Overview of generic standards (A+B standards)

The basis for plant and machinery safety

Standards are agreements between different interest groups (manufacturers, consumers, notified bodies, health and safety authorities and governments). They describe the state of the art at the time they are produced. Depending on the application site of the machine or product, various statutory regulations may apply, making it necessary to apply various standards. Selecting correctly helps the machine manufacturer to comply with statutory requirements.

Generic standards (A and B standards) contain essential information on design, strategy and operation - for the safety of plant and machinery.

The most important generic standards / A and B standards:

Risk assessment/risk reduction, functional safety and safety-related requirements
Safety of machinery - General principles for design - Risk assessment and risk reduction	EN ISO 12100
Safety of machinery - Safety-related parts of control systems	EN ISO 13849-1/-2
Safety of machinery - Functional safety of safety-related control systems	IEC 62061
Pneumatic fluid power - General rules and safety requirements for systems and their components	EN ISO 4414
Hydraulic fluid power - General rules and safety requirements for systems and their components	EN ISO 4413
Safety of machinery - Electrical equipment of machines	EN IEC 60204 series
Low-voltage switchgear and controlgear	EN IEC 60947-5 series

Selection of safeguards
Safety of machinery - Guards - General requirements for the design and construction of fixed and movable guards	EN ISO 14120
Safety of machinery - Interlocking devices associated with guards - Principles for design and selection	EN ISO 14119
Safety of machinery - Prevention of unexpected start-up	EN ISO 14118
Safety of machinery - Electro-sensitive protective equipment (e.g. light grids, light barriers, light curtains, laser scanners, etc.)	EN IEC 61496-1/-2/-3
Safety of machinery - Pressure sensitive protective devices (e.g. pressure-sensitive safety mats)	EN ISO 13856-1/-2/-3
Safety of machinery - Two-hand control devices - Functional aspects - Principles for design.	EN ISO 13851
Safety of machinery - Emergency stop - Principles for design	EN ISO 13850

Additional protective measures – Safety of machinery
Safety distances (protection of upper/lower limbs)	EN ISO 13857
Minimum gaps to avoid crushing of parts of the human body	EN ISO 13854
Human body measurements, access to machinery, access openings, anthropometric data	EN 547-1/-2/-3
Positioning of safeguards with respect to approach speeds	EN ISO 13855

Safeguards are necessary to protect people as much as possible from hazards that may arise during machine operation. It is the duty of the manufacturer to select an appropriate safeguard. This must neither increase the risk nor obstruct work on the machine. It's in the manufacturer's interests to provide precise justification for any decision not to equip certain moving parts with safeguards.

Overview

Safe design

The Machinery Directive defines specific steps as the basis for the safe design of machinery. EN ISO 12100 explains these risk assessment methods. Useful facts for manufacturers and operators.

Safe design

Pneumatic equipment

Useful facts for pneumatics – Basic principles and appropriate protective measures in accordance with EN ISO 4414.

Pneumatic equipment

Safeguards on plant and machinery

Here you'll find information, definitions and boundaries for guards and protective devices and tampering thereof, each with a reference to the corresponding standards.

Safeguards on plant and machinery