Functional Safety Certification for Automated Storage and Retrieval Systems (AS/RS): ISO 11161 Explained

Date: 2027-06-21
Location: Online
Host: Zach L

About this event

A Risk Assessment Workshop for Verification and Validation Engineers pursuing functional safety certification. A live 30-minute risk assessment workshop on ISO 11161 (Integrated Manufacturing Systems Safety) for automated storage and retrieval systems (as/rs), built for verification and validation engineers pursuing functional safety certification. What We'll Cover: What ISO 11161 (Integrated Manufacturing Systems Safety) requires and how its scope applies to automated storage and retrieval systems (as/rs) Mapping ISO 11161 clauses to the certification evidence assessors expect System-specific hazards and safety functions typical of automated storage and retrieval systems (as/rs) Common findings that delay certification, and how to avoid them A practical readiness roadmap for verification

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About ISO 11161 (Integrated Manufacturing Systems Safety)

This hands-on workshop builds applied knowledge and team exercises around the certification requirements of ISO 11161.

EN ISO 11161 addresses safety of integrated manufacturing systems (IMS) — multiple machines linked by material handling under supervisory control — where hazards, zones, and modes span machine boundaries and single-machine conformity is not enough.

What it regulates

System-level risk assessment, division into task zones with local safe conditions, span-of-control of safeguards and e-stops across the line, mode management (local/integrated), and interface responsibilities between suppliers.

Who must comply

Line builders and lead integrators of automated production/logistics systems combining robots, conveyors, and process machines.

Key requirements of ISO 11161

IMS definition and the lead-integrator responsibility

Task zones: defining where a person works and what must be safe there while the rest runs

Safeguard span of control and zone interfacing

Modes: automatic, manual, and degraded operation across the system

Documentation splitting supplier vs integrator obligations

Key concepts: ISO 11161

Lead integrator

The party assembling machines into the IMS who owns the system-level conformity.

Span of control

Exactly which equipment each safeguard or e-stop affects — made unambiguous to operators.

Task zone

A bounded area with defined safe state allowing intervention while adjacent zones continue producing.

Frequently asked questions: ISO 11161

Each machine is CE marked — is the line compliant?

No. Linking machines under common control creates a new assembly requiring its own risk assessment and conformity (the IMS becomes machinery in its own right); zone interactions, shared safeguards and modes are exactly where 11161 applies.

Can one zone run while a person is in another?

That is the design goal: task zones with verified isolation (fences, monitored standstill, interlocked transfer openings) so production continues safely around the intervention — with rigorous validation of the zone boundaries.