Before bringing robots into a shared workplace, ask whether people truly need to work near or interact with the robot, which routine and non-routine tasks could put them in its work area, and whether a documented risk assessment covers the complete application. Then confirm that equipment, safeguards, procedures, training, maintenance, and applicable rules address the risks identified. A “collaborative” label alone does not establish that a particular robot application is safe.
Is close collaboration actually necessary?
Start by defining what “alongside” means for the task. OSHA’s robotics guidance frames this as a practical design question: is a person’s presence integral to the application, and must the person and robot share a workstation or work on the same item at the same time?
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- Does a worker need to access a known location while the robot operates?
- Must a person touch the robot, its end-effector (the tool attached to the robot), or the workpiece while the system is moving?
- Could the task be redesigned so the person and robot work at separate times or in separate areas?
Be specific about the required interaction. A person tending a workstation is a different situation from a person making contact with a moving tool or workpiece.
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Which tasks could put a person in the robot’s work area?
Map the full job, not just normal production. OSHA notes that many robot accidents happen during non-routine activities, when someone may enter the robot’s working envelope. Include foreseeable work before startup, during faults, and after production changes.
- Programming, setup, testing, adjustment, and inspection
- Cleaning and clearing a jam or other fault
- Recovery after an unexpected stop or malfunction
- Scheduled and unscheduled maintenance or service
For each task, identify who may enter the area, when the robot or connected equipment could move, and how the worker knows the system’s state. Do not treat an infrequent task as irrelevant simply because it is outside the normal production cycle.
Does the risk assessment cover the whole application?
Ask for a documented, task-based assessment—not just a review of the robot model. OSHA’s Technical Manual asks: “Does this robot application have sufficient measures in place to adequately protect workers?” Answering that requires examining the system and the work performed around it.
- The robot, end-effector, workpiece, and surrounding equipment
- Location and environmental conditions
- Worker tasks, expected contact, and access to the work area
- Possible errors, malfunctions, and foreseeable emergency conditions
- Normal operating procedures and procedures for setup, entry, recovery, and maintenance
Involve affected workers as well as the employer in identifying how work is actually done. Keep the assessment and records of controls and checks, and review the assessment when tasks or system conditions change.
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Are the robot and tool suitable for the intended interaction?
Check the robot and end-effector manuals for available safety functions, then ask whether those functions address the contact or separation conditions anticipated in this application. OSHA explains that the needed functions depend on the contact situations expected and should be determined through the risk assessment.
Do not infer that an application is safe from a product category or collaborative designation. The robot, tool, workpiece, and task together determine the hazards and the protections needed.
What controls address each identified risk?
For each hazard, ask whether it can be eliminated or workers can be separated from it. Then determine what active safeguards and passive design features are needed for any remaining exposure. Controls should follow the application’s assessment rather than a generic checklist.
- Protective stops or other suitable safety functions
- Rounded or padded edges and smooth covers where contact is foreseeable
- Space delineation, signs, and clear boundaries around the work area
- Written procedures for entering and exiting the area
- Lockout/tagout procedures for servicing and other work requiring energy control
Confirm how workers will recognize that a safeguard is active and what must happen before it is bypassed, restored, or tested. Lockout/tagout procedures belong within the site’s energy-control program; equipment or supplies alone do not make maintenance safe.
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Confirm that operators, programmers, maintainers, and others who may enter the area understand the hazards, safeguards, and procedures relevant to their duties. Training should address faults and emergencies, not only normal production. OSHA also calls for awareness training for workers who may pass the robot perimeter as part of their work.
Check that instructions make clear how to enter and leave the work area, how to respond to an unexpected movement or stop, and whom to notify when a safeguard or safety function does not work as intended.
Who will inspect, test, and maintain safety after startup?
Before operation begins, assign responsibility for checking that safeguards and safety functions work as designed. Define how service and maintenance will be controlled, how test results and assessment records will be retained, and who reviews proposed changes to the application.
OSHA emphasizes maintenance plans and checks of safeguards, and notes that testing records help track safety. Include a reassessment when changes to tasks, equipment, tooling, or the work environment could alter the risks.
Which rules and standards apply at this facility?
Identify the jurisdiction and the specific application before deciding which legal requirements govern. OSHA’s guidance is U.S.-focused. OSHA states that it has no robotics-industry-specific standards; its standards page lists consensus guidance including ANSI/RIA R15.06, RIA TR R15.606, ISO 10218, and ISO/TS 15066 for industrial and collaborative robot safety. OSHA explicitly distinguishes these consensus standards from OSHA regulations.
Verify current editions and facility-specific legal obligations with qualified safety and compliance personnel. A standards list is not, by itself, a determination that a particular installation complies with applicable requirements.
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