| |
Links to other
Web sites with
information on
LOTO |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
|
Group Lockout/Tagout
Group Lockout/Tagout Procedures
Whenever servicing and/or maintenance is performed
by a group of employees, the employer must develop and implement an energy
control procedure that provides authorized and affected employees with
the same level of protection as a personal lockout or tagout device. The
requirements for group lockout or tagout are set out in section
29 CFR 1910.147(f)(3).
Servicing and maintenance operations performed
by a group of employees are often more complex than servicing or maintenance
performed by an individual. As a result, group lockout or tagout operations
typically require more coordination and communication than personal lockout
or tagout operations. Greater coordination between employees is particularly
important when more than one craft or department must be involved to complete
the task.
Under the standard's group lockout/tagout requirements,
a single authorized employee must assume the overall responsibility for
the control of hazardous energy for all members of the group while the
servicing or maintenance work is in progress.
The authorized employee with the overall responsibility
must implement the energy control procedures, communicate the purpose
of the operation to the servicing and maintenance employees, coordinate
the operation, and ensure that all procedural steps have been properly
completed. In such operations, it is critical that each authorized employee
involved in the group lockout/tagout activity be familiar with the type
and magnitude of energy that may be present during the servicing and maintenance
work.
 In
addition, each employee must affix his/her personal lockout or tagout
device to the group lockout device, group lockbox, or comparable mechanism,
before engaging in the servicing and maintenance operation. This enables
the authorized employee to have control over his/her own protection, and
verify that the equipment has been properly deenergized. Additionally,
the lockout or tagout device will inform other persons that the employee
is working on the equipment, and as long as the device remains attached,
the authorized person in charge of the group lockout or tagout knows that
the work has not been completed and that it is not safe to reenergize
the equipment.
The servicing employee will continue to be protected
by his/her lockout or tagout device until it is removed. The authorized
employee in charge of the group lockout or tagout must not remove the
group lockout or tagout device until each employee in the group has removed
his/her personal device, indicating that he/she is no longer exposed to
the hazards from the servicing operation.
When the activities involving group lockout or
tagout extend into another workshift, or there is a change of authorized
employees, the provisions for shift or personnel changes must also be
followed.
|
Back to Top
