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The knowledge level for functional safety and certification is one of the most important deciding factors for project success. Generally speaking, a project with functional safety certification requirements can easily double or triple the time it takes to complete a project without. Efforts invested in certification activities are often greater than efforts in straight development. This magnifying effect of the certification requirements is abated when knowledge level is high and amplified when knowledge level is low. The table below shows a fictitious scenario to illustrate this effect, assuming a development team with fairly a good knowledge in safety and certification. 

Using pre-certified components lower overall risk to system manufacturers through proven and reliable technologies. One of the most vital components in complex platforms consisting of hardware and software is the real-time operating system. A pre-certified operating system (OS) offers a high level of reliability and risk reduction for safety-critical systems that has been independently validated. It would be difficult to imagine a certified industrial control application without a pre-certified OS. This is an additional dimension to the build-or-buy decision for system manufacturers. Some companies have legacy home-grown components including operating systems. In most cases, the cost of certifying these home-grown components will outweigh the price tag of a pre-certified solution, simply due to the economy of scale factor. Hardware is a different story. Pre-certified hardware is difficult to find and hardware certification is a frequently asked question from system manufacturers. 

The Modular Train Control System (MTCS) from MEN Mikro Elektronik offers a pre-integrated, ready to install platform that combines the ideal operating system from QNX Software Systems for reliability and easier programming of safety critical applications with the F75P solution, representing an extremely compelling offer to address regulatory pressures and cost effectiveness challenges. In addition to pre-certification credentials, MTCS offers high level of flexibility for system integrators, resulting in significant cost and time savings during computerization of the train. The combined solution allows users to quickly create new solutions which take advantage of the latest industrial safety and processing speed and real-time automation technology while allowing them to reuse or adapt existing automation algorithms.