While no two industrial facilities have the same floor marking requirements, most can rely on the same tools to create appropriate visual cues and develop communication strategies. While painted lines have been a common solution in industrial facilities, floor marking tape and signs are quickly replacing painted cues because they’re easier to apply and more durable. To decide which floor marking options to use in your location, consider the basic overview and quick tips below.
Most Common Reasons for Floor Markings
Floor markings provide essential warnings and notices for employees and visitors. These markings improve safety throughout warehouses and production floor locations. Our patented industrial tapes provide a durable, long-lasting solution for a variety of floor marking purposes.
Markings for Visual Communication and Safety
Floor tape is ideal for marking required safety messages, lines, and visual cues in industrial facilities. Use predetermined color cues throughout buildings and areas to create a cohesive communication strategy. Floor markings are indispensable for labeling:
- Elevation changes
- Safety notices including Caution, Do Not Enter, or Warning
- Emergency exits and means of egress
- Locations of first aid kits
- OSHA/ANSI requirements
- PPE required notices
- Directional cues for navigation
Markings for Traveled Areas
Traveled areas, including pedestrian walkways and forklift or vehicle zones, require clear markings to improve safety, highlight dangers, and prevent accidents. Use floor markings to label:
- Forklift or machinery traveled lanes
- Vehicle crossing
- Right-of-way notices
- One-way lanes
- Notices for pedestrian safety
- Crosswalks and pedestrian-only areas
Markings for Organization
An organized work floor improves safety and efficiency. When employees have a visual reminder of storage requirements, items are easier to find and productivity gets a boost. Tape is an easy, cost-effective way to label storage spaces and reminders to return items to the appropriate locations. To improve organization, use visual cues to mark:
- Tool storage labeling
- Forklift parking areas
- Pallet alignment corner markings
- “Keep Clear” notices in aisles, near electrical panels or machinery, and exits or egress
Markings for Training
Visual cues can improve training processes by reinforcing knowledge of the procedures and workflows. While visual cues alone aren’t enough, combined with facility-wide training and written materials such as handbooks, floor markings, and visual cues can help streamline new staff onboarding and maintain employee compliance with requirements. Common visual cues for training include:
- Text and graphics to communicate workflow and processes
- Color cues to clarify or highlight specific instructions
- Highly visible safety notices
- Notices and reminders for updated work processes or new traffic flow
- Labeling work surfaces with visual reminders
Which Visual Cues and Materials Are the Best?
When marking floors in warehouses, factories, and industrial facilities, getting a long-lasting application depends on choosing the right heavy-duty material. To meet your facility’s specific needs, choose the marking solutions made for the job.
Floor Marking Tape
- Economical Econo Mark vinyl and Last Mark™ vinyl-coated polyester floor marking tape are suitable for low-traffic areas
- Superior Mark® floor marking tape is a heavy-duty solution for areas with heavy foot traffic and forklift use
- Glow-in-the-Dark Floor Tape offers a long-lasting, rechargeable glow for dark areas and for wayfinding in case of emergency.
- Gaffer tape is a durable solution for theater productions, photography or film sets, or staging museum exhibits
- Carpet tape is an ideal option for carpeted floors in offices, municipal buildings, and schools where adhesive won’t stick
- Freezer tape sticks even at below-freezing temperatures
Adhesive-Backed Pre-Cut Shapes
Save time and stay within the budget with pre-cut shapes ready to stick, tamp, and go. Shapes provide additional visual cues, while corner markings keep things organized without the need for full lines or stripes. No need to cut shapes or stencil and paint with these tape options:
- Adhesive-backed footprints and arrows can be paired with taped lines or floor signs to create detailed directional cues
- T, L, X markings are used to label rows and mark corners, ideal in areas where full lines may be damaged
- Dots and dashes are useful for marking lines or boundaries in large areas without laying long strips of floor marking tape or in areas where solid tape applications may be damaged by traffic or pallet-dragging.
- Custom-printed floor markings, including instructions, notices, advertisement decals—even adhesive-backed rulers—are ideal for creating a communication strategy specific to your facility.
- Door swing marking kits bring attention to doorways to help prevent accidents.
Floor Signs
Our floor signs come in pre-printed and custom designs, and are available in a range of materials and application processes to suit your facility’s needs. Rubber or mesh inlaid signs are ultra-durable options for high-traffic zones, removable vinyl floor signs include peel-and-stick adhesive that stands up to foot traffic on smooth surfaces.
- Pre-printed signs include common notices and messages, including cues to comply with or go beyond OSHA requirements.
- Custom signs meet location-specific needs, and our durable, but easy-to-remove adhesive allows you to change messages as necessary.
- Pre-cut kits—including options designed to bring attention to electrical panels, exits, first aid kit locations, or to mark borders—cut application time.
Wall, Barrier, and Pipe Markings
Not all taped markings go on the floor: Our less expensive Econo Mark and Last Mark tapes hold up well when applied to walls and more. Some common products for these areas include:
- Pre-printed or custom signs share important messages when adhered to walls, doors, or windows
- Brightly colored lines bring attention to low clearance areas to help prevent damage or injury
- Wall markings paired with pre-cut kits improve visibility of important health and safety equipment
- Posters and other signage can work with your floor tape applications to provide detailed directions, navigational instructions, and safety information.
Virtual and Non-Tape Signs and Lines
Many facilities choose floor marking tape over paint—painted lines fade and chip, and are difficult to remove when floor marking needs change—but paint may be the best choice in some parking lots and warehouses. Our options include roadway markings, warehouse safety designs, letters, numbers, arrows, and parking lot stencils.
In areas where tape and paint may wear away too quickly, such as textured, bare, or temporary floors, projected lines and graphics may be your best solution.
- Project virtual signs for clear signs in tricky or impossible to mark areas
- LED and Laser line projectors display markings over long distances for bright, easy to see, and safe lines in warehouses
- Hanging signs ensure visibility and are often used to mark aisles in warehouses and retail locations.
Industrial safety and visual communication markings come in a variety of options, so you can find the custom tape or signs ideal for your facility. Create a floor marking strategy using the tape rolls, shapes, and kits available or request custom options to suit your needs. Our Floor Marking Specialists are available to create solutions for your industrial facility, warehouse, school, or business.
