PDS is the failure rate data source published by SINTEF and used widely across functional safety work. The acronym is Norwegian, from “Pålitelighet av Datamaskinbaserte Sikkerhetssystemer,” meaning reliability of computer-based safety systems. In day-to-day practice “PDS” refers to the PDS Data Handbook (Reliability Data for Safety Equipment), a reference library of lambda values for field instruments, logic solvers, and final elements.
The handbooks are published by SINTEF and obtained through the SINTEF Store as a printed book or an electronic, subscription-based PDF edition, with a set of sample pages viewable for free and wider distribution through DNV’s Veracity store. PDS is not a free open database, so a current edition normally has to be purchased. When a SIL verification cites something like “SINTEF PDS Item 4.1.3,” it is pointing at a specific table entry for that device’s failure rates. We at SIL Safe see PDS as one of the standard reliability-data libraries practitioners reach for when device-specific FMEDA data is not available, much like OREDA.
Key Points
- PDS is a SINTEF-published handbook of failure rate (lambda) data for safety equipment.
- The acronym is Norwegian: “Pålitelighet av Datamaskinbaserte Sikkerhetssystemer” (reliability of computer-based safety systems).
- It is obtained through the SINTEF Store as a printed book or an electronic PDF subscription, not as a free open database.
- It is widely cited in IEC 61511 SIL verification, supplying generic data where vendor FMEDA values are unavailable.
Example
An example HIPPS SIF pulls its pressure transmitter and valve failure rates from the PDS handbook, with each row citing an item number such as “SINTEF PDS Item 4.3.5.” Those entries supply the lambda-S, lambda-DD, and lambda-DU values the PFDavg calculation needs.
See Also: OREDA, SINTEF, failure rate
Cited Sources
- SINTEF, “Reliability Data for Safety Equipment; PDS Data Handbook,” SINTEF, Trondheim, Norway.
- SINTEF — PDS Data Handbooks