Safety signs in Dubai: fire, warning, mandatory and emergency signs for every workplace

Safety signs we supply

We supply the full range of workplace safety signs: prohibition, warning, mandatory, emergency and fire equipment signs, in rigid, self-adhesive, glow in the dark, reflective and illuminated versions, plus evacuation plans and floor marking. Common signs are in stock; anything else is made to order.

The five types of safety sign

Safety signs come in five types, each with a fixed colour and shape so the meaning is clear before the symbol or words are read: red circles prohibit, yellow triangles warn, blue circles instruct, green rectangles show safety, and red rectangles mark fire equipment. The symbols are standardised internationally in ISO 7010.

A sign may carry a line of text beneath the symbol, in Arabic and English. Text supports the symbol. It doesn't replace it, because many people on a site or in a kitchen read neither language well, and a familiar symbol is understood faster than any sentence.

Two other kinds of sign sit alongside these:

• Information and notice signs, such as fire action notices, hygiene instructions, maximum load notices and site rules.
• Hazard labels on chemicals, cylinders, pipes and electrical equipment, which follow their own labelling systems.

Which signs does your workplace need?

The signs a workplace needs follow from its hazards, its escape routes and its fire equipment. Every premises needs escape and fire equipment signs; the rest depend on what goes on inside. The lists below are starting checklists for common kinds of premises, to be adjusted to your own risk assessment and approved fire plan.

Every premises

• Exit signs and escape route arrows on every route to a final exit. See exit signs.
• A sign at each fire extinguisher, hose reel and alarm call point.
• Fire door signs: "Fire door, keep shut" or "Keep clear".
• A fire action notice and an evacuation plan near entrances and lift lobbies.
• Assembly point sign outside.
• First aid box sign and first aider names.
• "No smoking" signs.
• "Do not use lift in case of fire" at lifts.
• Electrical panel and switch room warning signs.

Offices

Offices have few hazards, so the list above covers most of it. Add wet floor signs for cleaners, server room and electrical room signs, pantry signs ("Caution, hot water"), signs for accessible toilets and refuge areas, and glass door markings so people don't walk into clear glass.

Shops and showrooms

As for offices, plus signs for stock rooms ("Staff only", "Mind your head", "Do not stack above this line"), ladder and step safety, and customer notices such as "Caution, step" or "Automatic door". In malls, the landlord's fit-out guide and the mall's Civil Defence approval set the fire signs.

Restaurants, cafés and kitchens

Kitchens have fire, heat, knives, slips and gas:

• "Wash your hands" at every hand basin, and food hygiene notices.
• "Caution, hot surface" and "Hot oil" at ranges and fryers.
• Fire blanket and wet chemical extinguisher signs, and the kitchen fire suppression system's pull-station sign.
• Gas shut-off valve sign and "Gas, no naked flames" at the store.
• "Slippery floor" signs and wet floor stands.
• Cold room and freezer signs, with "Can be opened from inside".
• Allergen and food separation signs, and knife and slicer safety notices.
• Chemical store signs for cleaning products.

Warehouses and logistics

• Forklift signs, pedestrian walkways and crossings, "No pedestrians" in truck aisles.
• Racking load notices on every run of racking.
• "Mind your head", "Caution, low beam", mezzanine load and edge signs.
• Loading dock signs: "Chock wheels", "Do not move, loading in progress".
• Battery charging area signs: "No smoking", "Eye protection", "Corrosive".
• Fire equipment signs high enough to be seen above stock.
• Floor marking for walkways, storage zones and keep-clear areas in front of exits, panels and fire equipment.

Factories and workshops

• Machine signs: "Guards must be in place", "Isolate before maintenance", "Entanglement hazard", emergency stop signs.
• PPE zone signs at each area's entrance: eye, ear, hand, foot and respiratory protection.
• Noise zone signs, welding and hot work signs, compressed gas cylinder signs.
• Chemical and flammable store signs, spill kit and eyewash signs.
• Lockout and "Do not operate" tags.
• Overhead crane and lifting signs, with safe working loads.

Clinics, laboratories and pharmacies

• Biohazard, sharps and clinical waste signs.
• Radiation warning signs and lit "X-ray in use" signs at imaging rooms.
• Laser warning signs and lit "Laser in use" signs.
• Oxygen and medical gas signs: "No smoking, no naked flames".
• Chemical hazard, eyewash and emergency shower signs in labs.
• "Authorised staff only" and controlled drug store signs.
• MRI warning signs, where there is a scanner.

