Intended use is what a machine was designed and assessed to do, as stated by its manufacturer in the instructions and technical documentation.
It matters because both PUWER and supply law hang duties on it: equipment must be suitable for its intended use, and a machine repurposed for something its designer never assessed can invalidate its CE marking. Modify a machine significantly and you may take on the manufacturer’s responsibilities yourself.
The hierarchy of controls ranks risk reduction measures from most to least effective: eliminate, substitute, isolate, engineer, administer, and only then rely on PPE.
Essential health and safety requirements are the legally binding requirements machinery must meet before it can be placed on the UK or EU market.
EN ISO 13855 sets where to position light curtains, scanners, mats and other protective devices, using human approach speed and the machine’s stopping time.
For nearly two decades, the Machinery Directive (2006/42/EC) has been the backbone of machinery safety compliance across Europe.
Introduction Machinery is now software-defined, connected, and increasingly autonomous. The Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 treats software failures as
A question we hear regularly from clients is which assessment do they actually need for their machinery —
Speak to a Knox Thomas engineer about compliance, risk assessment and safeguarding for your machinery.
