APPLY THE GUIDANCE TO YOUR MACHINE
Send the machine layout and the guarding requirements identified by your project team. Include access tasks, supply boundaries and any decisions still open.
This page explains the international machinery risk assessment principles. Our EN ISO 12100 guide covers the European reference checks, project interfaces and supply brief for an EU machine.
EN ISO 12100: European project guidanceSend what you have and flag the decisions still open. We can discuss a modular guard configuration around your project requirements and define the supply scope for a quotation.
Send your guarding brief Explore the steel machine guard systemThe hazard can be eliminated by design
Consider whether the hazardous movement, access requirement or manual task can be removed or reduced. For example, automation, remote adjustment, enclosed material handling or reduced-force operation may eliminate the need for regular access to a hazard.
Access is not required during normal operation
A fixed guard will often be an appropriate safeguarding method. ISO 14120 provides more specific guidance on the selection and design of fixed and movable guards.
Regular access is required for loading, cleaning or adjustment
A movable guard, interlocked access door, protective device or another safeguarding arrangement may be required. The method must account for the hazard, access frequency and potential for reasonably foreseeable misuse. Where protection relies on hazardous motion stopping before a person can reach the danger zone, stopping time and the associated safety distance must also be assessed.
Personnel can enter an automated cell
The assessment should consider entrapment, restart prevention, reset location, access control, hazardous stored energy and the risk of unexpected start-up. Perimeter fencing alone may not provide adequate protection.
The process includes conveyors or material openings
Product-entry and exit points must be assessed for access to rollers, transfer points, automated machinery or other hazards. Materials must be able to pass through without creating an uncontrolled route for people to enter the danger area.
A guard is likely to be bypassed or removed
The design should account for reasonably foreseeable defeat or misuse. Guards that obstruct legitimate production, cleaning or maintenance tasks are more likely to be bypassed. Practical access arrangements are therefore central to effective risk reduction.
The machine is being modified or retrofitted
Changes to tooling, speed, process flow, automation, guarding or controls can introduce new hazards. The risk assessment should be reviewed before the modified machinery is returned to service.
Common issues include:
A modular guarding system can provide an effective physical barrier, but its suitability depends on the risk assessment, guard layout, access strategy and integration with the complete machine.
Continue from risk assessment
Once the risk assessment defines the safeguarding need, related standards help convert it into physical dimensions, access arrangements and safety functions.
Use it for the general design, construction and selection of fixed and movable guards.
Guard design guideUse it when guard height, openings and hazard setback must prevent reach by upper or lower limbs.
Safety-distance guideUse it when movable guards require interlocking devices and foreseeable defeat needs to be addressed.
Interlocking guideUse it when safeguard position depends on approach, response time and machine stopping performance.
Positioning guideUse the hub to navigate the core standards by the engineering decision in front of you.
Explore all core ISO standardsISO 12100 is an international standard that sets out general principles for machinery risk assessment and risk reduction. It helps machinery designers, manufacturers, integrators and users identify hazards and select appropriate protective measures.
Not specifically. ISO 12100 provides the overall risk-assessment and risk-reduction process for machinery. Guarding standards such as ISO 14120, ISO 13857 and ISO 14119 address more specific aspects of guard design, safety distances and interlocking.
The three-step method is:
The hierarchy is important. Information, warnings and training should not replace practicable design changes or safeguarding measures.
ISO 12100 provides a methodology for machinery risk assessment and risk reduction. Its process involves defining machine limits, identifying hazards, estimating and evaluating risk, and applying risk-reduction measures. The legal requirement to carry out a risk assessment depends on the applicable jurisdiction, machinery legislation and workplace obligations.
No. ISO 12100 does not set universal guard dimensions. Guard height, mesh aperture, floor clearance and hazard setback should be determined through the risk assessment and relevant standards, including ISO 13857.
ISO 12100 provides the overall process for machinery risk assessment and risk reduction. ISO 14120 addresses the general design, construction and selection requirements for fixed and movable guards.
Yes. ISO 12100 principles can be used to assess existing machinery, retrofit guarding and machinery modifications. However, ISO 12100 is principally intended to support the design of machinery and risk reduction; local legal duties for existing workplace machinery must also be considered.
Yes. ISO 12100’s risk-assessment process considers risks arising across the relevant phases of the machinery lifecycle. This includes set-up, cleaning, adjustment, maintenance, fault recovery and other non-production tasks.
No. Training and procedures can support safe operation, but they are not normally a substitute for practicable inherently safe design measures, physical guards or other safeguarding measures identified by the risk assessment.
The assessment should be completed by people with suitable knowledge of the machinery, its intended use, hazards, operating tasks and relevant machinery-safety principles. Complex machinery may require input from mechanical, electrical, controls and functional-safety specialists.
