Jon Severn, Editor of MachineBuilding.net, offers some useful pointers for risk assessments on machinery.
Risk assessments are key to the safety of machinery, paving the way for risk reduction measures that are both effective and economical. Here in the UK, the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA) states that it shall be the duty of every employer to ensure "so far as is reasonable practicable" (SFAIRP) the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees - which implies that the cost of safeguarding should be commensurate with the risks. This is not the same elsewhere, and this important phrase in British health and safety law was recently challenged by the European Commission, which claimed that the use of the phrase did not implement the Framework Directive 89/391/EEC. However, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) dismissed the European Commission's case and ordered it to pay the UK Government's costs. There is a press release about this case on the HSE's website.
MachineBuilding.net has details of a number of companies that offer software-based utilities for performing risk assessments, as well as companies that can carry out risk assessments on a contract basis. These tend to be based on the requirements of EN 1050:1996 Safety of machinery - Principles for risk assessment.
For example, Procter Machine Guarding has a useful free Risk Assessment Calculator, which is based on a spreadsheet and uses checklists and look-up tables to enable risk assessments to be carried out on almost any static machinery. For each identified hazard, the user enters the data and selects values for the 'Likelihood of Occurrence', 'Frequency of Exposure', 'Degree of Possible Harm' and the 'Number of Persons at Risk'. A Hazard Rating Number (HRN) and Risk Level are calculated automatically, so the user can see where further action may be necessary.
Laidler Associates offers a more comprehensive Risk Management Software System that covers both CE marking and PUWER assessments. This is aimed at managing risks throughout the working environment, not just machinery.
Another useful software package is available from IBF Automatisierungs und Sicherheitstechnik, known as IBF Safexpert 5.4, which was developed for CE marking and incorporates an EN 1050 risk assessment procedure.
If you just want written guidance, there is a chapter in the Pilz Guide to Machinery Safety that deals with risk assessment. This can be downloaded from the Pilz website as a PDF file: www.pilznews.com/downloads_gms.htm.
For companies that would prefer to use consultants, the following companies offer this service: Conformance, ISS Safety Ltd, Laidler Associates, Pilz Automation Technology, PR Safety Ltd, Smartscan, TRL Compliance Ltd and TUV Rheinland Group.
New risk assessment standard
Currently EN 1050 is harmonised to the Machinery Directive, which means that complying with it is not a legal requirement but will normally be sufficient to meet the Essential Health and Safety Requirements of the Directive. However, the Machinery Directive only applies in Europe, and the standard itself is European, not international, so machine builders exporting to other countries should check whether they need to comply with another risk assessment standard.
In September 2007 ISO announced that it had published ISO 14121-1:2007, Safety of machinery - Risk assessment - Part 1: Principles. Furthermore, the CEN website states that EN ISO 14121-1:2007 was ratified on 4 August 2007, and the BSI website (www.bsi-global.com) now states that BS EN 1050:1997 is withdrawn and superseded by BS EN ISO 14121-1:2007.
ISO/TR 14121-2:2007 Safety of machinery - Risk assessment - Part 2: Practical guidance and examples of methods was published on 3 December 2007. This gives practical guidance on conducting risk assessments for machinery in accordance with ISO 14121-1. It describes various methods and tools for each step in the process, plus it provides practical guidance on risk reduction for machinery, with additional guidance on the selection of appropriate protective measures for achieving safety. You can read the review of ISO/TR 14121-2 but be sure to also read the Criticism of ISO Technical Report ISO/TR 14121-2.
MachineBuilding.net has also prepared a technical paper that highlights The differences between EN 1050 and EN ISO 14121-1.
Because ISO 14121-1 is an international standard and is superseding EN 1050, it is definitely worth a look - whether or not you are exporting machinery.
Meanwhile, additional news about machinery risk assessments will be added to this article as it becomes available.
Jon Severn
