The Australian Computer Society

The international standard IEC 61508 addresses the functional safety of programmable safety-related systems and is taken to reflect current good practice. Not only technical programmes but also legal frameworks will expect adherence to it and customers are already calling on suppliers to conform to it.

IEC 61508 is a meta-standard, from which sector-specific standards are intended to be drafted. Already such standards are on trial or in draft in such industry sectors as process, rail and medicine, and more are planned. So the principles of this standard are of the greatest significance to anyone with responsibility for safety.

This 1-day course explains what the standard is, what its objectives are, and how it sets out to achieve its objectives. It explains the technical principles on which the standard is based and the implications of the standard for the management of safety.

The course is intended for all persons who need or want an understanding of the standard, including general managers, project managers, safety and risk managers and assessors, software engineers, and others. No prior knowledge of the standard, or of risk assessment, is assumed.

About the presenter

Felix Redmill is a leading international authority on the new functional safety standard IEC 61508. Felix is the co-ordinator of the Safety Critical Systems Club, which is based in the UK but whose membership comprises safety professionals from around the world. He has played a role in European pre-standardisation work since 1983 and lectured at a number of universities in the UK and continental Europe. He has provided consulting and training to large and small companies in both the public and the private sectors, and has written and edited a number of books on technical subjects, the most recent being on hazard and operability studies (HAZOP).

Course outline

The main topics covered are:

• Overview and background.

• What the standard is and what its aims are.

• Structure of the standard.

• Vocabulary and definitions.

• The safety lifecycle.

• Risk assessment.

• Safety integrity levels (SILs).

• Safety requirements and safety targets.

• The draft standard's treatment of documentation.

• Claiming conformity with the draft standard.

• Impact on safety management, safety planning and assessment.

The course is sponsored by the ACS's Technical Committee on Safety Critical Systems and
the Victorian Chapter of the Systems Engineering Society of Australia.

Registration form

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