One of the main challenges facing manufacturing companies is their ability to keep their personnel free of accidents at their workstations, which can cause injuries and/or permanent disabilities, even death. This in turn generates economic losses for companies due to production stoppages, audits, damage to machinery, fines, indemnities, etc.
Therefore, it is important that companies adopt local regulations and international machine safety standards to mitigate the risks associated with machine operation. In Mexico, local regulations under the new NOM-004-STPS-2020 are in the process of being updated and represent an important turning point in the way companies implement safety systems, mainly because they now refer to international ISO standards, which describe the steps that make up the machine safety life cycle.
The machine safety life cycle can be composed of the following points:
Risk Assessment. This step is fundamental since it makes us clearly define the limits of the machinery to be evaluated, have a clear identification of all the hazards present in the machine, relate these hazards to the operations performed on the machine (operation, maintenance, adjustment, loading of materials, etc.) and, make an estimate of the risks related to these activities.
Subsequently, it is necessary to work on a risk reduction process, in which we will systematically eliminate hazards and reduce risks by implementing protective measures. This methodology seeks risk reduction through inherently safe design, protection by guards or safety devices and administrative measures. ISO 12100 details the methodology for documentation and verification of the risk analysis and risk reduction process.
Remediation and design of safety functions and their implementation on the machine. ISO 13849-1 and IEC 62061 define the process of designing safety control systems through functional safety, machinery functional safety management and system validation. The technologies involved in these systems have evolved so that they do not interfere with process productivity, are simpler to implement and are highly reliable devices, all while allowing users to interact with machine hazards in a safe manner.
Safety Validation. As detailed in ISO 13849-2, here an assessment is made to ensure that all protective measures installed on the machine during remediation have been completed in accordance with the Safety Plan and comply with the previously established design, engineering, installation and functional testing, and, through these safety measures, have reduced the risk to an acceptable risk level, typically an acceptable risk will not compromise workers to injury. In conclusion, the correct implementation of machine safety programs in the manufacturing industry will help ensure the well-being of personnel and the operational continuity of companies. The updated regulations in Mexico reinforce the importance of implementing a structured and systematic approach to the machine safety lifecycle through local and international standards.
Adopting these regulations not only minimizes risks and prevents accidents, but also contributes to the efficiency and sustainability of the sector, promoting a culture of safety that benefits both workers and organizations.that seriously or permanently disable them.