Ensuring that your workplace is accommodating to those with mobility restrictions is essential in creating a welcoming and secure atmosphere. By following these guidelines from EZ-ACCESS, you can limit potential accidents and ensure the safety of your team.
- If you work in an office and have clients or employees who use wheelchairs, ensure that they can move through the building easily. Not only should all offices come with accessible bathrooms and specialized parking spots but doorways and entryways must also be properly sized to the ADA suggested 36-inch width to allow maximum mobility access.
- To ensure safety for all of your employees, light switches must be readily accessible. Switches can be mounted from 15 to 48 inches, however, the ADA recommends an ideal height of 40 inches for maximum efficiency. Not only does this help individuals using powered wheelchairs but it also provides additional convenience for employees carrying heavy equipment. When installing light switches, avoid using toggle switches that require substantial finger force. Instead, utilize plate rocker switches that only need a minimal amount of force to successfully operate.
- For offices that have multiple floors, ensure that your building has a working elevator that fits within the ADA guidelines. These require visible and verbal signals to indicate which car is available as well as the direction and when it has reached the designated floor. The door must also remain fully opened for at least three seconds and the communication device in the elevator must not be more than 48 inches from the floor.
By following these guidelines, you can create a safe and productive working environment for your employees. To further enhance mobility access on-site, EZ-ACCESS has a full line of modular ramps to provide additional benefits for your team.
