TS ISO 3864-2

TS ISO 3864-2 is the second part of the graphical symbols and safety signs family, focused on the design of product safety labels and adding principles to ISO 3864-1. It addresses labels used on products offered for sale in ordinary commerce, from consumer goods to industrial equipment, where the label is intended to warn of a specific hazard and show how that hazard can be avoided.

In general technical terms, a product safety label is a visual communication tool that combines colour, symbols, layout and often text to make a hazard message quickly understandable. The value of this approach is clarity: the label must attract attention, convey the risk, and guide the user toward the safer action. The ISO 3864 family provides the common visual language for safety colours and safety signs, and this part extends that logic to product labelling.

How product safety labels are organised visually

The document covers additional design principles for product safety labels, meaning the overall way the label is composed and presented rather than a catalogue of individual hazards. It supports a consistent, recognisable structure so that the safety message can be perceived quickly and interpreted in the intended way.

In practical use, such labels may appear directly on the product or in a position chosen to communicate the risk during normal use. When symbol, colour and wording work together, the message can reach users beyond a single language group and help distinguish the hazard information from ordinary product markings.

• It applies to safety labels used on products.
• The label’s purpose is to alert people to a specific hazard.
• It also identifies how the hazard can be avoided.
• The standard adds design principles to ISO 3864-1.
• It is relevant to commercial products such as consumer goods and industrial equipment.