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The ADA, or Americans with Disabilities Act, set standards for signage in different industries. You may feel overwhelmed with all these standards and regulations, especially when it comes to designing ADA compliant signs for your office. You want to be compliant, but it’s hard, because there appear to be so many different and complex rules for designing this kind of signage. Well, never fear, because this blog post is all about how to design and install office signs that are ADA compliant. Let’s take a closer look.
Regulation #1: Raised Letters and Braille
When you have a sign indicating a room where a particular person or location can be found—think about a break room or a specific doctor’s office, for example—for the sign to be ADA compliant, it must be a tactile sign with Braille. A tactile sign has raised letters so that people with vision impairments can physically read the sign. Braille achieves the same purpose as a language for the blind. And believe it or not, tactile signs also help people with dyslexia, since the raised letters stand out more and are easier to decipher.
Regulation #2: Fonts
The type of font you use for your ADA compliant office sign is also very important. You should choose a sans-serif font with good spacing between letters, so that everyone can easily read it. This will help people with dyslexia, as well as individuals with vision impairments. Avoid script fonts or fonts with italics or funny lettering—don’t try to be clever with this sort of thing. It’s better to be legible and on the simpler side.
Regulation #3: Contrast
A great way to be ADA compliant with your office signs is through the use of contrast. Having high dark-to-light contrast enables people with low vision to clearly read your sign. Choose white lettering against a dark blue or black background for best results. Again, this will also aid people with dyslexia.
Regulation #4: Glare
ADA compliant signs should not have glare, or shine, on them. All backgrounds and lettering should be matte, or shine-free. This helps people with either vision impairments or dyslexia to be able to read your sign.
Get Your ADA Compliant Office Signs
Now that you know a little more about ADA compliance for your office signs, go ahead and give Black Dog Sign Company a quick call. We are you ADA signage source. Contact us today for a free quote.
