TS EN IEC 62508
Guidance on human aspects of dependability
IEC 62508: 2025 provides guidance on current knowledge and practice concerning dependability in an operational environment, in terms of the humans, teams and organizations involved in conducting the work. It is part of a suite of IEC standards that are intended to address the dependability of both the technical and human elements of equipment and organizations. This document describes the human elements of a typical operational system, and the importance of those elements to overall dependability. It also describes the means of assessing how well these elements are functioning, and general concepts on how the reliability of humans can be improved. These elements typically include the individual workers, the groups or teams into which they are organized, the interfaces between humans and technical systems, and the overall organization. The following guidance is applicable to any industry that depends on human-systems interactions involving the technology, software, or systems of work required to support the production and safety objectives of an organization. This document primarily addresses complex technical systems, but some parts are also applicable to the manufacturing of industrial and consumer products. Principles for design of the human-machine interface (usability) are described, and further information can be found in the technical literature and in relevant product standards. Although this document does not specifically cover worker health or safety, the application of this document can raise related issues, particularly in process safety, which is closely associated with system reliability. This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition published in 2010. This edition constitutes a technical revision. This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition: a) The emphasis on user-centred design in the previous edition was reduced in favour of a greater emphasis on human dependability in an existing operational environment. b) The emphasis on human error and error-rate determination methods was reduced in favour of a greater emphasis on means of providing organizational support for the workforce in their execution of required tasks. c) Where appropriate, discussions of human factors in an operational environment were aligned with current theory, terminology and practice.
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About This Item
TS EN IEC 62508 is guidance for understanding dependability in an operational environment as a combined property of technology, people, teams, and organizations. It explains the role of the human element in overall system dependability, how that role can be assessed, and the general approaches used to strengthen human reliability in real working conditions.
How the human element is organised in dependability
In this context, human performance is not treated as an isolated operator issue. The standard considers individual workers, the groups or teams they belong to, the interfaces between people and technical systems, and the wider organizational support structure. This makes dependability a broader systems topic, linked to training, coordination, work design, communication, and the way responsibilities are supported in practice.
Technical scope and practical context
IEC 62508 provides general guidance for any industry that depends on human-system interaction to achieve production and safety objectives, with primary emphasis on complex technical systems. Some of its concepts are also relevant to manufacturing of industrial and consumer products. It includes design principles for the human-machine interface and usability, while noting that it is not specifically a worker health or safety standard. In practice, its ideas may still be relevant to process safety because reliability and safe operation are closely connected.
As general technical context, human dependability is usually improved by looking beyond individual error and examining task design, workload, information flow, teamwork, competence, and organizational support. The second edition shifts emphasis toward human dependability in an existing operational environment and toward organizational support for workforce execution, rather than focusing mainly on user-centred design or error-rate methods.
- Addresses humans, teams, interfaces, and organizations as parts of system dependability.
- Provides guidance on assessing how well these elements are functioning.
- Includes general concepts for improving human reliability in operation.
- Touches on usability principles for human-machine interface design.
- Applies broadly across industries that rely on human-system interactions.
- Publication Date: 22.12.2025
- Standard Status: U (Yürürlükteki Standard/Standard)
- Publisher: TSE
- Document Language: en
- ICS Classification: 03.120.01 Kalite (Genel)
- Pages: 68
- Source Standard: EN IEC 62508:2025
- International Equivalents: EN IEC 62508-EQV; IEC 62508-EQV
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