Overview
EN IEC 62061:2021/A2:2026 is an amendment to the internationally recognized standard for functional safety of safety-related control systems in machinery. Developed by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and adopted by CENELEC (CLC), this standard focuses on enhancing the safety and reliability of electrotechnical control systems that contribute to the overall safety of industrial machinery. The amendment brings updates and clarifications to help ensure machinery risk reduction through robust control system design and diagnostics, supporting compliance with European directives and global best practices.
This document is particularly relevant for machinery manufacturers, system integrators, and organizations that design, build, or operate machinery requiring safety-related control systems.
Key Topics
- Functional safety in machinery: Guidance for the development and evaluation of safety functions performed by control systems.
- Amendments to diagnostics and fault handling: Revised requirements and clarifications for detecting and responding to dangerous failures in subsystems to maintain or achieve a safe state.
- Enhanced rules for diagnosing dangerous failures, including test rates and reaction times.
- Special provisions for isolating faulty subsystems, especially where stopping the machine immediately would increase other risks.
- Clearer requirements for restoring operation only after faults are rectified.
- Performance and testing: Simplified approaches for estimating probabilities of dangerous failures (PFH) and validating diagnostic functions according to required safety integrity levels (SIL).
- Subsystem design: Updated guidance on the use of well-tried components and their impact on hardware fault tolerance (HFT) and SIL achievement.
- Component references: Updated references for devices such as emergency stop devices and enabling switches, aligned with relevant product standards (e.g., IEC 60947-5-5, ISO 13850).
Applications
EN IEC 62061:2021/A2:2026 applies to a broad range of industrial and commercial machinery applications, particularly where automated control systems are essential for safety. Typical uses include:
- Manufacturing equipment: Automated assembly lines, robotic systems, and production machinery where functional safety of control systems is critical.
- Process industries: Machinery for chemical, pharmaceutical, or food processing that requires reliable safety functions to protect operators and equipment.
- Material handling systems: Conveyor systems, cranes, and automated warehouses needing safe control responses to faults or hazardous conditions.
- Machine retrofits and upgrades: When updating older equipment to current safety standards, the standard’s guidance supports systematic risk reduction.
By implementing the requirements and recommendations set out in EN IEC 62061:2021/A2:2026, organizations can demonstrate compliance with machinery safety regulations, reduce operational risks, and enhance confidence in their safety-related control systems.
Related Standards
Adherence to EN IEC 62061:2021/A2:2026 often involves coordination with several related standards:
- IEC 61508 - Functional safety of electrical/electronic/programmable electronic safety-related systems (foundation standard for functional safety).
- ISO 13849-1 - Safety of machinery - Safety-related parts of control systems - General principles for design.
- IEC 60947-5-5 - Low-voltage switchgear and controlgear - Control circuit devices and switching elements - Electrical emergency stop devices.
- ISO 13850 - Safety of machinery - Emergency stop function.
These standards work together to provide a comprehensive framework for ensuring the functional safety of machinery control systems. Compliance with EN IEC 62061:2021/A2:2026 supports robust risk management, legal compliance, and fosters a culture of safety in automated industrial environments.
