Abstract
Intensity of accidents associated with dangerous machines and devices are (hereafter items), in general, high compared to other industrial accidents. This study focuses on cause analysis of accidents associated with items that are subject to safety certification. The method is based on automated analysis of abstracts of accidents written in descriptive format. The analysis results indicate that more than 50% of accidents associated with items are caused by technical reasons and nearly 50% of accidents were preventable. More effective prevention of industrial accidents would then be realized by safety certification at the stage of danger generation. Transition from the direct regulation on users to manufacturers is also needed to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of industrial safety system in Korea.