Machines are used extensively in industrial applications such as assembly, packaging, robotics, material handling, and many others. It helps to improve production efficiency in the workplace. It is important to protect and secure the machine and the operators working on them. Machines have the potential to cause damage and severe injuries in the workplace. Safeguarding the machines, and its parts, processes, or function, is essential to protect the workforce from accidents and injuries. Machine safety systems reduce the probability of work-related injuries, thereby enhancing machine operators’ efficiency.
The machine safety market has witnessed significant growth over the last few years owing to the growing emphasis on safety in the industrial sector, backed by strong government regulations. According to a recent market research report, the machine safety market is expected to grow from USD 4.37 billion in 2018 to USD 6.58 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 6 per cent. The increasing number of accidents at the workplace, along with the rising emphasis on proactive industrial safety is driving the growth of the machine safety market. In the year 2019, forty thousand people met with an accident due to occupational hazards in the manufacturing industry in India.
One of the main reason for these accidents and hazards is the lack of health and safety awareness, the absence of a robust machinery safety act and ignorance towards operations. The workforce must be aware of the risks involved and follow safety practices.
TÜV Rheinland offers state-of-the-art testing services to ensure your machinery complies with domestic and international standards and requirements. We test products for safety, function, and quality to minimise risks caused by defective machinery. Our intensive testing and assessment process helps to eliminate safety function roadblocks, assuring an on-schedule project completion. We ensure that industrial equipment and machinery complies with local, state and federal regulatory agencies. Applying CE Mark on the product is required once the product shows conformity to all applicable standards. By affixing the CE Marking the manufacturer declares on their sole responsibility that the product conforms to all applicable Union legislative requirements and the appropriate conformity assessment procedures have been successfully completed. TÜV Rheinland has an expert team to handle Annex IV machinery requirements as well.
TIC industry’s role in machine safety
The demand for quality, and therefore standards and benchmarks, are increasingly becoming strident and fundamental in the machine industry. Thus, there is an extensive need for testing, inspection, and certification (TIC) to ensure the safety and performance of machinery. According to a recent market research report, the overall testing, inspection, and certification (TIC) market is expected to grow from USD 209.4 billion in 2019 to USD 266.2 billion by 2024 – growing at a CAGR of 4.91 per cent. The growth of the TIC market in APAC is driven by a combination of regulatory and economic factors and India is playing a major role in this growth trajectory.
The TIC service industry is driven by the demand for third-party service providers. Globalisation is one of the major factors driving the TIC services market. Over the past decades, global trade has increased many folds due to the development of new trade agreements between the countries. Several firms are deploying and importing their products on a global scale. This gives upswing to the requirement of third-party accreditations and testing companies within the industry verticals to inspect the international supply chain. Therefore, TIC service providers are playing an important role in the machine safety market.
TÜV Rheinland’s role in minimising machine hazards
Regulations ascertaining the quality of products and their impact on the health and wellbeing of people and the environment have become stricter. As a globally recognised expert in product safety testing and certification with over 145 years of experience and knowledge in applicable local and international standards, TÜV Rheinland is positioned at the forefront of services for machine safety. The company is not only actively working on describing the regulatory framework and establishing guidelines in the Indian market but also implementing machine safety based on the European Union (EU) regulations and machinery directive 2006/42/EC. This directive can be applied for only those machines which will be exported to European countries by adhering the product safety guidelines and regulations.
TÜV Rheinland India helps manufacturers to understand the exact testing requirement as per European standards. TÜV Rheinland guides on:
1. Legal mandatory requirement
2. Trade Passport: Free commercial movement in EEA
3. It must be affixed according to its legal format visibly, legibly and indelibly to the product or its data plate.
4. The products which meet all the applicable directives must be CE marking
5. Compliance with essential requirements of EU technical regulations (Directives)
6. That compliance has been demonstrated throughout relevant conformity assessment procedures
TÜV Rheinland is creating a market surveillance system which would help to follow mandatory guidelines in order to bring compliance marking systems in India. This system will help exporters and importers to get the compliance of machines as per international safety and quality standards. The company’s experts provide guidance to the exporters on packaging machinery, press machinery, lifts, and robotic industry according to the applicable industry standards. Industry 4.0 and IoT play a major role in enhancing machine safety and performance.
TÜV Rheinland has created awareness among the manufacturers on ISO 12100:2010 and EN 60204-1. This resulted in an improvement in safety culture and production of the safe machine. TÜV Rheinland is closely working with Industry associations and legal bodies in India to bring the industry Standard for machinery in force and boosting the manufacturer’s confidence to meet the regulatory framework.
Safety and quality are TÜV Rheinland’s dual priorities in all categories of their services. Machine safety is no exception. Get in touch with the company to explore how they can help your organisation develop machine safety systems that comply with local and international standards and regulations.
