Lockout Tagout

World-class safety can be summed up in this manner… The ability to recognize a serious hazard that can be controlled by an existing safe work practice that is in place for complying with a different OSHA standard.  If you’re a process safety engineer/practitioner you have dealt with “line break/process opening” for your Highly Hazardous Chemicals…...

At 6:05 p.m. on March 3, 2021, an employee, 27, was clearing jammed mulch from a mulch coloring machine. The employee disconnected the power from the machine, entered the hopper, and began removing mulch. The employee exited the hopper, restored power, and restarted the machine. The employee reentered the machine a second time WITHOUT DISCONNECTING…...

Seriously, in the year 2021/2022, we still have these questions asked of OSHA about a standard that has been in place since the mid-1980s. Scenario 1: Three (3) authorized employees are working on a pump. Each energy source is de-energized and locked out by an employee in plant operations. Then, the plant operations employee places…...

OSHA once again clarifies that locking out the air source to a pneumatically powered control valve is NOT locking the energy isolation device!  When I taught at ASSP Seminarfest several years ago, the most disputed point was this very practice.  I was very clear, which did not sit well with some attendees, that locking the…...

Rotary valves/airlocks (rotary valves) are devices with close-fitting, revolving blades/vanes installed inside industrial equipment to control the flow of materials through a process (see Figure 1).  Rotary valves are used in many industries and functions. A common example (Figure 2) is an airlock used in a pneumatic conveying system to dispense material while maintaining system…...

At 8:00 a.m. on March 15, 2021, Employee #1 removed, cleaned, prepared the surface and replaced the blow-in door gasket seals on the USS McFaul. The door was TAGGED OUT in the OPEN position; however, in this position, the pneumatic pressure and electric power could NOT be secured in its SAFE POSITION. While performing the…...

At 1:15 p.m. on 11/3/2020, a worker employed by an HVAC company, was working at a customer’s commercial facility. He was in the process of removing a coupler and blind from the intake header of an air dryer. The employee did NOT first relieve the air pressure from the header…. Membership Required You must be...

At 9:45 a.m. on December 11, 2020, an employee was preparing to do maintenance on a natural gas (NG) compressor. The compressor was not prepared for maintenance correctly (e.g., not LOTO’ed properly), pressure built up, and an engine cap struck the employee on the head…. Membership Required You must be a member to access this...

In the 90s, I was working a turn-around at a sister facility and learned the niftiest trick related to Double Block and Bleed (DB&B).  When the isolation valves and the bleed valve were nearby (i.e., a couple of feet or less) of each other, they would use just a single lock to secure the isolation. …...

A worker at a milk packaging plant operated by a large supermarket chain lost four fingers while operating a molding machine that lacked the required safeguards.  OSHA investigated the Feb. 12 incident and cited the business for two (2) willful and five (5) serious violations and one (1) other than serious violation for: Failing to…...

Line Breaking and Equipment Opening (LEO) hazards are oftentimes not well recognized or respected, even in PSM/RMP-covered processes.  Once we are removed from a “covered process,” the lack of recognition and lack of respect only increases.  But in my career, some of the more serious accidents involving LEO on lines/equipment did NOT involve processes covered…...

This is a fascinating case, as the OSHRC has upheld this citation, although they significantly reduced the $ and made it “other-than-serious.” But again, I disagree with this case, as the workers appeared to have been protected during the belt change; they did not follow the LOTO procedure, which I believe was “lazily written.” This…...