About The 61508 Association

​The 61508 Association is a group of companies with an interest in gaining the full benefits of the successful implementation of IEC 61508 and related standards. A principal aim is to promote the demonstration of compliance to these standards.

The four principles of membership:

1. Members recognise IEC 61508 and related standards as the benchmark for achieving functional safety and managing risks in a proportionate way;
2. When members apply IEC 61508 and related standards they do so properly in all respects relating to their role in the safety life cycle;
3. Members demonstrate compliance with IEC 61508 and related standards by using a method which has integrity, transparency and consistency (for example, the CASS methodology);
4. Members participate actively in the work of the Association.

Who are we

Our members include end users, system integrators, manufacturers of sub-systems and components, consultants and certification bodies. Observers include the UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) as well as companies and individuals who are considering the advantages of membership.

What we do

The Association is run by the members through meetings and correspondence.

At any one time there are a number of working groups (WGs) which report to the members through the general meetings. WGs are formed to develop industry guidance on specific topics as needs are identified. Each WG is given a brief to review with a specified scope and deliverable. Completed deliverables are typically presented at an Association meeting after which the WG is disbanded. Examples of the output from our WGs can be seen under the following pages:

Downloads

Dedicated to helping our members

As safety systems have become more complex so the need has grown to provide confidence that they will perform in the intended manner whenever they are called upon to do so. IEC 61508, provides a framework for all parties to work together to ensure that systems operate to the required level of integrity. Whether you are a specifier, designer, manufacturer, integrator, installer, operator or maintainer of safety systems, you need to find out how 61508 can help.

We enable our members to (member benefits):

• Participate in the forefront of forming the latest industry guidance
• Influence the policies and practices of regulators and conformity assessment bodies
• Learn from authoritative speakers invited to present at our meetings
• Meet with other members across the supply chain to share knowledge, optimise the application of IEC 61508 (including related standards) and for networking opportunities

Conformity assessment tools

With so much resting on the integrity of safety systems, there is a necessity to demonstrate compliance to the standard at every level, whether it be an organisation’s functional safety management, the safety system itself or the components that form the system. The Conformity Assessment of Safety-related Systems (CASS) scheme was originally set-up by industry for industry with backing from the UK Government to provide the tools for this purpose (see Downloads).

Association administration

• The general meetings of members appoint a chair and a treasurer who, together with a representative of each working group / steering committee, form the association management committee.
• This management committee is responsible for the implementation of the policies agreed by the members in general meeting.
• The coordinator provides the administration for the meetings, communications, membership applications and subscriptions.
• The costs of running the association are shared by the members and covered through an annual subscription.