[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 29, Volume 5]
[Revised as of July 1, 2006]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 29CFR1910.37]

[Page 149-150]
 
                             TITLE 29--LABOR
 
CHAPTER XVII--OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT 
                                OF LABOR
 
PART 1910_OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH STANDARDS--Table of Contents
 
                        Subpart E_Means of Egress
 
Sec.  1910.37  Maintenance, safeguards, and operational features for exit 
routes.

    (a) The danger to employees must be minimized. (1) Exit routes must 
be kept free of explosive or highly flammable furnishings or other 
decorations.
    (2) Exit routes must be arranged so that employees will not have to 
travel toward a high hazard area, unless the path of travel is 
effectively shielded from the high hazard area by suitable partitions or 
other physical barriers.
    (3) 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.
    (4) Safeguards designed to protect employees during an emergency 
(e.g., sprinkler systems, alarm systems, fire doors, exit lighting) must 
be in proper working order at all times.
    (b) Lighting and marking must be adequate and appropriate. (1) Each 
exit route must be adequately lighted so that an employee with normal 
vision can see along the exit route.
    (2) Each exit must be clearly visible and marked by a sign reading 
``Exit.''
    (3) Each exit route door must be free of decorations or signs that 
obscure the visibility of the exit route door.
    (4) If the direction of travel to the exit or exit discharge is not 
immediately apparent, signs must be posted along the exit access 
indicating the direction of travel to the nearest exit and exit 
discharge. Additionally, the line-of-sight to an exit sign must clearly 
be visible at all times.
    (5) Each doorway or passage along an exit access that could be 
mistaken for an exit must be marked ``Not an Exit'' or similar 
designation, or be identified by a sign indicating its actual use (e.g., 
closet).

[[Page 150]]

    (6) Each exit sign must be illuminated to a surface value of at 
least five foot-candles (54 lux) by a reliable light source and be 
distinctive in color. Self-luminous or electroluminescent signs that 
have a minimum luminance surface value of at least .06 footlamberts 
(0.21 cd/m\2\) are permitted.
    (7) 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.
    (c) The fire retardant properties of paints or solutions must be 
maintained. Fire retardant paints or solutions must be renewed as often 
as necessary to maintain their fire retardant properties.
    (d) Exit routes must be maintained during construction, repairs, or 
alterations. (1) During new construction, employees must not occupy a 
workplace until the exit routes required by this subpart are completed 
and ready for employee use for the portion of the workplace they occupy.
    (2) During repairs or alterations, employees must not occupy a 
workplace unless the exit routes required by this subpart are available 
and existing fire protections are maintained, or until alternate fire 
protection is furnished that provides an equivalent level of safety.
    (3) Employees must not be exposed to hazards of flammable or 
explosive substances or equipment used during construction, repairs, or 
alterations, that are beyond the normal permissible conditions in the 
workplace, or that would impede exiting the workplace.
    (e) An employee alarm system must be operable. Employers must 
install and maintain an operable employee alarm system that has a 
distinctive signal to warn employees of fire or other emergencies, 
unless employees can promptly see or smell a fire or other hazard in 
time to provide adequate warning to them. The employee alarm system must 
comply with Sec.  1910.165.

[67 FR 67961, Nov. 7, 2002]