How to Develop Building Evacuation Maps
In order to protect the lives of individuals who use private and public buildings, property owners and businesspeople must develop building evacuation maps. Employees and members of the public use these maps in order to get out of a building quickly in the event of an emergency, such as fire or a security threat. These maps need to be designed in a way that makes them easy to understand and which demonstrates an understanding of state and federal building code regulations.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
-
1
Obtain blueprints or floor diagrams from the architect or firm that designed the building. Some floor plans may be filed with the jurisdiction's court clerk as part of property documentation, so contact your local courthouse if the architect can't find the plans.
-
2
Use the blueprints to identify all possible exits in the building.
-
-
3
Review the exit requirements set by the United States Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). These regulations dictate standards for exit pathway height, width, door access and hinges.
-
4
Assess the exits on the blueprints or plans according to the OSHA standards. Cross off any exits that do not meet OSHA compliance. The remaining exits can be included in the evacuation map.
-
5
Analyze the location of offices and rooms compared to the exits. Assign rooms to each exit based on the quickest escape route. For example, rooms on the west should use west exits, not east exits.
-
6
Figure out a key for your map. The easiest and most common key to show evacuation routes is to use a dashed line for exit routes with an arrow showing the direction people should travel. Exits usually are shown by a lapse in the solid lines designating walls, but you may include a small exit icon to make the exits even more clear. It also is beneficial to include icons that show the location of first aid kits and fire extinguishers.
-
7
Use a graphic software program to create a floor plan diagram based on the original floor plan that shows your exit routes and emergency icons. On this diagram, type a simple explanation of all symbols and icons used. Label the diagram clearly as an evacuation map.
-
8
Meet with building administrators to have the map reviewed. Make changes as needed and print copies of the map once it is approved by the administrators.
-
9
Place copies of the map in building emergency plan folders for your company, as well as on every doorway for the building (including bathrooms). Alternately, make larger versions of the map to display prominently on the building walls. All three methods (folders, doors, and wall displays) may be used in combination, particularly in buildings with complicated floor plans.
-
1
References
Resources
- Photo Credit fire escape image by charles taylor from Fotolia.com
