RIA Partners with OSHA and NIOSH

The Robotic Industries Association (RIA; Ann Arbor, MI) has signed an alliance partnership with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) that will focus on communication and education about best practices in robot safety. OSHA has established alliances with a number of industry groups to share expertise and knowledge about safety practices in the industries involved.

“We developed the first American national robot safety standard R15.06 in 1986 and we’ve kept it up-to-date since then,” said Jeff Burnstein, the president of RIA. “This new alliance will help us to continue advancing worker safety as more robots enter the workplace.” The goals of the alliance are enhancing technical expertise about robotics within OSHA and NIOSH; improving awareness of workplace hazards associated with traditional industrial robots and the emerging technology of human robot collaboration (HRC) installations and systems; and identifying research that may be needed to help reduce workplace hazards.

“The robotics industry has a great track record of safety dating back to 1961 when the first industrial robot was installed,” said Carole Franklin, the director of standards development for RIA. “We’re trying to make sure every integrator and user of robotics in the country is aware of the best practices described in our R15.06 standard. This new partnership with will certainly help us in that effort.” The OSHA/NIOSH/RIA Alliance will foster technical exchange and information sharing among members, employers, and workers concerning hazards that may be present around industrial robot systems. It will also facilitate the sharing of information about how best to control exposure to such hazards during operations involving human interaction with the robotic systems in workplaces.

www.robotics.org