Reece Lynch of Allegion sent me today’s Wordless Wednesday photos, taken at a golf entertainment center. As you can see, the gate surrounding a mini-golf area has panic hardware, and a bike lock has been added for security.
The question is – is this gate required for egress? The panic hardware tells me yes, so the bike lock is a problem. With that said, the mini golf course is a huge exterior area (outside of an 18,000 square foot building), where people could escape from a fire in the building and be safe outside. The issue is that the model codes require a safe dispersal area to be maintained and identified as such, and can not be used for another purpose.
What do you think? WWYD?
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I agree that the panic hardware definitely implies egress, which must be unobstructed. The lock impedes this egress.
That said, is the exterior area considered a public way for egress from the building?
In case of an active shooter situation I would be concerned about the current set up. The panic hardware makes it appear as if it is a means of egress at first glance. I would get rid of this panic hardware and replace it with something more secure, making sure that there was signage at that gate to another means of egress that met code requirements.
That could be an option if the gate is not required for egress – that’s the big question!
– Lori
This looks like a Lockey strike but not the Lockey panic shield. The gate in the photo is a real challenge, much harder than putting an exit device on a chain link fence. I can picture a nice design with two solid half-circles. We only need to make it as hard to open the gate as it is to climb the fence, and frankly the panic protected shown here probably makes climbing easier.
The landscape package often has gems like these. You can detail 500 BOH hollow metal doors in the time you will spend on this one gate.
I agree Lloyd!
– Lori
I have run into this situation twice. If the perimeter fence encloses the building such that the exit discharge from a door cannot proceed directly and unobstructed to a public way, I believe a code-compliant egress gate (or route) through the fence must be provided or, if you can’t reach a public way, a designated safe dispersal area at least 50 feet from the building and sized per occupant. So, this gate probably meets these criteria (why else would an exit device be placed on this gate) and thus, this bike lock is a violation. If this is not the case, the gate configuration leaves a lot to be desired (as demonstrated by the bike lock). Also, take a look at the sidewalk, and the Lanscaping just beyond….there seems to be no evidence of foot traffic. The gate is not ADA compatible either. My guess is that the landscaping came after the fence construction and someone said, let’s just forget about the gate.
An educated guess is this fence/gate was spec’ed from a site plan. And the spec writer or fence provider did the safe thing; provide a gate with an exit device. Low cost to convert to locking if not needed., vs. not providing for exit device and then having to convert. We see this; provide the more expensive solution to be safe, cost wise.