OSHA Requirement
Per OSHA 1910.147(c)(4), employers must develop, document, and utilize energy control procedures for the control of potentially hazardous energy when employees are engaged in servicing and maintenance of machines and equipment.
Required Procedure Content
Each energy control procedure must clearly and specifically outline:
- Scope and purpose: A specific statement of the intended use of the procedure
- Shutdown and isolation steps: The specific procedural steps for shutting down, isolating, blocking, and securing machines or equipment to control hazardous energy
- Device placement and removal: Steps for the placement, removal, and transfer of lockout devices and/or tagout devices and the responsibility for them
- Verification: Specific requirements for testing a machine or equipment to determine and verify the effectiveness of lockout devices, tagout devices, and other energy control measures
Single Energy Source Exception
A documented procedure is not required when all eight conditions in 1910.147(c)(4)(i) are met simultaneously: the equipment has a single energy source that can be readily identified and isolated, isolation completely deenergizes the equipment, a single lockout device achieves full lockout, the device is under exclusive control of the authorized employee, no hazard exists to other employees, and there is no accident history. In practice, documenting all procedures is the recommended approach.
Periodic Review
Energy control procedures must undergo a periodic inspection at least annually to verify that the procedure remains adequate and that employees understand their responsibilities under it.
In LOTOBuilder
LOTOBuilder's procedure builder walks users through each required element, ensuring every energy control procedure includes all OSHA-mandated content. The system generates professional PDF output and tracks inspection deadlines automatically.