Schools and nurseries

Escape and fire signs as standard, plus science lab and workshop signs, kitchen signs, pool signs ("No diving", depth markers, "No running"), playground rules, and assembly point signs large enough for a whole year group to find.

Residential and commercial towers

Common areas need exit and escape signs, floor numbers in stairwells, fire equipment signs, "Do not use lift in case of fire", refuge area signs, plant room, pump room, generator and electrical room signs, roof access warnings, car park signs, pool and gym safety signs, and chute and waste room signs.

Hotels

As for towers, plus an evacuation plan on the back of each guest room door, pool and spa safety signs, kitchen and laundry signs, and back-of-house signs for staff routes.

If you'd like this done for you, we visit, walk the premises with your plan, and give you a list of what's present, what's missing and what needs replacing.

Fire equipment signs, including 3D and projecting signs

A fire equipment sign shows where an extinguisher, hose reel, alarm call point or fire blanket is, so someone who has never been in the building can find it in seconds. A flat sign above the equipment works when you face it. A 3D or projecting sign can also be seen from along the corridor, which is why they're increasingly asked for.

Flat signs

A red sign with a white symbol, fixed on the wall above the equipment, high enough to be seen over furniture, stock and people. In large rooms and warehouses, fix a second, larger sign higher up, so the location can be seen from across the floor.

Projecting and 3D fire extinguisher signs

• Projecting (flag) signs stand out from the wall at a right angle and are printed on both sides. They're seen from either direction along a corridor.
• 3D or panoramic signs are folded into a V or triangle, so the symbol faces forward and to both sides at once. One sign is visible from three directions.
• Ceiling-hung signs mark equipment on columns in open-plan floors, car parks and warehouses.

Use them wherever equipment sits in a recess, behind a column or along a long corridor, and anywhere a flat sign would be hidden until you're in front of it. In warehouses and car parks they're the practical default.

Extinguisher identification signs

Different fires need different extinguishers, and using the wrong one can be dangerous. An identification sign beside each extinguisher states its type (water, foam, powder, CO2, wet chemical), what it's for and what it must not be used on. These help staff choose correctly, and inspectors look for them.

Other fire signs

• Alarm call point signs above each break-glass unit.
• Hose reel, fire blanket, dry riser and wet riser signs.
• Fire door signs: "Fire door, keep shut", "Fire door, keep locked", "Automatic fire door, keep clear".
• Fire action notices telling people what to do on discovering a fire or hearing the alarm, with your assembly point filled in.
• Fire alarm panel, sprinkler valve, pump room and fire command centre signs, so the fire service can find them.
• Fire assembly point signs outside.
• Evacuation plans: a framed floor plan showing "you are here", the escape routes, exits, fire equipment and the assembly point. We draw these from your architectural drawings, orient each plan to where it hangs, and frame them.

Illuminated exit signs and emergency lighting are covered on our exit signs page.

Glow in the dark (photoluminescent) signs

Glow in the dark signs are made of photoluminescent material, which absorbs light while the lights are on and gives it back as a visible glow when they go out. They need no wiring or batteries, so they keep working in a power cut, and they're widely used for escape route signs, stair markings and fire equipment signs.

How they work

The material contains a pigment that stores energy from daylight or electric light. In darkness it releases that energy as a yellow-green or blue-white glow, brightest in the first minutes and fading slowly over hours. It recharges every time the lights come back on.

Grades

Photoluminescent material is sold in classes by how brightly and how long it glows. Class B is treated as the minimum for safety way-guidance, and Class C gives nearly three times the brightness and is the grade called for by the international standard for way-guidance systems, according to a UK safety supplier's guide (UK Safety Store). When you buy, ask for the class and the manufacturer's test data. "Glow in the dark" without a class usually means a low grade.

Where they work well

• Escape route signs and arrows along corridors and in stairwells.
• Low-level markings: strips along skirtings, stair nosings, handrails and door frames, which stay visible below smoke.
• Fire equipment signs and extinguisher identification signs.
• Door signs for final exits and fire doors.
• Floor numbers in stairwells.
• Obstacles and hazards on escape routes, such as low beams and steps.

