Method Functional Safety
support@methodfs.com

Functional SafetyCertification

Functional Safety Certification for Products, Organisations and Solutions / Packages


=Method provides a range of Certification options. We can certify SIL capable products to IEC 61508, we can certify an organisation’s Functional Safety Management procedures, we can certify solutions and packages. We can issue a certificate in our own right, or help you to gain certification with other authorities.

If you would like to discuss your own Certification needs please contact us.


Certification of an Organisation’s FSM Capability

Edition 2 of IEC 61511 states that “If a supplier makes any functional safety claims for a product or service, which are used by the organization to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of this part of IEC 61511, the supplier shall have a functional safety management system”. If you provide any design, integration or consultancy services for any aspect of the Functional Safety Lifecycle, you must be able to demonstrate you have FSM in place. We can assist you to achieve compliance and / or certify that you have achieved this goal (typically by using the CASS scheme assessment methodology).

Certification of Packages / Solutions to IEC 61511 / IEC 61508

If you are a Systems Integrator or Package Vendor, you may wish to offer your clients formal certification that your design and build have been done according to the appropriate standards. We can assist you to be compliant and / or assess your work against the standards and issue formal certification of compliance. We can certify simple, single SIF solutions through to complex HIPPs systems.

Route 1 Product Certification to IEC 61508

If you are a product manufacturer, looking to develop a new field instrument, logic solver or final element, we can assist you to be compliant with the standard. As well as assistance / consultancy, we can assess the work you do (using independent assessors from those who acted as consultants) and formally certify the product to IEC 61508. If your market requires certification from other authorities, we can help you prepare for their assessment, prior to their certification process.

We have the experience to handle products from simple components through to those with complex embedded software.

Legacy Safety Systems Certification

Route 2 “Proven in Use” Product Certification to IEC 61508

If you are a product manufacturer, looking to certify an existing instrument or final element, we can assist you to demonstrate, via a “Proven in Use” assessment, that your product meets the requirements of the standard. The assessment will focus on the data you can provide on customer returns / failures, and is dependent on the amount of operational experience obtained, but will also require:

  • A formal FMEA (to identify the effectiveness of internal diagnostics and to support the failure rate obtained from analysis of returns data).
  • A review of your Functional Safety Management Systems (such as Control of Modifications).
  • A review of your manufacturing capability.

If the assessment is successful, we can formally certify the product to IEC 61508. If your market requires certification from other authorities, we can help you prepare for their assessment, prior to their certification process.

“Prior Use” Product Certification to IEC 61511

If you are an end user, trying to demonstrate that your installed (“legacy”) safety instrumented systems are giving the risk reduction they should, then a “Prior Use” analysis may be the way forward. The assessment will focus on the data you can provide on field performance and failures, and is dependent on the amount of operational experience obtained, but will also require consideration of:

  • The Quality Management systems of the manufacturer (at the time of supply)
  • The way the devices are identified and any limitations on use described in the device’s safety manual.
  • The effectiveness of Control of Modification procedures

If the assessment is successful, we can formally certify the SIL capability of the components used in your Safety Instrumented Functions.

See more about our Compliance Assessment Services here.

certification of products, organisations and people

Method Compliance Assessment

Method Compliance Assessment specialises in assessing and certifying components used in Safety Instrumented Functions. We help:

  • End users to demonstrate that installed and “legacy” instrumentation meets the requirements of IEC 61511 as being “Prior Use”.
  • Product manufacturers develop and certify their products to meet the requirements of IEC 61508
Jeni Lewthwaite

Jeni Lewthwaite - Managing Director of Method Compliance Assessment

Jeni leads our Compliance Assessment division and is our go-to person when we are looking at the certification of products, organisations and people.

See more at www.methodcompass.com.

E: support@methodfs.com. T: 44 (0)1462 713313. W: www.methodfs.com

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