Think of the last time you were driving a vehicle in a busy underground parking lot: the directional arrow paintings on the tarmac; the lit exit signs above head leading to the way out or next level of parking; the one-way messages or the emergency exit door signs.
It is a common discussion amongst many of our colleagues when they mention their weekend visit to the new shopping centre or mall that has just opened in town. Parking arrangements in such locations normally come up and, in many cases, signage and the ease of access and egress can significantly define a visitors' experience.
Signage, whether related to health and safety or not, can ensure individuals unfamiliar to an area can immediately gain a better sense of their surroundings, a familiarity which can ultimately play a significant role in their overall health and wellbeing. Signs can be used for a variety of purposes, but in essence, they are there to communicate a message, whatever that message may be.
When it comes to the safety of individuals, effective safety or emergency warning signs can be utilised to influence people's behaviours in a certain way.
In a workplace, safety signs can help lessen the likelihood of accidents. Particularly in a work environment where people from all walks of life converge. Besides that, having safety signs complies with various health and safety regulations worldwide. They are meant to protect employees, contractors, or visitors in crucial locations within the business.
Health and safety signs for example, can provide different approaches to how hazards are communicated.
These can be Persuasive in nature, warning individuals of the risk of coming into contact with a particular hazard such as warning that a high electrical voltage can present a significant risk of electrocution.
They may also have a more Informative approach where employees are informed of times operations may need to be halted as a result of a change in weather conditions or as a result of other simultaneous activities in the area.
Directional signs in many countries are legal requirements specifically when it comes to highlighting the location of emergency exits or muster points. Such signs are utilised to create a more familiar environment for individuals within a work location and ensure they are steered away from hazardous areas and are aware of where to go in the event of an emergency.
Similarly, Warning signs, also a legal requirement in most countries worldwide, ensure that the public are informed and warned about potential hazards. Various international regulations have set out standards about when and where warnings are necessary. They may often be required to display certain colours or be reflective in nature to increase their visibility. Traffic warning signs can be the best examples of such signs.
Use of Color in Safety Signage
Numerous country regulations recommend standard use of colors when it comes to health and safety signs. Individuals would need to review such regulations before designing warning type signs for their respective businesses. Before we delve into the colors, we must first understand coding in relation to the warning language that marks hazards in a given workplace:
- Danger: Red and predominantly red colours are mostly used to warn of danger. These colours are used to advertise and warn of a potential hazard. Danger symbols and letterings apply contrasting colours against a background. This will give the signage a bold maximum visibility that can be noticed from a distance.
- Warning: This signage and its respective colours are meant to highlight a potential risk. It is not as immediate as the danger sign, but it still communicates a significant hazard. This sign mostly uses predominantly orange or orange with a contrasting background to make it visible from afar.
- Caution: These types of signs announce a potential risk that might cause harm either to an object or a person. Depending on the country, these signs will mostly use predominantly yellow to just yellow with other contrasting colours to clearly communicate from a distance.
- Biological Hazard: These safety signs have their own unique categories. This is because of the unique risk they are publicising. Most biohazards will use varying unique colours. However, some will make use of the common fluorescent orange or orange-red.
Many colours can be commonly found in different types of safety and emergency signs. For example, Red is perfect for fire hazards. If there is a fire break out in a given area, using red colours on safety signage is the best way to communicate such hazards. Red can is also commonly used for danger and stop signs. Green on the other hand is the colour of safety and is mostly used for safety instruction signs, first aid kits and emergency exits.
Effective signage is not just about compliance; it is about genuinely guiding people safely through unfamiliar spaces and influencing behaviour before harm occurs.