Product category:
Machine Safety Monitoring and Control
News Release from: Pilz Automation Technology
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 14 March 2003
CASS certification shows IEC61508
compliance
Pilz Automation Technology has achieved certification in accordance with the CASS guide to Functional Safety Capability Assessment.
Following an intensive assessment by the Sira Certification Service, Pilz Automation Technology has achieved certification in accordance with the CASS guide to Functional Safety Capability Assessment This confirms that the company possesses the expertise, associated competencies and internal system management suitable and sufficient to provide products, services and systems up to Safety Integrity Level (SIL) 3 under Phase 9 of the IEC61508 lifecycle phases
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 4 Aug 2008 at 8.00am (UK)
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Pilz has developed a structured method for inspecting the safety-critical elements of plant and machinery to enable the suitability of the safety measures to be validated.
Courses cover safety standards and products
Having sold out many of its training courses during the first half of the year, Pilz Automation Technology has now published its course timetable for July to December 2008.
The CASS certificate was awarded in November 2002 and Pilz is only the sixth UK company to have achieved this exceptionally high standard.
CASS (Conformity Assessment of Safety Related Systems) is a DTI sponsored certification scheme that was initiated to encourage the development and implementation of safety-related systems in line with the requirements of IEC61508 (Functional safety of electrical/electronic/programmable electronic safety related systems).
There is a requirement within IEC61508 for the Management of Functional Safety and this forms the basis of the CASS Functional Safety Capability Assessment (FSCA).
Further reading
Monitoring relays allow easy setup
Menu-driven parameter setting is easy, quick and error-proof thanks to the plain text display and a turn-and-click encoder.
Configurator upgrade provides new control options
Status is indicated via LEDs on the front of the analogue input module and, if installed, via the PVIS intelligent diagnostics system and a suitable Pilz display.
Sira Certification Service is a UKAS (UK accreditation service) accredited assessor and has now successfully completed its FSCA assessment of Pilz, leading to the CASS conformity and certificate being awarded.
In the same way that quality assurance accreditations cover specific company activities, the scope of a FSCA assessment is also clearly defined in each case.
Pilz Automation is approved to provide products, services and systems up to SIL 3 under Phase 9 of the IEC 61508 lifecycle phases, Phase 9 being the realisation phase covering design and supply of hardware-based systems and the design and supply of integrated hardware and software systems, verified and validated as fulfilling the client's safety requirements specification (SRS).
Pilz Automation can assist with developing the SRS or customers can provide their own against which a Functional Safety Requirement is prepared.
The hardware design follows from this and, where appropriate, the software design and coding.
Finally, the overall function of the integrated safety related system is validated against the SRS.
When the hardware and software are delivered, they are accompanied by a fully auditable documentation package based on IEC61508 phase 9.
Now Pilz Automation has achieved CASS certification, the company is able to provide customers with IEC61508-compliant products, systems and services.
This is also a further indication of the highly professional, market-leading approach taken by Pilz Automation, underlining the company's position at the forefront of machinery and process safety.
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