A3 completes industrial mobile robot safety standard with Part 3

The Association for Advancing Automation (A3) has published ANSI/A3 R15.08-3-2026, completing a three-part safety standard for industrial mobile robots (IMRs). Part 3 addresses user responsibilities during day-to-day operations, including risk assessment, employee training, and periodic inspections throughout the machinery lifecycle.

A3 released ANSI/A3 R15.08-3-2026, the final component of a comprehensive safety standard for industrial mobile robots. Part 3 focuses on operational safety requirements for facilities using IMRs, addressing risk management, training protocols, and ongoing inspection requirements.

The three-part R15.08 series now covers the complete IMR lifecycle. Part 1 addresses robot-level safety requirements. Part 2 covers system and application integration. Part 3 handles day-to-day operational responsibilities, aligning with the parallel R15.06 standard for fixed industrial robots to create consistent safety guidance across both robot types.

The standard arrives as IMR deployment accelerates in manufacturing and logistics environments. Facilities integrating autonomous mobile robots now have a unified framework for maintaining acceptable risk levels across procurement, deployment, and ongoing operations. The standardization may influence insurance requirements and liability frameworks as the technology scales.