What a sign schedule is used for
- Quoting: totals by sign type, size and material are what a price is built from.
- Manufacture: each row becomes a job for the workshop, with artwork, size and finish.
- Installation: fitters use the reference numbers and the plan to put each sign in the right place.
- Handover and maintenance: after installation, the schedule becomes the record of what is on site.
Columns to include
| Column | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| Ref | A unique number, matching the number on the plan |
| Site / building / floor / area | Where the sign is, at every level |
| Sign type | From a fixed list: fascia, projecting, totem, wayfinding, door, safety, statutory… |
| Content | The message, or the artwork reference |
| Width × height (mm) | Overall size |
| Material and finish | For example aluminium composite, acrylic, vinyl on glass |
| Illumination | None, internal, external, LED, neon |
| Fixing | How it is mounted, and at what height |
| Condition | Good, faded, damaged, not working, missing |
| Action | Keep, repair, replace, remove, add |
| Photo | A link or file name for each photo |
| Notes | Access, consent, anything unusual |
Keep the sign type, condition and action columns to a fixed list of values. Free text can't be counted or filtered.
Free sign schedule template
Download the sign schedule template (CSV). It opens in Excel, Google Sheets or Numbers, and has the columns above and two example rows.
A spreadsheet works for one small site. It gets hard when photos have to be matched to rows by file name, several people edit copies, and the plan is a separate PDF. That is the problem Signcensus solves: the plan, the pins, the photos and the details are one record.
Numbering signs
- Use one numbering scheme for the whole estate, and never reuse a number.
- A prefix per site helps on multi-site jobs, for example RRP-014.
- Number in walking order, so fitters can follow the plan.
- If a sign is removed, mark it removed rather than deleting the row, so the history stays.
Questions
- What is the difference between a sign schedule and a signage audit?
- The audit is the process of surveying and judging the signs; the sign schedule is the table that records the result. New-build projects also have a sign schedule produced from the design, before any signs exist.
- Is there a standard format for a sign schedule?
- There is no single UK standard. Most schedules use the same core columns: reference, location, type, content, size, material, illumination, fixing, condition and action.