We are launching a new series of articles to assist our fellow installers with various types of sign installations, including specialized signs such as interior signs, 3D letters, wayfinding signs, braille signs, and address signs. Today, our focus is on wayfinding signs.
Wayfinding Signs
A wayfinding sign is a type of signage designed to guide people through a physical environment, helping them navigate from one location to another with ease. These signs are crucial in large, complex spaces such as hospitals, airports, malls, universities, and corporate campuses. The primary purpose of wayfinding signs is to provide clear, concise, and easily understandable information to aid navigation.
For instance, wayfinding signs play a crucial role in hospitals for several reasons:
- Enhanced Patient Experience: Reducing stress and anxiety, as hospitals can be intimidating and confusing places. Clear wayfinding signs help patients and visitors navigate the facility with ease, reducing stress and anxiety. When patients and visitors can find their way easily, their overall satisfaction with the hospital experience increases.
- Increased Operational Efficiency: Reducing the need for staff to give directions, allowing them to focus on their primary duties. Ensuring that patients reach their destinations on time, reducing delays in appointments and procedures.
- Emergency Preparedness: Clearly indicating emergency exits, evacuation routes, and locations of emergency equipment, which is vital for patient and staff safety. Proper signs ensure compliance with standards such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
- Improved Accessibility: Using universal symbols that make hospitals more accessible to all individuals, including those with visual or cognitive impairments, ensures that all patients, regardless of their physical or cognitive abilities, can navigate the hospital independently.
- Improved Visitor Guidance: Helping them find their way to specific wards, patient rooms, or amenities like cafeterias and restrooms. Effective wayfinding signs make this process straightforward, hence improving visitors’ overall impression of the facility.
- Professional and Organized Appearance: Contributing to a professional and organized appearance, enhancing the hospital’s reputation and brand identity.
- Support for Diverse Communities: Including multiple languages to cater to non-English-speaking patients and visitors. Additionally, signage can be designed to respect cultural differences, making the hospital more welcoming to all patients.
Effective wayfinding signs possess several key features that ensure they serve their purpose efficiently. Clarity is paramount; information must be easily readable and understandable at a glance to facilitate quick decision-making. Consistency in design, including the use of uniform colors, fonts, and symbols, helps users recognize and follow the signs more intuitively. Visibility is also critical, with signs placed in prominent locations and at appropriate heights to ensure they can be seen from a distance. Simplicity is essential to avoid overwhelming users with too much information; signs should convey only the necessary details. Lastly, universal design principles should be incorporated, including the use of symbols and multiple languages when needed, to cater to a diverse audience and ensure accessibility for all individuals, including those with visual or cognitive impairments. This is why we collaborate closely with graphic designers to guarantee the efficiency of wayfinding signs following their installation.
Alright, now let’s get back to our main topic: the types of wayfinding signs and how they are installed.
Types of Wayfinding Signs
- Directional Signs: These essential tools guide people through complex environments by offering clear directions to various destinations. Featuring arrows and concise text, these signs help users find their way to key locations such as exits, restrooms, departments, or specific rooms. Effective directional signs simplify navigation and enhance the overall user experience by making it straightforward and stress-free.
- Identification Signs: These signs are crucial for helping people easily recognize and locate specific rooms, areas, or facilities within a building. They typically include clear text, numbers, and sometimes symbols to indicate the purpose of each space. By clearly marking different areas, identification signs contribute to the overall organization of the facility, making it easier for visitors, employees, and patients to find their way around without confusion.
- Informational Signs: These signs provide important details that help people understand their surroundings and make informed decisions as they navigate through a space. Often featuring maps, directories, schedules, and general information about the facility, effective informational signs ensure that users feel informed and confident as they move through complex environments.
