We’ve all seen “do not enter” signs somewhere, at some time, and never really given them much thought. The thing about it is those signs play an important role and have huge implications for those who go against them.
Businesses everywhere use prohibition signs to limit access, warn of potential danger, and legally protect the business from potential liabilities. The next time you see one of these signs, you’ll have a better idea of why they are so important.
What are Prohibition Signs?
It first helps to know what prohibition signs are in the first place and, no, they have nothing to do with alcohol (that time is long gone). These signs are meant to give directives, usually involving health, safety, and traffic patterns, that adhere to specific regulations, ordinances, and laws.
There are specific signs required in certain situations and settings in order to convey potential hazards in the area. For instance, a “do not enter” sign is pretty straightforward and means that you are not meant to travel into that area under any circumstances, with specific consequences and repercussions involved for doing so.
Prohibition Sign Categories
The great thing about prohibitions signs is that they can be used in nearly every situation and setting. You see them in hospitals, businesses of all varieties, the industrial sector, highways, parking lots, construction zones, and more.
Industrial or commercial business. Signs might indicate that there are hazardous chemicals nearby, restrict access to particular areas, warn against fire hazards, and more. Each business is required to follow regulatory guidelines when placing and displaying these signs.
Construction zones. Because traveling through a construction zone can be hazardous, you are probably going to see more than a few signs. Some of them include hazards of the construction, temporary speed limits, and changes to traffic patterns.
Roads, highways, and parking lots. For the safety of drivers, signs are used to indicate traffic rules. This includes rules about lane usage, speed limits, parking regulations and prohibitions, and more.
Using Prohibitive Signs
Now that we have a better idea of their use, how are these signs used and placed according to regulations? The goal is to communicate any restrictions or legal requirements to employees, visitors, guests, and road users in order to promote safety.
These signs are also designed in ways that make them very easy to recognize and understand, even in situations where you are passing them quickly (traffic signs) or with bad lighting. That said, signs have to be properly placed and maintained to ensure that they continue doing their job.
Prohibitive signs have to be placed in areas where there are legal ramifications and requirements. It must be easily visible and provide the necessary warning to those activities. On top of that, regular maintenance is needed to ensure that any damage is dealt with to avoid unsafe conditions and potential confusion.
Construction of Signs
These aren’t just images you can print off and post up with some tape, either. These signs are often given specific approved markings from a regulatory body. This is meant to make clear what needs to be done by anyone in the area.
For the most part, regulatory signs are made up of durable materials. Aluminum and reflective sheeting are the most common. The latter is especially true since it can help mitigate poor conditions where vision would otherwise be reduced or restricted. These signs are necessary to call attention to the restrictions and requirements of being in that area. They also tend to last quite a long time, though damage from extreme conditions can definitely cause them issues.
