The UK Government has published (1 January 2021) a consolidated list of Standards for machinery. It supports the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 (S.I 2008/1597).
The Standards (for England, Scotland and Wales) have been categorised into three sections.
A-type standards
A-type standards specify basic concepts, terminology, and design principles applicable to all categories of machinery. Application of such standards alone, although providing an essential framework for the correct application of S.I. 2008/1597, is not sufficient to ensure conformity with the relevant essential health and safety requirements of S.I. 2008/1597 and therefore does not give a full presumption of conformity.
B-type standards
B-type standards deal with specific aspects of machinery safety or specific types of safeguard that can be used across a wide range of categories of machinery. Application of the specifications of B-type standards confers a presumption of conformity with the essential health and safety requirements of S.I. 2008/1597 that they cover when a C-type standard or the manufacturer's risk assessment shows that a technical solution specified by the B-type standard is adequate for the category or model of machinery concerned. Application of B-type standards that give specifications for safety components that are independently placed on the market confers a presumption of conformity for the safety components concerned and for the essential health and safety requirements covered by the standards.
C-type standards
C-type standards provide specifications for a given category of machinery. The different types of machinery belonging to the category covered by a C-type standard have a similar intended use and present similar hazards. C-type standards may refer to A or B-type standards, indicating which of the specifications of the A or B-type standard are applicable to the category of machinery concerned.
When, for a given aspect of machinery safety, a C-type standard deviates from the specifications of an A or B-type standard, the specifications of the C-type standard take precedence over the specifications of the A or B-type standard.
Application of the specifications of a C-type standard based on the manufacturer’s risk assessment confers a presumption of conformity with the essential health and safety requirements of S.I. 2008/1597 covered by the standard. Certain C-type standards are organised as a series of several parts, Part 1 of the standard giving general specifications applicable to a family of machinery and other parts of the standard giving specifications for specific categories of machinery belonging to the family, supplementing, or modifying the general specifications of Part 1.
For C-type standards organised in this way, the presumption of conformity with the essential health and safety requirements of S.I. 2008/1597 is conferred by application of the general Part 1 of the standard together with the relevant specific part of the standard.
England, Scotland and Wales
For the full document on the UK Government website click here.
Northern Ireland
For machinery being supplied in or into Northern Ireland (from 1 January 2021), read the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 (November 2020 version) here.