Life cycle safety engineering: topics to consider
Think life cycle cost of equipment ownership is important? Consider life cycle safety engineering.
Because global and competitive issues are driving more companies to evaluate the life cycle cost of equipment ownership, life cycle safety engineering becomes an important aspect of the cost of ownership, according to Control Engineering Machine Safety blogger JB Titus, CFSE.
Titus says the term “life cycle safety” refers to all safety factors that could and should be taken into consideration for the life of a piece of equipment.
"These safety considerations begin at the concept stage of a project and continue through to the de-commissioning stage of the machine," Titus explains.
Some of the topics to consider include:
- Understanding all relevant and current codes and regulations
- Site modifications and construction
- Grounding and power provisions including arc flash
- Mechanical designs to minimize hazard points
- Electrical and controls designs to mitigate hazards.
For nine additional considerations and more advice from Titus, read the full Machine Safety blog posting, "Life cycle safety engineering."
Other machine safety feature articles from Control Engineering include:
- Safety ROI: Rockwell Automation advises on machine safety cost benefits
- Applying programmable safety PLCs
Also see related blog postings, products, news, and other articles on machine safety.
- Edited by Mark T. Hoske, Control Engineering, www.controleng.com.