Safety – Front End Engineering Design Study

Safety FEED begins once the risk assessment has been completed and the client has reviewed and accepted the report. With the hazards identified, estimated, and evaluated, and the required risk reduction measures agreed, the focus shifts from analysis to solution design.

At this stage our machine safety experts and safety automation engineers carry out a dedicated design-focused walkdown. Unlike the risk assessment walkdown, whose purpose is to identify and evaluate hazards, this visit is about how each risk reduction measure can realistically be engineered into this specific machine, layout, and working environment. We engage directly with operators and maintenance personnel to understand how the equipment is actually used, so that proposed solutions are practical, maintainable, and do not compromise throughput or operational efficiency.

Both disciplines work as one team, translating the risk reduction measures into engineered safety concepts following the risk reduction hierarchy of EN ISO 12100: inherently safe design first, then safeguarding and complementary protective measures. Where safety functions are required, we define them, allocate the required Performance Level (PLr) under EN ISO 13849-1, and set out the safety-related control system architecture at concept level. Throughout, European harmonised standards are applied continuously, not as abstract requirements that are hard to interpret on the shop floor, but translated into concrete, workable solutions that still meet the state of the art and satisfy the legal requirements of the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC and the Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230.

Each concept is developed with usability, maintenance, and production performance in mind, and paired with an implementation roadmap and a budget estimate. The result is a set of agreed, engineered and costed safety concepts, giving a clear and confident foundation for detailed design and implementation.”