Free DesignSpark Safety tool for machine risk assessments

DesignSpark Safety is an embedded software tool that comes with associated support materials to provide designers with a risk score for their planned product development. The tool can aid the provision of CE Marking documentation, as well as helping in the reduction of potential hazards and ensuring compliance with the global ISO 12100 machinery safety standard, which specifies basic terminology, principles and a methodology for achieving safety in the design of machinery. Key target users are therefore expected to find significant value in the tool, including industrial machinery designers and integrators, along with industrial engineers tasked with improving safety standards on existing machinery.

Failing to comply with relevant safety standards and producing unsafe machines can create the risk of injury or even death. The new tool helps machine builders and machine designers to meet relevant regulations, standards and directives, and minimise the risk of injury to those employed in industries such as manufacturing and processing.

In-house risk assessments

DesignSpark Safety can also mean significantly reduced costs for users by removing the need for potentially costly external consultants to carry out detailed risk assessments. Although spreadsheet templates are commonly used in the industry as a more affordable alternative to consultants, they do not always provide an appropriate level of detail and may not provide the relevant documentation upon completion.

Mike Bray, Vice President of DesignSpark at RS, says: "DesignSpark Safety is the first powerful and free risk-assessment tool to be made available in the industry. In addition to expanding the DesignSpark portfolio, the software delivers exceptionally easy access to a professional solution for all engineers by removing the barriers of cost and complexity. Embedding safety into their product development enables the streamlining of designs and the avoidance of costly retrofit solutions."

While the initial global release of DesignSpark Safety is in English, additional language versions including French, German, Japanese and Simplified Chinese are planned for launch in November 2017.

Available now, DesignSpark Safety is free to access and available to all members of the RS DesignSpark community at www.designspark.com, along with articles, tools and many other product design and development resources. These include the other free professional software tools in the DesignSpark portfolio comprising software to manage product obsolescence, as well as tools for PCB design, mechanical design and electrical design.