You’re unplugging your MacBook, balancing a turmeric latte in one hand, and trying not to trip over someone else’s dog when the alarm hits.
Where’s the nearest exit?
You have no idea. Because the only evacuation diagram is hidden behind a whiteboard covered in OKRs and bad marker art.
Hot desks move. Tenants rotate. The espresso machine is sacred. But somehow, evacuation diagrams are treated like afterthoughts. Paper clutter. Bureaucratic wallpaper.
That’s how people get hurt.
Evacuation diagrams aren’t optional art
Let’s be clear: evacuation diagrams are legally required. Not decorative. Not “nice to have.” Required.
Specifically: AS 3745.
That’s the Australian Standard for planning for emergencies in facilities. If you’re in Australia and your building is accessible to the public, AS 3745 applies. Yes, even if your space looks more like a café crossed with a startup incubator than a conventional office.
Under AS 3745, evacuation diagrams must be:
- Displayed at all relevant points
- Oriented correctly to the viewer’s position
- Up to date and specific to the layout
- Include icons for exits, fire equipment, assembly points
- Not obstructed. Ever.
Miss that standard, and you’re not just unprepared—you’re non-compliant. If something happens, that’s on you.
Hot desks are the enemy of static signage
Here’s the problem: coworking spaces are fluid. People don’t sit at the same desk. Layouts morph weekly. Desks with wheels, walls that slide, pop-up booths that appear overnight like mushrooms.
What was a “main corridor” yesterday might now be a podcast studio.
And the plan on the wall? Irrelevant.
That’s the danger. In traditional offices, you could trust that everyone knew their zone. In coworking, zones don’t exist. People are new. Transient. They don’t know the space. They don’t know the exits. They don’t even know where the bathroom is yet.
So your evacuation diagrams have to do the heavy lifting.
They must be everywhere. They must be unmistakable. And they must make sense to someone who’s never been there before and might be three minutes away from choking on smoke.
“We didn’t think about it” is not a defence
Fire doesn’t care that you thought the diagram looked ugly next to the neon quote wall. Or that your marketing team didn’t want it visible in your event photos.
This is not a vibe decision.
It’s a survival tool. Prioritise accordingly.
If you’re hiding diagrams behind furniture, covering them with flyers, or using outdated maps because “we’ll print new ones later,” you’re failing your duty of care. And if something goes wrong, the law will agree.
Placement is everything—and tricky in shared spaces
AS 3745 mandates diagrams be located:
- On paths of travel
- Near exits
- In common areas
- Clearly visible at all times
That’s harder than it sounds when “common area” might mean beanbags, movable shelves, or six kombucha kegs.
So, think smarter.
Don’t treat evacuation diagrams like passive signs. Make them active elements of the space. Ideas to embed them:
- On the back of every hot desk placard
- As a vinyl decal on the floor
- Inside meeting room doors
- Integrated into wayfinding signage
- In the app every tenant uses to book desks
Use QR codes to link to a digital version. But don’t rely solely on digital. If the Wi-Fi goes down during an emergency—and it will—you need that physical copy. Fast. Legible. Intuitive.
Orientation matters more than you think
AS 3745 requires diagrams to be oriented to the viewer’s current position. That means if someone’s standing in front of a diagram, “up” on the map needs to correspond with “forward” in real life.
It sounds simple. It’s not. Especially in oddly shaped or multi-level coworking spaces where entrances are everywhere and layouts aren’t symmetrical.
This is where so many operators blow it. They just print the same map everywhere, assuming it will translate. It doesn’t. People rotate the paper in their heads, get confused, and end up running toward the fire instead of away from it.
Wrong orientation kills clarity. And clarity is everything when the space fills with smoke.
Update the damn thing
If you’ve renovated, changed the layout, added walls, or removed a staircase—your diagram is now outdated.
Under AS 3745, evacuation diagrams must be reviewed and updated at least every five years, or immediately after a change in the layout that affects the egress path.
Most coworking spaces don’t wait five weeks before tearing down a wall or turning a phone booth into a VR room.
So yes, you need someone on the team who owns the diagrams. Who checks them periodically. Who keeps the file editable, not just printable. Because when the place shifts, the map must shift with it.
No one’s looking at your emergency management plan during the panic
This is the crux.
When something goes wrong, people don’t open binders. They don’t read the procedures on your website. They don’t remember the onboarding email you sent three months ago.
They look around. They scan walls. They search for something—anything—that tells them: where do I go?
That’s the moment the evacuation diagram either saves lives or does nothing.
If it’s clear, visible, current, and intuitive, it helps. If it’s missing, wrong, buried, upside down, or outdated—you’ve failed.
Not just legally. Humanly.
Turn compliance into culture
Here’s the mindset shift:
Stop thinking of emergency signage as a box to tick. Start thinking of it as culture.
Coworking is about shared responsibility. Shared spaces. Shared safety.
Make your diagrams part of the onboarding. Part of your walkthroughs. Include them in every event briefing. Encourage teams to do five-minute “find the exits” games with new members.
The more visible and integrated they are, the less likely people are to die confused.
Because when the lights flicker, the music stops, and the building starts to shake, no one’s thinking about their laptop charger anymore. They just want to know: how do I get out of here?
Put that answer on the wall. In the right place. Facing the right way. Every single time.