Five elements of an effective lockout/tagout program

Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) is a process to control energy hazards for preventing accidentalstartup or release of stored energy during setup, maintenance and servicing ofequipment. It’s a necessary process to keep your employees safe on the plant floor.

There are five essential elements of an effective LOTO program:

1. Program:The LOTO program documentation sets the overall policy and expectationsfor LOTO at your company. It also defines how you will implement and execute all otherelements within your program. An effective energy control program includes energycontrol procedures, employee training and periodic inspections, which jointly function toensure that hazardous energy sources are isolated and rendered safe before and whileany employee performs servicing or maintenance on machinery or equipment. Theprocedures must clearly and specifically outline the scope, purpose, authorization, rulesand techniques that employees are to use to control hazardous energy and the means toenforce compliance. The program/policy should be written clearly so employees canunderstand it, and it should remain dynamic so it can change with conditions andregulations.

2. Procedures:LOTO procedures are required for instances where there are multipleenergy sources and/or multiple crews, locations, employers or specific sequences. Inmany cases, individual procedures are also needed for equipment with a single energysource. The procedures must be specific to each piece of equipment, providingadequate detail as to how and where to specifically isolate and control the energysources present for that equipment. The LOTO procedures should contain instructions,including: where and how to de-energize the energy load on the equipment; how torelease hazardous electrical, mechanical or other stored energy; and how to verify theequipment is de-energized and cannot restart in the locked out condition.

3. Training:Proper training is a necessary component of any LOTO program. It helpsprovide the information and equipment your team needs to begin implementing aneffective LOTO program. Employees such as maintenance personnel who executeLOTO processes must be trained to execute the specific LOTO procedures they areexpected to utilize, while employees such as machine operators or office personnel whomay encounter equipment that has been locked out should receive awareness trainingon the company’s lockout program.

4. Devices:Protective devices should be robust, unique and easily identifiable. Otherrequirements involve a method of including a lock and identification of the lockout deviceinstaller.

5. Review:程序检查和检查必须轮廓一个卫理公会教徒dology for ensuring theprogram remains effective for employee protection. This must include at least an annualreview of the overall program documentation, as well as a review of the equipment-specific procedure documents and observations of execution of those equipment-specific LOTO processes.

Implementation

To successfully implement a LOTO program, it is important to understand the fiveelements above.Panduit offers a safety solutionconsisting of relevant products andtools that help mitigate risk created by hazards in the workplace.

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