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OSHA's Exit Routes demonstration #2
Exit lighting Exit sign Pipes hanging from ceiling Doorway
Exit stairway
The picture above illustrates an exit route with several elements not in accordance with OSHA’s exit route standards. Move your mouse over the numbers on the image to learn which OSHA standards are not being followed and how you can begin to ensure that the exit routes in your work environment are safe and in compliance.

Text Version
[In the upper left hand corner, there is a hanging ceiling light with inadequate lighting that is marked with a number 1; to the right is an Exit sign in letters that are too small that is marked with a number 2; further along the wall are pipes hanging from the ceiling marked with a number 3; on the far right side is a door marked with a sign saying Production Area that is marked with a number 5. Access to the stairway on the opposite wall is blocked by a large receptacle with laundry. The stairway is marked with a number 4, and a janitor's cart is also blocking access to the stairway.]

When your mouse moves over each marked number, the relevant OSHA standard is displayed to the right of the image:

1. Exit Lighting. Each exit route must be  adequately lighted so that an employee with normal vision can see along the exit route [1910.37(b)(1)].

2. Exit Marking. Each exit sign must have the word "Exit" in plainly legible letters not less than six inches (15.2 cm) high, with the principal strokes of the letters in the word "Exit" not less than three-fourths of an inch (1.9 cm) wide [1910.37(b)(7)].

3. Adequate Headroom. The ceiling of an exit route must be at least seven feet six inches (2.3 m) high. Any projection from the ceiling must not reach a point less than six feet eight inches (2.0 m) from the floor [1910.36(g)(1)].

4. Access to Exits. Exit routes must be free and unobstructed. No materials or equipment may be placed, either permanently or temporarily, within the exit route. The exit access must not go through a room that can be locked, such as a bathroom, to reach an exit or exit discharge, nor may it lead into a dead-end corridor. Stairs or a ramp must be provided where the exit route is not substantially level [1910.37(a)(3)].
5. Access to Exits. The door that connects any room to an exit route must swing out in the direction of exit travel if the room is designed to be occupied by more than 50 people or if the room is a high hazard area (i.e., contains contents that are likely to burn with extreme rapidity or explode) [1910.36(e)(2)].
 
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