The Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council (UPC) today launched a new tool which will make it even simpler for business owners and signage manufacturers to adhere to commercial signage regulations.

The Abu Dhabi Commercial Signage Regulations govern commercial signs on buildings and are designed to enhance the appearance of building fronts and minimise ‘visual clutter’.

The regulations cover the type, size and location of any sign advertising a business inside a building, be it a villa, a retail outlet or commercial tower.

The new tool enables users, such as business owners and signage design companies, to quickly and easily navigate the Commercial Signage Regulations in order to see what is applicable to their requirements, without having to go through the whole document.

It achieves this by prompting users to answer questions, and then guiding them to the relevant section. The tool took six months to develop and there are now plans to convert it into a smartphone app.

The UPC collaborated with the Department of Economic Development (DED) to produce the tool and the manual that contains the Commercial Signage Regulations.

Abdulla Al Sahi, executive director, Corporate Services Sector, UPC, said: “Adherence to the Commercial Signage Regulations is important to the Emirate’s future vision and is in accord with the guiding principles of Abu Dhabi Vision 2030, which calls for more liveable, comfortable and aesthetically pleasing public spaces across the Emirate in line with the Estidama guiding principles.”

“We’re very pleased that in just a few short years, so many commercial buildings have already either met or retrofitted the standards, and it’s fantastic that the tool is available for anyone to use, making it quicker and easier to produce and fit commercial signage that meets the regulations.

“The launch of the Tool is very much in line with the Government’s direction of moving toward an e-government model, and supports the UPC’s strategy of investing in tools and technologies that enhance the application of its regulations,” he added.

Mohammed R. Al Romaithi, executive director of Abu Dhabi Business Centre of DED said: “We worked very closely with the UPC to produce the tool, and we’re really excited about how much time it will save building owners and signage companies in implementing the regulations, and the DED in monitoring implementation. Moving to e-solutions is a natural and viable path that benefits all involved.”

Under the DED’s direction, the licensing department no longer reviews signage applications, and it is now the responsibility of the building owner and the design company to comply with the regulations.

The inspection section of DED now oversees the approval of applications by site visit before issuing the license. This new system makes it easier for DED inspectors to check if the signage complies with the regulations.

The Commercial Signage Regulations provide developers and commercial building owners with clear guidelines and standards for permitted signage typologies, the location and position of a sign on a building, as well as its specifications and dimensions.

Following the success of the Commercial Signage Regulations, the UPC is now working on signage regulations for industrial buildings and larger retail buildings such as malls. – TradeArabia News Service