# Sign installation software that keeps the survey, the permit and the install photo on one job

> Sign installation is the trade that surveys, permits, fabricates and mounts signs, from a monument sign on a retail pad to a regulatory sign on a state route. The numbers are set elsewhere and measured on site. The federal manual puts a sign no lower than 7 feet above a sidewalk and gives overhead signs 17 feet of clearance, and the accessibility standards hold tactile characters between 48 inches and 60 inches. Neurobird keeps the survey, the permit, the crew day and the closeout photograph on one job.

- URL: https://neurobird.com/signinstallation/
- Product: Neurobird Sign Installation Document Automation Platform
- Niche: sign installation
- Buyer: sign installation contractors
- Status: in development, open for early access
- Updated: 2026-08-22

## What Neurobird Sign Installation does

- Carry the site survey and the mounting detail into the shop ticket without retyping either
- Attach the permit and the governing code section to the address it was issued for
- Book the lift, the crew and the traffic control for the install day on one calendar
- Close each sign with a dated photograph and the height it was actually set at

## How it works

1. **Survey once** Sign type, face size, mounting condition, height and any obstruction are captured on site and carried straight into fabrication and the permit application.
2. **Permit to the address** The jurisdiction, the permit number and the code section that governs the sign live on the job, so a crew working two towns apart is not reading the wrong sign code.
3. **Close with proof** Each installed sign closes with a dated photograph and the measured height and offset it was set at, which is what answers an inspector and what settles a punch list six months later.

## From the source material

> Determination of the particular signs to be applied to a specific condition shall be made in accordance with the provisions set forth in Part 2 .

Source: FHWA, MUTCD 2009 Edition Part 2A, https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/htm/2009/part2/part2a.htm

## Industry context

- **7 feet** Minimum height from the bottom of a sign to the sidewalk below it, and the same 7 foot minimum applies to route, warning and regulatory signs on freeways and expressways. (source: FHWA, MUTCD 2009 Edition Section 2A.18, https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/htm/2009/part2/part2a.htm)
- **17 feet** Vertical clearance an overhead sign must provide over the entire width of the pavement and shoulders, unless the structure it hangs from already has less. (source: FHWA, MUTCD 2009 Edition Section 2A.18, https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/htm/2009/part2/part2a.htm)
- **12 feet** Minimum lateral offset for a post mounted sign from the edge of the traveled way, dropping to 6 feet from the shoulder edge where the shoulder is wider than 6 feet. (source: FHWA, MUTCD 2009 Edition Section 2A.19, https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/htm/2009/part2/part2a.htm)
- **48 inches** Minimum height above the finish floor for raised characters and braille, measured to the baseline of the lowest tactile character, with 60 inches the maximum to the highest. (source: US Access Board, ADA Guide Chapter 7 Signs, https://www.access-board.gov/ada/guides/chapter-7-signs/)
- **2 years** The window states and other federal agencies get to adopt a change issued to the national manual, which is why the edition in force differs across a state line. (source: 23 CFR 655.603, https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/23/655.603)
- **$1,000,000** Per occurrence general liability minimum a City of Boulder contractor licence requires, alongside a $2,000,000 aggregate limit and workers compensation cover. (source: City of Boulder, contractor licensing, https://bouldercolorado.gov/services/contractor-licensing)

## Pricing

- Owner operator: $189 per month
- Sign company: $549 per month
- Multi branch: $1,200 per month

## Questions

### What is sign installation?

It is the trade that surveys, permits, fabricates and mounts signs, from a monument sign on a retail pad to a regulatory sign on a state route. The rules arrive from three places at once: the federal manual for road signs, which sets 7 feet as the minimum height over a sidewalk, the accessibility standards, which hold tactile characters between 48 inches and 60 inches, and the local sign code.

### Does this replace our estimating or accounting system?

No. It sits beside them. The estimate and the invoice stay where they are. This holds the survey, the permit, the mounting detail and the closeout photograph, which is the part that currently lives in a phone and an inbox.

### How does it handle permits in different jurisdictions?

A permit belongs to an address, not to a company. The permit number, the issuing jurisdiction and the code section attach to the job, so the crew reads the rule that actually applied to that site.

### Can we prove what height a sign was set at?

Yes. Each sign closes with a dated photograph and the measured height and offset it was set at. That is the record that answers an inspector, and the one that settles a punch list argument later.

### What about crews working from a bucket truck?

The lift, the operator and the daily control check belong to the job day. A lift acquired for use on or after January 22, 1973 has to meet ANSI A92.2-1969, and the federal rule requires a body belt worn with a lanyard attached to the boom or basket. The record of that day sits with the sign it installed.

## Sources

- [FHWA, MUTCD 2009 Edition Part 2A](https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/htm/2009/part2/part2a.htm)
- [US Access Board, ADA Guide Chapter 7 Signs](https://www.access-board.gov/ada/guides/chapter-7-signs/)
- [23 CFR 655.603, national standards for traffic control devices](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/23/655.603)
- [OSHA 29 CFR 1926.453, aerial lifts](https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1926/1926.453)
- [OSHA 29 CFR 1926.451, general scaffold requirements](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/29/1926.451)
- [City of Boulder, contractor licensing](https://bouldercolorado.gov/services/contractor-licensing)

## Contact

- office@neurobird.com
- https://neurobird.com/