Typical Minimal Lockout Procedures for Employers

When maintenance is performed by a crew, department, or other group, they must use a procedure that provides as much protection as that provided by a personal lockout or tagout device.

Group lockout or tagout devices must meet the following specific requirements:

• Primary responsibility must be given to an authorized employee for a set number of employees working under the protection of a group lockout or tagout device (such as an operations lock);
• The authorized employee is responsible for knowing the exposure status of individual group members with regard to the lockout or tagout of the machine; and
• When more than one crew, department, etc. is involved, responsibility of overall lockout or tagout control must be given to an authorized employee designated to coordinate affected work forces and ensure continuity of protection; and
• Each authorized employee must affix a personal lockout or tagout device to the group lockout device, group lockbox, or comparable mechanism when he or she begins work, and must remove those devices when he or she stops working on the machine being serviced or maintained.

Shift or Personnel Changes

Specific LOTO procedures must be used during shift or personnel changes, including the orderly transfer of lockout or tagout device protection between off-going and oncoming employees, to minimize exposure to hazards from the unexpected energization or start-up of the machine, or the release of stored energy.

Sequence of Lockout

1. Notify all affected employees that maintenance is required on a machine and that the machine must be shut down and locked out to perform the maintenance.[Identify the names and job titles of affected employees and how to notify them.]
2. The authorized employee must refer to the company procedure to identify the type and magnitude of energy that the machine utilizes, must understand the hazards of the energy, and must know the methods to control the energy. [Identify the type(s) and magnitude(s) of energy, its hazards, and the methods to control the energy.]
3. If the machine is operating, shut it down by the normal stopping procedure (such as depress the stop button, open switch, close valve). [Identify the type(s) and location(s) of machine operating controls.]
4. De-activate the energy-isolating device(s) so that the machine is isolated from the energy source(s). [Identify the type(s) and location(s) of energy-isolating devices.]
5. Lock out the energy-isolating device(s) with assigned individual lock(s).
6. Stored or residual energy (such as that in capacitors, springs, elevated machine members, rotating flywheels, hydraulic systems, and air, gas, steam, or water pressure) must be dissipated or restrained by methods such as grounding, repositioning, blocking, bleeding down. [Identify the type(s) of stored energy and methods to dissipate or restrain.]
7. Ensure that equipment is disconnected from the energy source(s) by first checking that no personnel are exposed, then verify the isolation of the equipment by operating the push button or other normal operating control(s) or by testing to make certain the equipment will not operate. Caution: Return operating control(s) to neutral or "off" position after verifying the isolation of the equipment. [Identify the method of verifying the isolation of the equipment.]
8. The machine is now locked out.

Restoring Equipment to Service

When maintenance is completed and the machine is ready to return to normal operating condition, the following steps must be taken:

• Check the machine and its immediate area to ensure nonessential items have been removed and that the machine components are operationally intact.
• Check the work area to ensure that all employees have been safely positioned or removed from the area.
• Verify that the controls are in neutral.
• Remove the lockout devices and reenergize the machine.
• Notify affected employees that maintenance is completed and the machine is ready for use.

To learn more about Lockout/Tagout visit our Lockout/Tagout Online Training web page.