ISO 11850:2011 specifies general safety requirements for self-propelled forestry machines and machines configured as forestry machines. It deals with all significant hazards, hazardous situations and events common to fellers, bunchers, delimbers, forwarders, log loaders, skidders, processors, harvesters, mulchers and multi-function versions of these machine types, as defined in ISO 6814, when used as intended and under conditions of misuse which are reasonably foreseeable by the manufacturer.

It does not deal with hazards specific to individual machines, such as those related to specific attachments, and therefore its use will not alone be sufficient to address all significant hazards for a majority of the machines it covers.

It does not deal with hazards related to chain shot, chain breakage on the upper side of the bar, lifting operation, remote control operation, the need for work lights or road safety. For vibration measurement, the test setup and work cycles are not dealt with; nor is the verification method for noise measurement addressed. It is not applicable to hazards related to maintenance or repairs carried out by professional service personnel.