6 ways to automate fire exit checks

#1 - Simple checklist

Who it's for: Single-site venues where the manager runs the check themselves and wants the paper checklist on a phone.

What it is: A fire exit check confirms escape routes and exits are usable. This version is the tick-list of 8 checks, a pass/fail result, and a notes field. It covers routes clear of obstructions, exit doors openable and unlocked from the inside, exits not blocked outside, signage present, and emergency signage lit.

In practice: A single-site bar checks its exits at open. The duty manager walks each escape route, confirms the rear exit opens freely and nothing is stacked against it outside, marks pass or fail, notes a delivery blocking the side exit to clear, and the check is logged.

Why it works: The list lives on the canvas, so the check covers every exit the same way. The notes field captures the recurring problem, deliveries or stock blocking an exit, that an unchecked route hides until it's too late.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (8 inspection points)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field

#2 - With guidance

Who it's for: Venues where the check is delegated to whoever opens.

What it is: The simple check plus a guidance note at the top: walk the route a customer would take in an emergency, confirm every exit opens from the inside without a key, nothing blocks the routes inside or the exits outside, and the signage is present and the emergency lighting over it works.

What it adds to the simple check:

1. The walk-it-like-a-customer approach is spelled out, not assumed
2. Staff check both the inside route and the outside of the exit
3. The check is consistent whoever runs it

Why it works: The guidance sits with the checklist, so a new starter knows to actually walk the route, not just glance at the doors.

Steps included:

• 1 guidance note (walk the route; unlocked, clear, signed, lit)
• 1 checklist (8 inspection points)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field

#3 - With a signature

Who it's for: Venues where the check needs a name against it. Groups where head office wants to know who signed off each check, and single sites where a different person checks every time.

What it is: A signed fire exit check is the simple check plus a signature captured at sign-off. The 8 checks and notes field stay the same; the signature confirms who did the check and when they signed it.

In practice: A venue with rotating staff. Whoever opens works the 8-point list, notes anything blocking an exit, and signs. The next day the manager knows exactly who to ask if there's a problem, not just that someone left a note.

What it adds to the simple check:

1. A signature naming who did the check, captured at sign-off
2. A record of when the check was signed, next to the result
3. Accountability without asking anyone to take a photo

Why it works: The name goes on the record at the moment the work finishes, not from memory later. When an issue is found, the conversation starts with who signed it off, which is specific instead of general.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (8 inspection points)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 signature (sign-off)

#4 - With photo evidence

Who it's for: Venues that want proof each route was actually clear, not just logged.

What it is: The simple check plus a photo of the fire exit door and the cleared area in front of it, captured at the time. A photo showing an unlocked, unobstructed exit is proof it was usable on the day.

What it adds to the simple check:

1. A photo of the fire exit door and the area in front of it, captured at the time
2. Proof the route was clear, or a record of what was blocking it
3. A visual record tied to a real exit and time

Why it works: Routes being clear is the easiest thing to tick without actually checking. A photo of the exit door and clear area in front proves the route was walked and was clear.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (8 inspection points)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 photo of the fire exit door and the cleared area in front of it

#5 - With Poppi checking the photo

Who it's for: Venues where the photo gets taken but nobody reviews it. Multi-site groups where head office cannot look at every site's photos every check.

What it is: A photo-checked exit is the simple check plus a photo of the fire exit door and cleared area that Poppi (AI) reviews the moment it's saved. Poppi answers one question about that photo, set by you: is the fire exit door and the area in front of it clear, unlocked, and unobstructed? If the answer is no, Poppi posts what it spotted to the team chat, so the problem gets fixed before anyone leaves.

In practice: A multi-site hotel group checks fire exits daily at 7am. The duty manager photographs the rear exit door and area in front. Poppi reads the photo: door visible, area clear, nothing blocking. Verdict yes, and nothing changes. On a morning when a delivery truck blocked the side exit overnight, Poppi answers no and posts the reason to the team chat ("The photo shows boxes blocking the area in front of the exit"). The manager unblocks it while still onsite.

