ANSI Publishes a New ANSI Z535 Standard: ANSI Z535.7 Product Safety Information in Electronic Media
Posted by Clarion Safety Systems | 22nd Oct 2024
We’re excited to announce the publication of ANSI
Z535.7, the much-anticipated American National Standard
Institute’s new ANSI Z535 standard focusing on product safety information in
electronic media. As a member of the Z535 committee, we’re proud to have
contributed to this significant development in safety communication standardization;
in fact, our head
of standards compliance, Angela Lambert, is an ANSI Z535.7 subcommittee
member, part of a small group of experts that championed the standards’
development. With electronic media becoming an increasingly prominent tool for
conveying important safety information, this standard addresses a crucial gap
that has existed in safety communication.
What
Does ANSI Z535.7 Cover?
ANSI
Z535.7-2024 is a brand-new standard in the Z535 family of standards, addressing
a topic that has not been covered before: providing guidelines for the design
of product safety information in electronic media, offering a comprehensive
system for presenting safety information in a variety of digital formats. It
recognizes the limitations of existing standards, which were primarily designed
for static, printed materials, and adapts to the dynamic, interactive nature of
electronic media.
The key elements covered by ANSI Z535.7 include:
- Dynamic Media: Guidelines for safety information in video, animations, and other forms of moving media.
- Interactive Media: Principles for creating safety messages in apps, websites, and other platforms where users interact with content non-linearly.
- Multi-Modal Information: How to incorporate visual, auditory, and interactive components for an effective, clear presentation of safety messages.
- Device Variability: Considerations for how safety messages appear differently across devices, such as smartphones, tablets, and computers, and how to ensure consistency and clarity across platforms.
Building
on Z535.4 and Z535.6 Standards
ANSI
Z535.7 builds on the foundation of two key standards in the
Z535 series: ANSI Z535.4 (Product Safety Signs and Labels)
and ANSI Z535.6 (Product Safety Information in Product Manuals, Instructions,
and Collateral Materials). While these standards provide comprehensive
guidelines for static safety information, such as printed labels and manuals,
they were not designed for electronic media's complex and varied formats.
For example, ANSI Z535.6 is specific to printed or printable materials, and though it applies to some digital documents, it explicitly excludes dynamic media like video or interactive applications. ANSI Z535.7 fills this gap by providing guidance for safety information in these new formats while maintaining the graphical consistency established by Z535.4 and Z535.6.
The new standard effectively incorporates the design principles from these earlier standards but adapts them for digital use, ensuring that safety messages remain clear, concise, and impactful in electronic formats. For instance, elements like safety colors, symbols, and hazard severity panels – cornerstones of ANSI Z535.4 – are retained, but their application is broadened to fit dynamic digital environments.
Supporting
Your Compliance with Z535.7
Clarion
Safety Systems is committed to helping manufacturers and businesses ensure
their safety information meets the highest standards, whether in print or
digital formats. With the release of ANSI Z535.7, we’re extending our expertise
to cover digital safety communication as well.
- Safety Manual Audits and Reviews: Our team at Clarion Safety offers comprehensive reviews of product safety manuals to ensure compliance with ANSI Z535.6. As part of this, we can provide consultations on your safety warnings, in line with ANSI Z535.7 best practices.
- Tailored Guidance for Your Warnings, Including Safety Information in Digital Media: As part of our label consultations, we can have a preliminary discussion on how your safety information is presented across various electronic formats in line with ANSI Z535.7 – whether in apps, videos, websites, or on-product electronic displays – ensuring your content is clear, consistent, and compliant.
By offering these services, Clarion Safety continues to lead the way in helping companies adapt to new safety communication challenges in a rapidly evolving digital world.
The Future of Safety Communication in Electronic
Media
The release of ANSI
Z535.7 represents a pivotal moment in safety communication, bringing clarity
and consistency to the presentation of safety information in electronic
formats. By adapting the proven approaches of Z535.4 and Z535.6, and other Z535
standards to the demands of digital media, ANSI Z535.7 ensures that
manufacturers can effectively warn and protect users in today’s
technology-driven world. Stay tuned for our upcoming whitepaper that will
provide a guide to the ANSI Z535.7 standard; sign-up for our newsletter now (use
the ‘subscribe now’ option in top right sidebar of this post) and be the first
to know when it’s released.
