This article gives an overview of the 61340-5-1:2007 ESD standardand its User Guide 61340-5-2:2007. The 61340-5-1:2007 standard has nearly the same requirements as the ESD S20:20-2007 standard.

Overview of 61340-5-1:2007

The IEC 61340-5-1:2007 standardProtection of electronic devices from electrostatic phenomena – General Requirements was developed from earlier Standards including EN100015 and ESD S20:20. It is accompanied by a User Guide IEC61340-5-2, which gives a lot of additional information to help the non-specialist implement 61340-5-1. As a IEC documents, they have world-wide applicability in IEC member countries where they have been adopted. An unofficial harmonisation with ESD S20:20:2007 has occurred, and so the requirements current versions of 61340-5-1 and 20:20 are nearly the same. There are some differences, however, and the user should always refer to the original standards when qustions of compliance arise.

In Europe, the 61340-5-1&2 documents have been adopted by CENELEC to replace EN 61340-5-1:2001. The 61340-5-1 General Requirements document contains requirements for compliance which are considered mandatory, while the contents of 61340-5-2 User Guide only has the status of guidance or recommendations. 

Some of the technical requirements of 61340-5-1 may be found on technical grounds to be unnecessary or irrelevant to a particular facility, installation or process, and may be omitted. The process of deciding this is called "tailoring". Tailoring decisions must be fully documented in the ESD Program Plan. 

There are three main requirements in 61340-5-1 which are concerned with planning and documenting the ESD program. There must be three Plans

• ESD Control Program Plan
• Compliance Verification Plan
• ESD Training Plan

There is also a requirement that an ESD Coordinator is appointed with responsibility for implementingthe requirements of the standard.

IEC61340-5-1 specifies technical requirements for the design, use and control of a protected area so that electrostatic sensitive devices (ESDS), having sensitivity of 100V (Human Body Model test) or higher, can be handled with minimal risk of damage from procurement through to end of life. The technical requirements of the standard cover

• The electrostatic protected area (EPA) including requirements for protective equipment, construction of the EPA, working practices, and field work
• Grounding and bonding systems
• Personal grounding
• Training requirements
• Compliance Verification (test, measurement and auditing)
• ESD protective packaging
• marking

An Annex describes a small number of test methods to be used to verify the performance of equipment, materials and packaging for use in protection of ESDS. Most of the test method previously in 61340-5-1 have now been documented in other standards, and the 61340-5-1:2007 merely refers to those standards as appropriate.