A safe and healthy workplace is a right of every worker. Workers who service or maintain machines and equipment may be seriously injured or killed if hazardous energy is not properly controlled and de-energized. Energy sources including electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, chemical, thermal, and other sources in machines and equipment can be hazardous to workers performing maintenance, service, inspection, and repair tasks. Injuries may include electrocution, burns, crushing, cutting, lacerating, amputating, fracturing body parts, etc.
Craftworkers, electricians, machine operators, and laborers are among the millions of workers who service equipment routinely and face the most significant risk of injury. Many of these accidents are preventable by the proper implementation of a Hazardous Energy Control Program or Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) Program.
Proper lockout/tagout practices and procedures safeguard workers from hazardous energy releases. LOTO – also known as lockout/tagout or energy isolation – is the practice of locking and tagging a piece of equipment after it has been de-energized. This equipment cannot be re-energized unless a specific procedure is followed, which requires the notification and approval of those who de-energized it. Lockout/Tagout procedures prevent hazardous energy accidents by keeping workers safe when performing necessary service and maintenance tasks.
Our LOTOBuilder program is specifically designed to be intuitive and requires minimal training so that non-technical team members can access, populate, and successfully generate Lockout/Tagout procedures. Our easy-to-use online system makes Lockout Tagout auditing and record-keeping a no-sweat process with PDF document generation and a dashboard view that lets the user easily access and edit LOTO procedures, lists of affected and authorized employees, equipment inspection schedules, as well as training requirements and schedules.
Large businesses and government agencies can now rely on LOTOBuilder to enable employees to share their knowledge and build highly effective Lockout Tagout procedures using organization-wide online accounts. Smaller businesses can rely on LOTOBuilder because it is the easiest, most straightforward way to produce comprehensive Lockout Tagout procedures that meet company and OSHA requirements.
OSHA publishes an annual 'Top 10 Most Frequently Cited Standards’ "to alert employers about these commonly cited standards so they can take steps to find and fix recognized hazards addressed in these and other standards before OSHA shows up. Far too many preventable injuries and illnesses occur in the workplace." For Fiscal Year 2020, the Control of Hazardous Energy was #6 on the list.
Implementing a robust health & safety program that includes a well-written and thorough Lockout/Tagout program and detailed LOTO procedures can help minimize or eliminate hazards from uncontrolled energy start-ups. LOTOBuilder helps users meet the Occupational, Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 1910.147 requirements for controlling hazardous energy, which may or may not be more stringent than other countries' requirements. And with LOTOBuilder, the user can easily prepare a complete LOTO Program, as required by OSHA, or can upload their existing Lockout/Tagout Program. LOTOBuilder’s proprietary software will provide you with the tools needed to:
- Write your Lockout Tagout Program,
- Develop your site- and equipment-specific Lockout Tagout procedures,
- Set up a system to communicate the program and procedures to your employees,
- Implement inspection protocols and reminders, and
- Build an internal safety culture that will ensure ongoing compliance with OSHA requirements.
LOTOBuilder is a straightforward way to manage the uncontrolled start-up of hazardous energy during service and maintenance by giving you the tools to create LOTO procedures. You can give LOTOBuilder a try today…it is available for a FREE 30-day trial!
