Service or Contractor Personnel

Employers and an outside service or contractor must each designate a representative responsible for determining their relationship, responsibilities, and obligations regarding hazardous energy control before the outside service or contractor provides services or begins work.

The employer is responsible for informing the outside service or contractor's representative of any special hazards unique to the machinery, equipment, or process at the worksite to which the outside service or contractor may be exposed.

All outside service or contractor hazardous energy control programs must be coordinated with an employer's control program when there is integration of job tasks. Effective protection for all individuals who could possibly be exposed to hazardous energy within a facility must be mutually understood, communicated, and agreed upon between parties.

Contractor programs can be similar yet have minor differences in the forms they take. In order to clearly differentiate and standardize contractor-controlled lockouts, the employer may provide locks and tags that are coordinated with their hazardous energy control lockout/tagout system.

Communication is a key element of a hazardous energy control program; clear lock and tag procedures with assigned responsibilities are important. Before and during the course of work, the employer and the outside service or contractor must keep one another informed of any activities or conditions that could adversely affect the effective application of hazardous energy control or normal operations. For example, interrupting an energy supply, disabling a fire protection or security system, and disabling hazardous area ventilation would all warrant communication between the two parties.

Temporary Personnel

Any temporary personnel (seasonal or otherwise) involved in activities that require lockout must be fully trained on the company's hazardous energy control program. They must also be issued locks and tags and, depending on their job responsibilities, possess the relevant qualifications to perform the work outlined in the hazardous energy control program.

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