The story behind the "new" ISO 12100 Safety of Machinery
ISO 12100 was recently published in 2010. This "new" international standard is not as new as one might think. This is the story behind this new standard.
In the early 1990s, the European norm (standard ) EN292 Safety of machinery was in trouble. This standard was at risk of never been completed because there were concerns that not enough countries would vote to support publication. As a result the content of the standard was separated into three different standards: EN 292-1 terms and hazard identification, EN 292-2 risk reduction, and EN 1050 risk assessment. As it turned out the political resistance never materialized but by then the three standards had been started and were nearing completion. The standards were published in 1992 and 1995.
I am the chair of B11.0 and I'd like to share a bit of its story
Out with the old ANSI B11 TR3... in with ANSI B11.0!
The genesis of the current document can be traced back to late 1995 and the first meeting of what became ANSI B11 Technical Report #3 or more commonly known as B11 TR3. This meeting kicked off the development of a technical report on risk assessment. This effort was a direct result of the pending publication of EN 1050 on risk assessment in the EU. The purpose of TR3 was to form a single committee to write a US based risk assessment guide that could be used and referenced by the more than twenty B11 standards committees. This precluded each individual standard committee writing its own requirements.
Risk assessment has been around for decades. Various methodologies for identifying hazards, assessing risks, and reducing them have been developed over the years. One study found over 100 different safety analysis methods, many of which were barely distinguishable. The common theme behind most of the methods was to identify hazards, assess risks, and reduce risks to an acceptable level. For nearly all applications perhaps for methods are sufficient. And in most cases one safety analysis is usually adequate.
A little taste of Risk Assessment