- Regulatory Signs: These signs are key for communicating rules, guidelines, and safety information to ensure the well-being of everyone in the facility. They include mandatory instructions, prohibitions, and warnings that must be followed to maintain a safe and orderly environment. By clearly displaying these regulations, effective regulatory signs help prevent accidents, promote safety, and ensure compliance with local laws and standards.
Installation of Wayfinding Signs
When installing wayfinding signs, we use a range of specialized tools to ensure a smooth and effective installation process. We start with the actual signs to be installed, which can be directional, informational, identification, or regulatory. A measuring tape is used to measure distances and heights, ensuring the accurate placement of the signs, such as a 25-foot retractable tape measure. A level is essential for ensuring that the signs are installed straight and aligned properly, with options like a laser level for precision.
To mark the locations on the wall or surface where the signs will be installed, we use a marker, such as a pencil for light markings or a chalk marker for more visible marks. Mounting hardware includes various items to attach the sign to the wall or other surfaces, such as anchors for securing signs to sturdy surfaces, double-sided tape for easy, non-permanent mounting on smooth surfaces, adhesive for permanent attachment, stud mounts for heavier signs, and hanging brackets for signs that will be suspended.
A drill is used to create holes in the wall or surface for screws and anchors, with a cordless drill and a set of drill bits being typical tools for this task. A screwdriver is then used to drive screws into the wall or mounting brackets. Wall anchors, which can be plastic or metal inserts, provide a secure hold for screws in drywall or other soft surfaces.
If necessary, an adhesive remover helps clean off old adhesive residue or marks from the surface. Cleaning supplies, such as cloths, cleaner, and paper towels, are used to prepare the surface for installation. Safety gear, such as safety glasses, is essential for personal protection to ensure a safe installation process.
Lastly, an installation template, usually provided with the wayfinding sign, assists with the alignment and placement of the signs.
Installation Steps
Our installers identify installation locations with assigned personnel and plan the placement of the signs at key decision points where directions are identified.
Surface preparation is crucial to ensure proper adhesion and longevity of the wayfinding signs. The surface should be clean, dry, and free from dust, dirt, grease, or other contaminants. Our installers clean the wall or window using mild soap or detergent, ensuring it is thoroughly dried afterward. For painted surfaces, it’s important to ensure the paint is fully cured and not peeling or flaking. For ground-mounted signs, we dig holes deep enough to ensure stability and secure the posts with concrete. Proper surface preparation significantly enhances the durability and effectiveness of wayfinding signs.
Using a measuring tape, we carefully measure and mark the positions for the wayfinding signs. We determine the exact height and placement on the wall or structure where each sign will be mounted. Our installers hold the measuring tape firmly, stretch it across the surface to the desired location, and make a small mark with a pencil or chalk. To ensure the marks are level, they use a laser level, adjusting as necessary to maintain accuracy. They double-check all measurements and adjustments to ensure the signs are aligned and evenly spaced, enhancing both the aesthetic and functional aspects of the wayfinding system.
Our wayfinding signs mounting procedure includes drilling holes at the marked spots, inserting anchors if necessary, and screwing the sign in place. Our installers apply adhesive evenly on the back of the sign and press it firmly onto the surface or, in the case of using double-sided tape, apply it to the back of the sign and press it firmly to the wall.
Finally, we clean up any excess adhesive or marks.
Summary
The effectiveness of a wayfinding system depends on its ability to communicate information clearly and efficiently to various users, including visitors, staff, and individuals with disabilities. To achieve this, it is crucial to follow a systematic approach during the planning and installation of your wayfinding signs. Ensuring that the signs are strategically placed at key decision points and are easily visible can greatly enhance user experience. For graphics designers, consider the use of universally recognized symbols and braille to accommodate individuals with disabilities. Proper lighting and contrast are also essential to make the signs readable in different conditions.
By keeping these steps in mind and focusing on clarity, accessibility, and strategic placement, you, with our help, can create a wayfinding system that is both effective and inclusive. If you need more information or assistance with your wayfinding project, feel free to reach out!
