Safety Standards 3 days (21h)

IEC 61508

Fundamentals of functional safety for software-intensive industrial systems according to IEC 61508.

Course Description

This IEC 61508 training introduces the international base standard for functional safety of electrical, electronic and programmable electronic (E/E/PE) safety-related systems and how to apply it in a project.

What the IEC 61508 training covers

The course covers the overall, hardware and software safety lifecycles, Safety Integrity Levels (SIL 1–4) and how they are determined, quantitative hardware targets (PFD/PFH, SFF, HFT), systematic capability, and the software techniques and documentation IEC 61508 expects at each SIL. The route to compliance and certification is explained.

Who should attend

Systems, hardware and software engineers, safety managers and project leads who must develop, assess or certify safety-related products against IEC 61508.

What you will learn

By the end, participants understand the safety lifecycle, can interpret SIL requirements and hardware metrics, and know what evidence is needed to demonstrate compliance.

Format and delivery

This course is delivered on-site or remotely by ISIT engineers and can be tailored to your team’s protocols, standards and experience level. Contact us to build a programme around your project.

Pedagogical Objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

  • Understand the general principles and development processes required to comply with IEC 61508 (system, electronics, software).
  • Understand how IEC 61508 implementation is modulated according to the SIL level.
  • Determine the actions and documents needed to justify compliance with IEC 61508.
  • Understand the provisions applicable when using tools or reusable components.
  • Understand the quantitative assessment of electronic parts (day 3).

Course Program

  • Introduction to IEC 61508: general overview; structure, general principles and safety life cycle; functional-safety assessment.
  • System view: objectives and requirements of the system phases; SIL determination and allocation; PHA, FMEA and FTA methods.
  • Software view: upstream phases (requirements by SIL, documentation); downstream phases (requirements by SIL); systematic capability and safety manual; dependability and reuse; component qualification (reuse, COTS); tool qualification.
  • Day 3 – Electronic hardware view: objectives and requirements of the E/E/PE phases; random failures and SIL; systematic failures and SIL, safety manual; FPGA view (FPGA life cycle, requirements by SIL).

Register for IEC 61508

Fill out the form below to register for this training or request a custom session for your team.