough to ensure staff and visitors are given adequate warning before entering that area.

To assist you make the right choice, the following gives you a rough guide when choosing the right size of health and safety sign: