We have done a fair amount of work for our customer Jones Lang Lasalle, and our latest job was to give one of their buildings an uplift by upgrading the way finder system w/ADA. Many companies sell ADA and way finder systems, but few do them correctly. Optimum Signs ensures that the system is compliant with current ADA requirements. This job was no different.
When I walked the many floors of the office building, I noticed that there were a few issues with the system that they had in place. First, the system had been maintained poorly prior to JLL purchasing the building. The signs in the system had been printed on a mix of vinyl and copy paper. Yes, I said copy paper. When the vinyl was placed under the lenses that protect the design, they must have still been wet because the design and by extension, the vinyl, stuck to the clear lens. The background design would have been perfect if it was 1982 and paisley were still a thing. Also, a number of the signs indicated handicap facilities on restrooms that weren’t. I also noticed that the evacuation map was a bit beyond confusing. The drawing wasn’t representative of the individual floors but was more of a generalization. Stairwells weren’t in the right place and neither was the location of the fire extinguishers. Overall, pretty important things that can’t be wrong.
We started off using a brushed aluminum backer to match the new floor level directories that we changed out just a few months ago. The look is very clean and because we can print directly to the material it looks like the printing is etched into the vinyl. We also used the approved symbols for the ADA signs and made sure that the braille matched what the sign indicated. The signs around the elevator were handled differently. On one sign we indicated that in the event of a fire, not to use the elevator. On the second one, we directed the constituants to the nearest stairwell. We even wiped down the acrylic lenses to make sure that they were clean and didn’t have any dust behind them. And yes, we did allow them to dry completely before putting the lenses on the signs.
If you happen to need a new or upgraded ADA/Way Finder system, please give us a call at 262.289.9481 or email at info@optimumsignswi.com. We would be happy to walk you through the many options and present you with a system that will meet all of your needs and comply with the various ADA regulations. Optimum Signs, we get you noticed.
