Where to place an AED: location, cabinets and signs
For facility managers, mall and hotel operations teams, schools and site HSE: how to decide how many AEDs you need, where to mount them, which cabinet to use, and how to make sure people can find them.
Put each AED where it is most likely to be needed, in a visible place that people can reach quickly at any hour. UK resuscitation guidance suggests an AED within about 200 metres, or two minutes' brisk walk, of where it may be used, in an unlocked cabinet unless a risk assessment says otherwise. Mark it with the standard AED sign, add direction signs, tell staff where it is, and name someone to check it.
How many AEDs, and where?
The Resuscitation Council UK's guide to AEDs is a useful planning reference. It recommends placing AEDs where they are most likely to be needed, in a prominent position, as close as possible to the likely place of use, and suggests an AED should be accessible within 200 metres or two minutes' brisk walk. Where one device cannot cover that, plan more than one.
Walk the site with a floor plan. Mark where people gather or work in numbers, where the work is strenuous, and where help would take longest to arrive. Typical locations:
| Site | Places to consider |
|---|---|
| Office building | Main reception, each large floor near the lifts, gym or canteen |
| Mall | Customer service desks, food court, cinema, car park entrances |
| Hotel | Lobby, gym, pool, ballroom and conference level, staff areas |
| School or university | Reception, sports hall, pitch side, clinic, large lecture halls |
| Industrial site | Site clinic or first aid room, control room, workshop, gatehouse, remote work areas |
Check the time it takes to walk from the farthest point of each area to the nearest AED. Stairs, security doors and car parks add time that a straight-line distance on a plan does not show.
Access at all hours
An AED is only useful if someone can reach it when the emergency happens. The UK guide recommends availability 24 hours a day where possible, and Resuscitation Council UK suggests that schools consider placing an AED where the wider community can reach it rather than locking it inside the building. If part of your site closes at night, plan where the nearest reachable AED will be at those times.
Locked or unlocked cabinet?
The UK guidance recommends that AED cabinets should not be locked, and that a locked cabinet is used only after a careful risk assessment for that location. If you do lock a cabinet, make sure the code or key is available to anyone who may need it, for example printed on the cabinet or held at a staffed desk, so that nobody loses time. An alarmed but unlocked cabinet is a common middle ground for public areas. Store only the AED and its accessories in the cabinet, so nothing distracts the rescuer.
Heat, sun and dust
Every AED has a stated operating and standby temperature range. The Philips HeartStart FRx, for example, is rated 0 to 50 °C. An outdoor cabinet or an unshaded wall in a Qatar summer can exceed the range of many devices. Prefer indoor, air-conditioned locations; where an outdoor AED is needed, choose a shaded position and a cabinet suited to the temperature, and confirm the device's range from its data sheet. Our guide to choosing an AED compares the models we supply.
Signs and awareness
Mark each AED with the recognised AED sign (a white heart with a lightning bolt on green), and add direction signs from corridors, lifts and entrances so people can find it. Tell staff where the nearest AED is during induction and in emergency drills, and include AED locations in your site emergency plan and floor plans. Ask your local ambulance service whether it keeps a record of AED locations, so call handlers can direct callers to the nearest one.
Who checks it?
Name a person for each AED, and a back-up for when they are away. Agree how often they check the status indicator, pads and battery dates, and record each check. Our guide to AED pads and batteries sets out a simple checking routine and log.
Checklist before you order
- Floor plan with each proposed AED location and walking time to the farthest point it covers
- Opening hours of each area, and where the nearest AED is out of hours
- Indoor or outdoor mounting, and the temperature at each location
- Cabinet type for each location: open bracket, unlocked, alarmed or locked with access arrangements
- Signs: one at each AED and direction signs on the routes to it
- Named checker and back-up for each device
- Paediatric pads or key where children may be present
Products mentioned in this guide
Send us a floor plan or a list of areas, the number of people on site and opening hours. We will reply with an itemised QAR quotation for AEDs, cabinets and spare consumables.
Sources
- Resuscitation Council UK: A guide to AEDs (2 June 2019), accessed 4 November 2026
- Resuscitation Council UK: Guidance on defibrillators, accessed 4 November 2026
- Philips HeartStart FRx AED technical specifications (model 861304), accessed 1 November 2026
This guide covers equipment selection and upkeep. It is not medical or legal advice: follow your device's instructions for use and your organisation's safety procedures.