The ISA Standards & Practices Board approved a new standard for the development, installation, and management of alarm systems in the process industries, ISA-18.2, "Management of Alarm Systems for the Process Industries." The standard is expected to be published in July, following final approval by the American National Standards Institute (www.ansi.org).
According to ISA (www.isa.org), Alarm system management requires several activities and work processes connected by the alarm system lifecycle. ISA-18.2 defines the terminology and models for a common language to describe the alarm system. It also describes the activities required to achieve the desired performance of the alarm system and to maintain that performance.
he ISA18 committee, Instrument Signals and Alarms, includes 100 members from around the world. The committee is tasked with developing standards and related documents for alarm systems including the definition, design, installation, operation, maintenance, modification, and work processes to effectively maintain an alarm system over time. The committee is beginning work on a series of technical reports to provide further definition and examples of the lifecycle work processes.
For more information on ISA-18, visit ISA18.org or call 919 549-8411.
