Meeting functional safety requirements helps minimize the possibility of a systematic or design-based issue by examining the potential failures and reducing the probability of those failures.

The evaluation of systems, components, and software to assess compliance with applicable functional safety standards requirements provides designers, owners, operators, and other stakeholders with increased confidence that:

• Processes and equipment operate as expected
• Products meet industry requirements
• Risk has been considered in the design

The basic safety publication, which is widely accepted, IEC 61508, provides a firm foundation for the specification, design, and operation of electrical, electronic, and software-controlled safety-related systems. It also forms the basis for related industry-sector standards, such as:

• IEC 61511 – Functional safety – Safety instrumented systems for the process industry sector.
• IEC 62061 – Safety of machinery – Functional safety of safety-related control systems.
• EN 50271 – Electrical apparatus for the detection and measurement of combustible gases, toxic gases, or oxygen –  Requirements and tests for apparatus using software and/or digital technologies.
• EN 50402 – Electrical apparatus for the detection and measurement of combustible or toxic gases or vapours or of oxygen – Requirements for the functional safety of gas detection systems.

Equipment suppliers may also leverage functional safety certifications to gain market advantage, access new markets, and attract customers who require products that meet a given safety integrity level (SIL) for use in their safety-related applications or systems.