Are you sure your business signage is ADA compliant? Read on to study the ADA signage requirements.
Over 2.5 million Americans suffer from visual impairment alone. To support people with disabilities, the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) has established certain requirements so that seniors, and other disabled individuals, are able to access important amenities.
If your office building is open to the public but you fail to meet the signage requirements, you’re discriminating against disabled people. As a consequence, you may even have to face legal action and fines.
To make your business signs ADA compliant, scrutinize your business and find out whether you are meeting the ADA signage requirements. Here are some common ADA sign requirements:
Raised Letter and Braille Requirements
Raised letters and braille help visually impaired individuals interpret signs. All raised letters should be uppercase and in sans-serif font.
The size of the letters shouldn’t be smaller than 5/8” or larger than 2 inches. Also, the letters must be placed next to rounded braille text. Braille cannot be in square shaped.
However, these requirements only apply to signs that can be reached by the public on the ground. Overhead signs do not need to fulfill these requirements.
Height Requirements
Any raised characters and braille must be placed on the side of the door where the latch is positioned. The sign characters should be at least 48 inches above the ground but not be higher than 60 inches off the floor.
In case of outwards swinging doors, the signs must be placed next to them. For inward swinging doors, you can place the signage on the door but the door must have an automatic door closing function.
An overhead sign should be no less than 80 inches above the ground.
Contrast Requirements
The contrast and design of the sign characters should make them easy to read. To ensure that reflected light doesn’t interfere with the visibility of the signage, the characters and background must possess a non-glare surface.
Moreover, the characters and the background of the signage must have high contrast for best visibility. This means the signs should have dark letters and light background or vice versa. All in all, the shade of the letters and background should not match.
For signs, you can go with any color as long as there is high contrast.
In short, following signage requirements not only helps you remain ADA compliant but also increases the clientele of your business. When your business facility is accessible to everyone, more people will consider buying from you and you’ll have a good reputation.
If you’re struggling to meet the ADA signage requirements, experts at Amazing Signs can help you out.
To learn more about ADA compliance or to design ADA compliant signs, dial (813) 779 7446.
