Basic machine safety standards.

Standards are an important tool for ensuring machine safety, helping to comply with machine safety requirements and regulations. Standards create a uniform approach to risk management and the implementation of safety measures. EN ISO standards relating to machine safety are classified as type A, B and C standards.

Type A standards focus on general principles and concepts of machine safety that can be applied to different machines. The key Type A standard is EN ISO 12100, which defines the basic principles of safe machine design and methods for assessing and reducing risks. The standard forms the basis for safe machine design and risk management.

Type B standards focus on specific safety aspects and protective measures, such as safe distances, the use of protective devices and control systems. For example, among the Type B standards, EN ISO 13857 defines safe distances to prevent upper and lower limbs from entering hazardous areas. EN ISO 14118 deals with the prevention of unwanted start-up. EN ISO 13849-1:2015 is a standard that defines guidelines for the design of safety-related control systems.

Type C standards are machine-specific guidance documents that contain precise safety requirements for specific types of machinery. These standards are used when it is necessary to ensure compliance with the safety requirements for a specific type of machine. If a Type C standard does not contain specific references to hazards, it cannot serve as a guide for risk management. In this case, the responsibility falls to the machine designer, who must assess the risks and decide what measures are necessary to control them. However, it is important to remember that risk management alone is not sufficient to prove that a machine complies with all the requirements of the regulations.