Safety and reliability assessment on products and organizations

One of the more recent developments in the field of Reliability and safety is the realization that these aspects are not only a function of the product itself but also of the organization realizing this product. A second development is a trend from an often predominantly qualitative analysis towards a quantitative analysis. This can be illustrated by comparing aspects covered in the (older) DIN 19250 and the (more recent) IEC61508. In contrast to the DIN 19250, the IEC61508 requires, on product level, also a quantitative analysis and, on organizational level, an assessment on the (maturity of the-) business processes in an organization and how these processes are maintained. This paper presents: A method, called MIR (Maturity Index on Reliability) to quantify the organizational maturity of an organization. This method is derived from existing methods in the consumer electronics industry, The application of the MIR method in an actual, Industrial, case. The paper will discuss not only the practical application of IEC61508 in an Industrial organization but will also explain the underlying models and theory that is needed to come to an unambiguous IEC61508 certification