What it adds to the simple check:

1. A photo that gets checked the moment it's saved, not just stored
2. A team chat message with Poppi's reason the moment a photo fails the check
3. The manager stops being the only person who ever looks at the photos

Why it works: The check happens in the seconds between the photo being taken and the checker leaving. That's the only moment the problem is still cheap to fix. A manager reviewing photos later can only record that an exit was blocked; Poppi catching it immediately gets it cleared by the time guests can access the building.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (8 inspection points)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 photo of the fire exit door and the cleared area in front of it
• 1 Poppi decision (judges the photo against your question)
• 1 Poppi action (posts to the team chat if the photo fails the check)

#6 - With a team alert if the check runs overdue

Who it's for: Venues with a critical check deadline - daily opening checks, shared buildings, groups where a skipped check is a safety risk.

What it is: An overdue-check alert is the simple check plus a Poppi (AI) action set to the workflow's end time. If the check isn't finished by the deadline, Poppi posts a message in the Pilla team chat so the outstanding steps get done before the venue opens. It watches the end time, so it catches the check that quietly got skipped, not just the one that was delayed.

In practice: A 12-site hotel group checks fire exits daily at 7am before guests can move through the building. On a busy Monday it's easy to skip: weekend deliveries blocked exits and the opening staff are in a rush. With this version, if the check isn't finished by 7am, the team chat gets a message, so the duty manager catches the skipped checks before the building opens, rather than finding out from a future inspection.

What it adds to the simple check:

1. A message in the team chat if the check isn't finished on time
2. A catch for the check that got skipped entirely, not just the one that was delayed
3. A record of when the check should have been done, next to when it was
4. The manager finds out that day, not from a future inspection

Why it works: The alert is tied to the check deadline, so a skipped check raises its own hand. Nobody has to notice it's missing; the deadline does.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (8 inspection points)
• 1 pass/fail result
• 1 notes field
• 1 Poppi action (posts to the team chat if the check isn't finished by deadline)

How to pick the right version

You don't need to know our product to choose. Every version here is the simple check plus one addition, so pick the additions your venue actually needs.

Do other people run the check?

If you check yourself and know what to look for, the plain list is enough. The moment rota staff check, the guidance needs to be on the screen. If only you check, #1 is fine. If anyone else does, #2 adds guidance.

Does the check need a name against it?

If knowing it was done is enough, skip this one. If you want who signed it off on the record, #3 adds a signature.

Do you need proof?

A ticked checklist says the work was done; a photo shows it. If you want visual proof the exit was clear, #4 adds a photo of the fire exit door and cleared area.

Does anyone actually look at the photos?

If a manager genuinely reviews every photo, #4's record is enough. If photos get taken and filed unseen, #5 has Poppi (AI) check each one as it's saved and tell the team chat when something's wrong.

Does the check have to be finished by a set deadline?

If a busy team sometimes skips the check entirely, #6 posts a message to the team chat when the deadline passes with the check unfinished.

Need more than one addition? Open the version with the addition that matters most in the playground and add the others as steps. That's how the product works anyway: every option here is one step added to the same list.

Related workflows

• Fire door check - the fire doors that protect these escape routes
• Emergency lighting test - the lighting that guides an evacuation
• Fire extinguisher check - the monthly extinguisher check

Conclusion

A fire exit only saves lives if it's clear and usable the moment it's needed, and obstructions creep in unnoticed. A recorded check turns it into something you can prove. Every version above is the same simple check plus one addition: guidance, a signature, a photo, Poppi (AI) checking the photo, or a deadline alert. Pick the ones your venue needs and combine them in the playground.

→ Build your own fire exit check on Pilla.

===SQLDATA=== PHOTO_INSTRUCTION: A photo of the fire exit door and the cleared area directly in front of it. JUDGE_QUESTION: Is the fire exit door and the area in front of it clear, unlocked, and unobstructed? ALERT_MESSAGE: The fire exit check hasn't been completed by the deadline. ===END===