Reference: California Code of Regulations, Title 19, Section 3.09, California Health and Safety Code Section 13220, the 2007 San Francisco Fire Code, Sections 404.1, and 607.2, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Scope. The guidelines in this administrative bulletin shall apply to both new buildings and the replacement of signs in existing buildings where evacuation signs are required. The information provided herein details the San Francisco Fire Department’s minimum requirements for emergency evacuation signs. Any additional information provided will be reviewed on a case by case basis prior to approval. NOTE: Additional information may not be desirable as it can complicate the sign and add confusion.
Purpose. The purpose of developing comprehensive guidelines is to provide consistent methods to assist designers in attaining rapid approval from all agencies involved in the review. Additionally, consistent signage will better assist all building occupants and users to quickly assess evacuation information during an emergency. This guideline was developed in cooperation with the Mayor’s Office on Disability, and incorporates minimum standards for disabled access under Federal laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that are enforced by that office for publicly funded projects and buildings owned and leased by the City of San Francisco.
Approval Process. Prior to fabrication the layout of the sign must be approved by the San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) Plan Check Division. The approval process requires a building permit which shall be obtained at the Department of Building Inspection, located at 1660 Mission St. Evacuation signs for construction projects which have any amount of public funding, involve buildings owned or leased by the city, or projects being funded or enabled by the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, the Mayor’s Office of Community Investment, or the Mayor’s Office of Housing must also be reviewed by the Mayor’s Office on Disability (415-554-6789).
Where Required. Evacuation Signage and Emergency Procedure Information is required as follows:
A. Office buildings two or more stories in height (except high-rise buildings) shall have one of the following:
1. An approved emergency procedures information handout (pamphlet, brochure, or leaflet) available upon entering the building that provides the same information required for evacuation signage; or,
2. Evacuation signs (floor plans) as detailed in the submittal guidelines below. Signs shall be posted at the entrances to all required exit stairs, every elevator landing, and immediately inside all public entrances to the building.
B. Hotels, motels and lodging houses shall provide evacuation signage as stated in subsection A.2 above, and additionally:
1. Every guest room shall have emergency procedure information printed on a floor plan and posted on the interior of or immediately adjacent to the entry door to the room. This floor plan shall be posted with its bottom edge at approximately, but not more than four feet from the floor.
2. People who are blind or have low vision shall receive instructions of a type they can utilize such as audio taped instructions or large print format.
3. The management shall provide a place on the registration so that guests with disabilities may be identified who require special emergency evacuation assistance. A roster listing rooms assigned to these guests shall be kept at the registration desk.
C. High-rise office buildings – Evacuation signage as listed in section A.2 above is required, and additionally:
1. Owners/operators of high-rise buildings shall maintain a list of all permanent tenants who have special emergency evacuation needs. This list shall indicate the permanent work location of these individuals. The list shall be available in the building manager's office, or other location approved by the Department.
D. Apartment houses two stories or more in height that contain three or more dwelling units, and where the front door opens into an interior hallway or an interior lobby area:
1. The owner or operator shall provide specific emergency procedures to be followed in
the event of fire, including procedures for persons with mobility disabilities.
2. Evacuation signs as described in this bulletin shall be provided in every elevator lobby or at the landing, at an intermediate point of any hallway exceeding 100 feet in length, at all hallway intersections, and immediately inside all public entrances to the building.
Submittal Requirements. Two sets of conceptual full scale drawings shall be submitted with an application for a building permit. Changes or alterations to signs or tenant spaces will require submission of revised drawings. The following shall be included as part of the submittal package:
1. The name and phone number of the owner or manager of the property.
2. The address of the building including block and lot number.
3. The company name, address and phone number of the sign manufacturer.
4. A floor plan, for all floors where signs are to be installed, shall be provided showing the exact location of the sign installation including an elevation view showing the height of the sign above finished floor (bottom edge of sign shall be not more than 48” above the floor per Title 19).
5. A layout of the proposed sign, containing all of the features described in section 6 through 8 below.
6. All lettering on the sign shall have a minimum character height of 5/8 inch (except where larger font is specified) and shall be in upper case sans-serif or non-serif letters. All lettering shall be of a non-decorative type providing a sharp contrast to the background, and have a non-glare finish.
7. All symbols used shall be a minimum size of 1/2 inch in height or diameter.
8. The basic layout of the sign shall be as follows:
a) The title shall read "EMERGENCY EXIT PLAN" and shall have bold print of a minimum lettering size of 3/4 inch in height at the top of the sign.
b) The building address shall be located under the title on the left hand side of the sign.
c) The floor level shall be located under the title on the right side of the sign.
d) A symbol legend with descriptions shall be provided under the address. The symbols and colors used shall be as follows:
i. Fire Alarm Manual Pull Stations (Where Required)-Solid Red Square with White Capital Letter “F”.
ii. “You Are Here” location – Black 5-pt Star
iii. Exit Path – Green Arrow/Dashed Band showing direction of exit/exits.
iv. Fire Extinguisher – Approved pictogram of a red fire extinguisher.
v. Elevator (Where provided) – Black square with an “X” from corner to corner within the square.
vi. EXIT – Solid Green Rectangle with the word EXIT in white letters.
vii. AREAS OF REFUGE (Where required) – Federal blue square with a white International Symbol of Access.
e) A simple floor plan shall be displayed to the right of the symbol legend, showing all exit corridors, stairs, fire escapes, elevators, areas of refuge, with all of the symbols listed in item d) displayed by actual location. Stairs shall be represented by a series of a minimum of six parallel bright green lines, bisected by one green line.
f) Size - The minimum size of the floor plan shall be designed to provide all required information and maintain visual clarity. The floor plan need not be to scale, although building perimeters must be shown. A directional arrow pointing north shall be provided.
g) Instructional information listed here shall be grouped at the bottom of the sign, making it easier to read and understand, saving time in an emergency:
i. An approved pictogram of a person using the stairs, adjacent to the instruction, “IN FIRE EMERGENCY, DO NOT USE ELEVATOR, USE EXIT STAIRS”.
ii. An approved pictogram of a telephone adjacent to the instruction, “CALL 911 (OR 9-911 where applicable) FIRE/POLICE/MEDICAL”.
iii. The International Symbol of Access in “Federal Blue” with clear direction for people with disabilities, directing them to stairwells and areas of evacuation.
iv. A description of what the fire alarm (if required), sounds and looks like (audible and visual).
Additional Design Considerations. Designers of Evacuation signage shall be aware of the following items:
1. Exit paths for tenant spaces shall not pass through locked elevator lobbies.
2. Signs shall be installed with correct orientation as viewed from occupants’ perspective.
3. Subsequent requests to lock elevator lobby doors after evacuation sign approval and or installation will require evacuation signage to be verified for accuracy.
Final Approval. Prior to final approval of your building permit, a District Fire Inspector will inspect the installation, verifying that the signage is representative of the actual floor plan and consistent with the submittal. After the sign is installed, you may request an inspection at (415) 558-3300.
Sample of Evacuation Sign.
