21st century safety systems

Release of new International safety standards such as IEC 61508 (1998/2000) and IEC 61511 (2003) have resulted in the development of new safety systems by the suppliers in the 21st century, besides the demand for integrated control and safety systems is growing. These systems are developed due to the markets desire for lower costs, consolidate suppliers so major process automation suppliers have decided to develop a new safety system. Lowering total cost of ownership (TCO) and increasing their return on net asset(RONA) are main areas of concern for the users. The 3rd generation systems were designed and certified to IEC 61508 and all offer tight integration with their respective DCS.