Did you know that you are required by law to have and test regularly exit signs and emergency lighting systems? Avoid severe legal responsibilities and fines by having, maintaining and testing enough exit signs and emergency lighting systems in your building: do not invite trouble, especially with such serious matters.

Exit signs in public buildings show the way out, and are mandated by the existing fire regulations to tell people where they must go to get out of their workplaces in the event of an emergency. Most exit signs around the world use the pictogram variety, with or without the text supplement.

The vast majority of these exit signs are lit with incandescent lamps. With scientific progression, feasible alternatives are now available to give exit sign users more efficient lighting options. The LED unit that requires the least amount of power uses 96 percent less energy than a 40-watt incandescent-lighted system. All LEDs outlast the rated life of incandescent or compact fluorescent-lighted exit lamps.

The most important thing about modern exit signs is that they all include a graphic symbol. Signs are required to bear a picture or symbol that clearly illustrates the sign under the United Kingdom Health and Safety Regulations 1996. Signs that do not include this symbol and simply have words on them are now no longer legal, and need to be updated.

Although modern exit signs are not required to have any words, we suggest you use suitable wording to help people understand what the sign means. The European Standard sign is preferred and more readily available, but you can also use the British Standard sign. It is now a requirement in many countries that all new commercial buildings include well-marked emergency exits.

To start with, place a sign over every 'final exit' door, such as the main entrance or a fire exit door. Also, place signs over every exit door in each main room in the building.

Other signs might be necessary to tell people that they need to change direction or move along a corridor. In listed and other similar buildings, it might not be possible to fit exit signs because they will affect the historic features of the building. It might be acceptable to use temporary signs for special events in these cases.

Signs may be propped over doors or fixed using small fixings that cannot be seen normally (such as small nails). In today’s world one of the hottest issues is how to move people in an urgent situation quickly and in safety to a secure refuge. Office buildings often have floor plans on display showing exit paths in red and regular hallways in black. Signs must not be too high and need to be plainly seen in the room.

Equipment, work centres, conveyors, shelves, storerooms, parts, raw materials, overhead transport systems, furnishings, computer and process control equipment are all crammed into the intricate setting of the modern workplace. Workers are usually taught to evacuate the building by means of the nearest exit. However, escaping occupants can become disoriented or even panicked during a fire and smoke or power failure emergency. LED exit signs are a value-added complement to standard safety measures that not only decreases uncertainty and fright, but also helps save lives by lighting up the path of egress.

Another non-electrical option for exit signs, tritium, is being installed in greater numbers in public and private buildings, because it does not require electric wiring. A self-luminous sign stays lit continuously, though you won’t notice any illumination during daytime hours or in brightly lit rooms. These signs will maintain their illumination for up to twenty years.