Functional safety engineering qualification procedures improved

ControlGlobal.com
10/11/2005

The Certified Functional Safety Expert (CFSE) Governance Board has streamlined its application and examination procedures in response to feedback about ways to improve the process for qualifying for the CFSE. The Governance Board has recently completed a project with TUV-SUD to simplify its procedures and minimise administrative paperwork.

For the past four years, the Certified Functional Safety Expert (CFSE) qualification has come to represent the highest level of 61508, 61511 and 62061 safety lifecycle expertise. CFSE candidates must demonstrate at least 10 years' equivalent engineering experience with a significant safety engineering component. They must also demonstrate a superior knowledge of the areas of the 61508/61511/62061 safety lifecycle according to their specialty in a challenging examination.

With such high standards of its applicants, the non-profit CFSE Governance Board has completed a significant procedure review and quality improvement effort with TUV-SUD, the founder and key supporter of the program. As a result of these efforts, there will now be a single fee which covers the application processing, the exam assessment and the TUV auditing stamp.

In addition, the cost savings from the revised procedures will be passed on to the applicants in the form of a 40% reduction in the previous price for all of these elements previously paid for separately. The new procedures will cover all of the different CFSE qualifications in Process and Machinery Safety Applications, and Safety Hardware and Software Development. In addition, all existing CFSE holders can apply for a single TUV approved certificate with their regular renewal. All of these changes take effect immediately.

Dr. Eric Scharpf, one of the members of the CFSE Board comments, "The most important thing with these new procedures is that we have kept the exact same level of quality, excellence and proficiency required to achieve the CFSE but simply reduced the bureaucracy and costs."

See www.cfse.org for more information on earning a CFSE Certificate.