Where they don't

• Areas that are normally dark. The material has to be charged by light. A sign in an unlit store or a plant room that's lit only when someone enters won't glow in an emergency.
• Dim lighting. Low-level or coloured lighting may not charge the sign enough. A good light directly on the sign matters more than the general light level.
• As the only exit sign where a powered one is required. Civil Defence requirements for most buildings call for electrically illuminated exit signs with battery backup. Photoluminescent signs then supplement them. Our exit signs page explains where each is accepted.
• Outdoors, unless the product is rated for it. Sunlight and heat degrade some grades.

Custom glow in the dark signs

We make photoluminescent signs with custom wording, logos and languages, as rigid panels or self-adhesive film, and cut photoluminescent tape and strips to length for stairs and corridors.

Illuminated safety signs

An illuminated safety sign carries its own light, so it's seen in dim or smoky conditions and draws the eye in a busy space. Beyond exit signs, the common ones are lit fire signs, "in use" warning signs outside rooms where a hazard is active, and refuge area signs.

Illuminated fire and escape signs

• Powered exit and escape route signs, with battery backup, covered on the exit signs page.
• Lit fire equipment signs in large, dim or smoke-prone spaces such as car parks, plant floors and atriums.
• "Fire exit, keep clear" signs with lighting outside final exits.
• Illuminated fire assembly point signs in large car parks and campuses.

Lighted "in use" signs

A lit sign above or beside a door that switches on when the hazard inside is active, so nobody walks in at the wrong moment. Typical wordings:

• "X-ray in use" or "Do not enter" at radiology and dental imaging rooms.
• "Laser in use" at treatment rooms and labs.
• "MRI in use".
• "Recording" or "On air" at studios.
• "Darkroom in use".
• "Testing in progress" at electrical test bays.
• "Engaged", "Meeting in progress" or "Do not disturb" for consulting and meeting rooms.

They're usually slim LED light boxes, red or amber when lit, wired to the equipment's control, a wall switch or a door contact. For rooms where the sign is part of a safety requirement, such as X-ray rooms, the equipment supplier or your radiation protection adviser specifies how it's interlocked, and we make the sign to that specification.

Area of refuge signs

A refuge is a protected place, usually in or beside a stair, where someone who can't use the stairs waits for assistance during an evacuation. It needs a sign identifying it, normally with the wheelchair symbol, and directional signs leading to it. Illuminated or photoluminescent versions are used so the refuge can be found if the lights fail. Tactile and braille versions of accessible signs are covered on our wayfinding signs page.

Other lit warning signs

• "Fire alarm", "Gas released, do not enter" and "Evacuate" signs linked to alarm and gas suppression panels, specified by the fire contractor.
• Flashing beacons and lit warning signs at vehicle doors, loading docks and crane bays.
• Lit "Wet floor" or "Door in use" signs at kitchen doors.

Electrical room and substation signage

Electrical rooms and substations need signs that keep unauthorised people out, warn of the voltage, and tell trained staff how to respond to an electric shock. The signs go on the door, inside the room and on the equipment.

On the door and enclosure:

• "Danger, high voltage" with the lightning flash symbol, and the voltage where required.
• "Authorised persons only" or "No unauthorised entry".
• Room identification: substation name or number, "LV room", "Transformer room", "Generator room", "Main distribution board".
• "No smoking" and "No storage" signs.
• Emergency contact number.

Inside:

• Electric shock treatment chart, showing first aid and resuscitation steps.
• Single line diagram in a frame.
• "Rubber mat must be in position" and PPE signs.
• Fire extinguisher sign and identification, normally for CO2.
• Exit sign and escape route.
• "Danger, live terminals", "Isolate before opening" and "Dual supply" labels on panels.
• "Caution, men at work, do not switch on" tags and lockout signs.
• Cable route and buried cable markers outside.

Materials matter here. Use rigid, non-conductive, durable signs: engraved laminate labels for panels, aluminium or rigid plastic for doors, with fixings that suit the enclosure. Labels on equipment should be engraved or printed to last the life of the panel, not paper labels in plastic sleeves.

Substations that are handed over to DEWA, and plant in larger developments, are signed to the utility's and the consultant's specifications. Send us the specification or drawings and we'll make the signs to match. For generator rooms, battery rooms and solar installations, the same approach applies, with the hazard signs particular to each.

