(Source: Gorodenkoff/stock.adobe.com)
In high-risk industries, such as manufacturing, energy, and mining, machines often concentrate immense mechanical, electrical, thermal, pneumatic, or chemical energy sources. A minor design flaw, software bug, or operator error can cascade into catastrophic consequences.
According to the National Safety Council, in the United States alone, over 4 million medically consulted work injuries and 4,500+ fatalities were recorded in 2023.[1] These statistics underscore why machine safety is non-negotiable in any automation environment. It is now a core value and design principle that must be built into every process and system.
From a design perspective, modern automation integrates functional safety to prevent accidents. This could include implementing redundant, fail-safe controls, so that if a device malfunctions or the operator makes an error, the system detects the danger and automatically moves to a safe state. For example, a robot may have light curtains or laser scanners that halt motion if a person steps too close, or a chemical reactor may have automated shutdown interlocks if temperature or pressure falls outside a safe range. International safety standards define this approach through a risk-based framework for the design of safety-related electrical and electronic systems.
This blog lays out some of the standards and certifications from organizations that ensure industrial automation moves forward with protections in place for both machine and worker.
Across all industrial environments, safety must be engineered into technology and ingrained in work practices. This is achieved by adhering to well-established standards and guidelines throughout the design, operation, and maintenance of equipment. The following are major organizations that develop these safety standards and the scope of their influence.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is a global, non-governmental standards organization that develops and publishes a wide range of international standards across all industries. For the safety of machinery and industrial equipment, ISO has several important standards, including ISO 12100 and ISO 13849.
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a global standards body that focuses on electrotechnical and electronic standards. In the context of safety, IEC’s domain covers all electrical and electronic aspects of equipment, ranging from circuit breaker specifications to the safety of complex automated systems.
One of the most important safety standards is IEC 61508, the core functional safety standard that provides a comprehensive lifecycle for the design, implementation, and maintenance of systems that perform safety functions.
Beyond functional safety, IEC also publishes critical hardware-oriented safety standards. For instance, IEC 60204-1 specifies electrical safety requirements for machinery, including proper grounding and emergency-stop circuitry. The IEC 62061 series covers the functional safety of safety-related control systems. These specifications apply to machine control systems and align with the IEC 61508 framework.
The International Society of Automation (ISA) is a US-based nonprofit professional association developed by international experts, and its standards are approved and accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The most crucial ISA safety standard is ISA-84, which is equivalent to IEC 61511 (i.e., functional safety for process industries) and covers safety instrumented systems (SIS) in the process industry.
The ISA-84 standard provides detailed guidance for every phase of the safety lifecycle, from initial risk assessment and Safety Integrity Level (SIL) determination to the design and engineering of the SIS, through maintenance, testing, and eventual decommissioning. One important aspect of this standard is that it emphasizes creating a safety requirements specification and maintaining documentation to ensure the SIS is appropriately managed over the long term.
Having all the standards on paper is one thing, but it is vital to ensure that real-world industrial systems and facilities meet them. This is where certification, testing, and conformity assessment come into play. Various organizations and schemes exist to certify that a component, machine, or system complies with the relevant safety standards.
One familiar example is the CE marking in the European Union (EU). CE marking is a regulatory conformity mark that indicates a product meets the essential requirements of all applicable EU directives.[2] To affix a CE mark, manufacturers must ensure their product complies with European standards, many of which are ISO/IEC standards. They often must have an independent Notified Body conduct tests or reviews of certain high-risk products.
In North America, certifications from organizations such as UL Solutions and the CSA Group are considered standard. A UL listing or CSA mark on equipment indicates the organization has tested the product and found it compliant with their relevant safety standards, which often align with ANSI/IEC standards. For example, having a UL 508A label means that the industrial control panel’s construction and components meet fire and shock protection requirements. While UL certification is not required by federal law in the United States, many local codes and industrial customers do need it.
Of course, complying with safety standards and regulations is not just about avoiding fines. It’s fundamentally about protecting lives. However, when organizations do cut corners and neglect safety, the consequences can be severe.
The first and foremost consequence is the human cost of safety failure. But companies that forget this can also expect to pay very steep financial penalties. Regulators worldwide impose fines and legal liability on businesses that violate safety laws and standards, especially if negligence is proven.
For example, in the United States, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) routinely inspects workplaces and issues citations. The fines per violation can range in the tens of thousands of dollars—sometimes more. A 2023 OSHA case investigation showed a manufacturer in Alabama was fined nearly US$185,000 after a 20-year-old worker was killed while caught in an unguarded machine part.[3]
Safety in automation and industrial environments is a complex ecosystem that involves strict standards, diligent engineering, continuous training, and third-party oversight. But everything boils down to a simple truth: Every worker’s life is priceless, and every accident is preventable with the proper precautions.
With this foundational understanding of the regulatory bodies and safety standards that keep workers and machines safe, the next blog in this automation safety series examines the risk assessment procedures that ensure that safety is maintained in industrial facilities.
[1] https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/work/work-overview/work-safety-introduction/ [2] https://europa.eu/youreurope/business/product-requirements/labels-markings/ce-marking/index_en.htm [3] https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/osha/osha20230705
Abhishek Jadhav received his M.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering and started his career as a technical writer. He has over five years’ experience working as a freelance technical writer, with key interests in power electronics and embedded systems. His work has appeared in EE Times, embedded.com, and Power Electronics News, among others.
