ISO 20474-1:2008 specifies the general safety requirements for earth-moving machinery as defined in ISO 6165, excepting horizontal directional drills (see EN 791), each of these requirements being common to two or more earth‑moving machine families. It is also applicable to machine attachments, and to derivated machinery designed primarily for equipment used to loosen, pick-up, move, transport and/or distribute earth, or to grade earth and rock.

It is intended to be used in conjunction with the other parts of ISO 20474, which give the provisions that are specific to particular machine families, and with ISO/TS 20474-14, which gives information on provisions that are mandatory in particular countries or regions. Those specific requirements take precedence over the requirements of ISO 20474-1 for the machines concerned. For multipurpose machinery, all of those parts of ISO 20474 whose requirements cover the functions and applications of such machines are applicable.