No smoking and other prohibition signs

A no smoking sign is the red prohibition circle with a cigarette symbol, and it's the most widely used safety sign in the country. Smoking is banned in enclosed public places under UAE tobacco control law, and it's a fire and explosion risk wherever fuel, gas, oxygen or dust is present.

• Where to fix them: entrances, lobbies, lifts, toilets, stairs, car parks, kitchens, stores, fuel and gas areas, battery rooms, and anywhere people might assume smoking is tolerated.
• Vaping. If your policy covers e-cigarettes, say so. "No smoking or vaping" with both symbols removes the argument.
• Designated smoking areas need a sign too, so the "no smoking" signs elsewhere are respected.
• Fuel, gas and oxygen areas use "No smoking, no naked flames", often with "No mobile phones" at fuel points.
• Size. Small signs on doors are fine in offices. At fuel stores and yards, use large signs readable from a vehicle.
• Finish. Self-adhesive for glass and smooth doors, rigid for walls, and engraved or metal-finish signs for hotel and office interiors where a standard plastic sign would look out of place. The symbol stays standard whatever the finish.

Other common prohibition signs: no entry, authorised persons only, no mobile phones, no photography, no food or drink, do not touch, do not operate, no access for forklifts, not drinking water, no children.

Digital safety boards and message signs

A digital safety board shows changing information: days since the last lost-time incident, the day's safety message, weather and heat warnings, or instructions at a gate. It suits sites and plants where the message changes daily and many people pass one point.

• Safety scoreboards. A printed board with LED number displays for days without incident, hours worked and targets. The numbers are updated by remote or from a computer.
• LED message boards. One or more lines of text for gates, canteens and control rooms. See LED scrolling message boards.
• Screens. Safety briefings, toolbox talk topics and induction videos in several languages, in canteens and induction rooms. See digital signage.
• Variable message sign boards. Larger outdoor LED boards for traffic and site instructions: speed, gate closures, diversions and emergency messages. On private sites these are yours to install; on public roads they follow an RTA-approved plan.
• Heat stress displays showing the current heat index and the work and rest guidance for it.

Digital boards add to fixed signs and don't replace them. A hazard that's always there needs a sign that's always there, with or without power.

Size, height and placement

A safety sign has to be large enough to recognise from where a person needs to act, and placed where they'll see it before they reach the hazard. As a working guide, use 20 cm signs for reading within 5 metres, 40 cm for up to 20 metres, and larger signs for open floors and yards.

These are sizes in common use by suppliers here and a sensible minimum. Go a size larger in dim or dusty areas and where text must be read as well as the symbol.

Placement rules:

• At eye level for signs read close up, with the centre around 1.5 to 1.7 metres above the floor.
• Above head height for signs that must be seen across a room: fire equipment location signs, exit signs and hanging signs. Keep at least 2.2 metres of clear headroom under anything that projects over a walkway.
• Before the hazard, at the entrance to the area, not beside the machine at the back of it.
• On the door, or beside it on the handle side, for room hazards, so the sign is seen with the door open or shut.
• Facing the approach. Walk each route in and check every sign from where people come from.
• Lit. A sign in a dark corner isn't seen. Put signs where the light is, or light them.
• Clear of clutter. Don't let notices, posters and stacked goods crowd or cover safety signs.
• Not too many together. A dozen signs on one wall are read by nobody. Use a combined multi-message sign at entrances and single signs at the hazards.
• Consistent. The same sign in the same position on every floor and in every branch.

Materials and fixing

Choose the material for where the sign will live and how long it must last. Indoors, rigid plastic and self-adhesive vinyl cover most needs. Outdoors and in harsh areas, aluminium lasts longest.

Print and finish:

• UV-stable inks and a laminate for anything in sunlight. Red fades first, and red is the colour of prohibition and fire signs.
• Matte or anti-glare finish under strong lighting.
• Rounded corners on rigid signs.
• Chemical-resistant laminate in kitchens, labs and plants that are washed down.

Fixing:

• Double-sided tape or adhesive on smooth, clean walls and doors.
• Screws or rivets on rough walls, outdoors and anywhere a sign must not fall.
• Frames and holders for notices and plans that will be updated.
• Chains, brackets and hangers for projecting and ceiling-hung signs.
• Posts and stands outdoors, and weighted stands for temporary signs such as wet floor warnings.

