Post updated 2019-07-24. Ed. What is Diagnostic Coverage? Understanding Diagnostic Coverage (DC) as it is used in ISO 13849 – 1 [1] is critical to analysing the design of any safety function assessed using this standard. In case you missed a previous part of the series, you can read it here. In the last instalment of this series discussing…
Read MoreISO 13849 – 1 Analysis — Part 4: MTTFD – Mean Time to Dangerous Failure
Post updated 2019-07-24. Ed. Functional safety is all about the likelihood of a safety system failing to operate when you need it. Understanding Mean Time to Dangerous Failure, or MTTFD, is critical. If you have been reading about this topic at all, you may notice that I am abbreviating Mean Time to Dangerous Failure with all capital…
Read MoreISO 13849 – 1 Analysis — Part 3: Architectural Category Selection
Post updated 2019-07-24. Ed. At this point, you have completed the risk assessment, assigned required Performance Levels to each safety function, and developed the Safety Requirement Specification for each safety function. Next, you need to consider three aspects of the system design: Architectural Category, Channel Mean Time to Dangerous Failure (MTTFD), and Diagnostic Coverage (DCavg). In…
Read MoreISO 13849 – 1 Analysis — Part 2: Safety Requirement Specification
This article was updated 2019-07-24. Ed. Developing the Safety Requirement Specification The Safety Requirement Specification sounds pretty heavy, but actually, it is just a big name for a way to organize the information you need to have to analyze and design the safety systems for your machinery. Note that I am assuming that you are doing this in…
Read MoreISO 13849 – 1 Analysis — Part 1: Start with Risk Assessment
This post was updated 2019-07-24 I often get questions from clients about how to get started on Functional Safety using ISO 13849. This article is the first in a series that will walk you through the basics of using ISO 13849. Keep in mind that you will need to hold a copy of the 3rd edition of ISO 13849 – 1 [1]…
Read MoreNew CSA Standard for Machinery Electrical Equipment
Electrical Equipment of Machinery Most modern machinery is controlled electrically, or electronically. There are a number of standards that apply to the design of control systems for machinery, with IEC 60204 – 1 and it’s EN equivalent, along with IEC 61439 – 1 and IEC 61439 – 2 as the predominant standards internationally, and NFPA 79 as the predominant standard in the…
Read MoreNew Directions in Plastics Machinery
Canada’s Participation in ISO TC 270 In February of 2016, Canada formed the SCC Mirror Committee (SMC) to ISO TC 270, Rubber and Plastics Machinery. This international technical committee is currently developing ISO 20430, the first international plastic injection moulding machine standard. Until the publication of ISO 20430, two standards have been fighting for dominance: EN 201, Plastics and…
Read MoreWorkplace Risk Assessment – CSA Z1002: Love it, Hate it, Tweak it
The CSA Z1002 TC Needs to Know: Love it, Hate it, Tweak it? We need to know: Do you Love CSA Z1002? Hate CSA Z1002? Does it need some tweaking? The First of Its Kind In 2012, CSA published the first OHS Risk Assessment Standard of its kind: CSA Z1002, Occupational health and safety — Hazard identification and elimination and…
Read More“Industrial Exception” Becomes Permanent in Ontario
The “Industrial Exception” The “Industrial Exception” is a clause in the Ontario Professional Engineer’s Act that permits unlicensed people to do work normally reserved for licenced engineers. Ontario is the only Canadian Province or Territory to have this kind of exception. Ontario Fall Economic Outlook The Ontario Government committed to maintaining the “industrial exception” in the Professional…
Read MoreCSA Z432 Third Edition Open for Public Review!
CSA Z432, Safeguarding of Machinery, is the basic standard for Canada when it comes to most types of machinery. Only Power Presses and Press Brakes, and Industrial Robots are covered separately in their own standards. CSA Z432 provides guidance on important topics, like: Risk Assessment Risk reduction through the Hierarchy of Controls Guard design requirements…
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