Languages

Safety signs in Dubai are made in Arabic and English, and the symbol does the main work. In workplaces where staff read neither language comfortably, add the languages they do read to the signs that matter most.

• Arabic and English on every sign with text.
• Additional languages such as Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil, Nepali and Tagalog on entrance boards, emergency instructions, machine warnings and chemical store signs.
• Short wording. "Danger, high voltage" translates cleanly. A paragraph doesn't.
• Checked translations. We have wording checked by native readers, because a wrong word on a safety sign is worse than none.
• Fire action notices and evacuation plans in the languages of the people who'll use them, including guests in hotels.

Safety sign rules in Dubai

Safety signs in Dubai are governed by three sets of rules: the UAE Fire and Life Safety Code, enforced by Dubai Civil Defence, for exit, escape and fire equipment signs; Dubai Municipality's health and safety requirements for workplace signs; and federal labour law, which obliges employers to protect workers and tell them about the hazards of their work.

• Fire and escape signs. The Fire and Life Safety Code sets what's required for exits, escape routes, fire equipment and emergency lighting, and Civil Defence checks them at approval and inspection. Work on fire systems must be done by approved contractors. We are DCD-approved for exit signs.
• Workplace signs. Dubai Municipality's Health and Safety Department publishes technical guidelines for safety signs at work, which set out the sign categories, colours and employers' responsibilities. Ask your HSE adviser for the current edition, and tell us if your signs must be made to it.
• Construction sites. Dubai's Code of Construction Safety Practice applies. See construction site signs.
• Free zones. Authorities such as Trakhees and the Dubai Development Authority have their own health and safety regulations for premises in their zones.
• Accessibility. The Dubai Universal Design Code covers signs for accessible routes and refuges.
• Landlords and malls. Fit-out guides often specify the type, finish and position of safety signs in tenanted units.
• Your own risk assessment. Rules set the minimum. The hazards particular to your work decide the rest.

We make signs to the specification you or your consultant give us, and we'll tell you if something in an order looks wrong. For formal confirmation of what your premises requires, your Civil Defence-approved consultant and the authority are the ones to ask.

A half-hour safety sign audit

You can check the state of your safety signs yourself in about half an hour for a small premises. Walk every route a visitor, a new starter and a firefighter would take, and look for the points below.

1. From each room, can you see the way out? Follow the exit signs to the outside. Any point where the next sign isn't visible is a gap.
2. Is every exit sign lit? Press the test button on a few, or ask your maintenance contractor for the last test record.
3. Does every extinguisher, hose reel and call point have a sign, and can you see it from across the room?
4. Are fire doors signed, and are they shut?
5. Is there a fire action notice and an evacuation plan near the entrance, and are they current? Check the assembly point and the plan against the building as it is now.
6. Does each hazard have a sign where a person meets it: electrical rooms, hot surfaces, chemicals, machines, low beams, steps, wet areas?
7. Are PPE signs at the entrance to each area that needs it?
8. Are the signs readable? Look for fading, peeling, dirt and missing corners. Red that has turned pink is a fail.
9. Are they in Arabic and English, and in the languages your staff read?
10. Is anything hidden behind doors, shelving, posters or plants?
11. Are any signs out of date? Old assembly points, removed equipment, former tenants' notices.
12. Outside: assembly point, gas and fuel signs, car park and gate signs.

Note each gap with its location and a photo, and send us the list. Or ask us to do the walk-round with you: we survey, list what's needed with sizes and materials, and quote.

How much do safety signs cost in Dubai?

Standard safety signs cost little each, and the total depends on how many you need, their size and material. Illuminated signs and evacuation plans cost more. The ranges below are typical Dubai prices before VAT and are a guide only.

What changes the price: material, size, quantity, custom wording and languages, photoluminescent grade, lighting and wiring for lit signs, and installation.

Ordering

1. Send your list, photos or floor plan, or book a survey.
2. We confirm sizes, materials and wording, and send a proof for custom signs.
3. Stock signs are supplied within 1–2 working days; custom signs in 3–5 working days.
4. We deliver or install, and can fix signs at the correct heights throughout your premises.
5. Keep the list. It becomes your record for reordering and for inspections.