There are a number of ways to monitor lockout tagout procedures. But to find the best option for you, you need to first determine if you will do it in house or if you will outsource it, and if you will do it manually or with the help of a computer program. Once you have decided on these two questions, deciding the specifics and turning them into a comprehensive procedure will be much easier.

For the first question, the question of in house or outsource, you need to ask yourself a few things. Number one, do you have appropriate staffing for this task, or will you need to hire additional staff to manage the additional load? Number two, do you have the right staff, or will you need to hire new people with a background in lockout tagout? And number three, how comfortable are you with lockout tagout? Based upon your answer to these questions, you can determine if it would be cost effective to manage the lockout tagout in house, or if it might be more cost effective to hire a profession to help you, and if you even have an appetite for managing it yourself – remember, if there are any problems and you go it alone, you need to find the solution.

For the second question, that of doing it manually or utilizing computer software, you must ask yourself a few questions. If you are planning to monitor your lockout tagout procedures alone, then you need to find out what software is available to you, how much it costs, and how comfortable you are with the software. If you will be hiring an outside party to manage it, then you need to find out what software they have available, how interactive it is, and how much it costs.

With these two questions answered, creating the actual procedures should be a manageable task. Should you have any questions about the costs associated with hiring a firm to assist with your lockout tagout needs, please contact us. And if you have any pointers relating to lockout tagout monitoring, please leave a comment.

Whether a veteran of twenty years or a novice to the field, establishing lockout tagout procedures will always make you cringe, at least a little. And the reason for that is the complexity of the calculations, the complexity of the regulations, and what is at stake if the procedures are not put in place properly. It is for this reason so many companies use online quick guides, outside agencies, or dedicate a department just to establishing and monitoring these procedures.

If you are one of the many who fall into the online guide category, be careful. Many of these guides are meant to act as a supplement to a more rigorous review performed by a qualified third party. In these instances, the guide should be used to vet potential lockout tagout firms or to set talking points during the project. Attempting to establish competent lockout tagout procedures based upon one of these manuals will be extremely risky, as they are incomplete.

Some of the other guides are unintentionally incomplete. The unfortunate thing about lockout tagout is that every facility has a unique need in this regard, so attempting to create a readable guide will never cover every possible need – for this reason, these guides can be dangerous.

And for those who dedicate an entire department to lockout tagout, the costs can become exorbitant. Hiring several lockout tagout specialists and paying them each an annual salary can quickly out pace the costs of utilizing a third party. When deciding to go this route, it is important to run a very serious cost analysis, comparing the costs to hire and maintain a department against the costs of hiring a firm.

If, after reviewing your lockout tagout procedures, you have questions about whether or not you are compliant or if, after running a cost analysis, you realize it is worth hiring a firm to help you with your lockout tagout needs, please contact us. And if you have anything to add about establishing lockout tagout procedures, please leave a comment.

After establishing lockout tagout procedures, it is important to accurately and effectively monitor them. This can be done by hand in-house, if you have the resources available. This can also be done by a third party organization, if you have the funds available to cover the costs. Or, this can be done in conjunction with a third party organization through software specifically designed to track lockout tagout changes and make the user (in this case, the business owner and safety team) aware of any changes to the lockout tagout OSHA Standards.

If you decide to monitor your lockout tagout procedures in-house, you must ensure that you have a qualified individual with a background in lockout tagout monitoring available. Lockout tagout is one of the more difficult areas of safety management to fully understand and monitor, and if the person in charge of monitoring your procedures is not fully prepared for the task, the results can be disastrous.

If you decide to monitor your lockout tagout procedures with a third party organization, and leave them in charge of everything, you need to consider two things. Number one: do you have the funds readily available to you, and does it make financial sense to pay someone else to perform this task. And number two: do you trust the company monitoring your procedures. If the answer is “no” to either question, then you need to reevaluate your decision.

Finally, if you decide to utilize monitoring software for your lockout tagout procedures, you need to ensure the software was developed by a reputable company that stands behind their product. We at PF Safety, for instance, stand 100% behind our Factory Solutions Software, help you to set it up, and help you with ongoing support as you need it.

With these options in mind, it is time for you to make a decision. If you have any questions about which option might best benefit you, or for more information on Factory Solutions Software, please contact us. If you have anything to add about lockout tagout monitoring, please leave a comment.

Creating lockout tagout procedures is never an easy task. It is difficult to calculate the potential energization of machines and equipment, and if a machine is miscalculated, the resulting damage could be fatal. OSHA created Standard 1910.147 as a guideline for creating these procedures, however if you are inexperienced in lockout tagout, this standard can just leave you more confused than when you started.

Because of this, many employers find help guides online. These guides help you to determine where your isolation points are, where you need to put guards, and what signage is needed for your machines. What these guides cannot, unfortunately, do, is walk you through establishing the procedures and calculating isolation points. And unlike many other OSHA regulated procedures, lockout tagout procedures are different for literally every single business. Further, those procedures need to be updated every time a piece of machinery or equipment is replaced or added.

For these reasons, we generally recommend consulting a professional when initially creating lockout tagout procedures if you are inexperienced with them. From there, maintaining them can be as easy or hard as you would like to make them. With our Factory Solutions Software, which our clients have access to, you can ensure your procedures are always compliant. Or, you can manage it yourself. Either way, if a professional helps you with your lockout tagout procedures, you will be armed with the tools to properly manage them.

For more information on how we can help you create your lockout tagout procedures, please contact us. If you have anything else to add about creating lockout tagout procedures, please leave a comment.

Many prospective customers wonder if they are better off hiring an outside consulting firm to handle their lockout tagout needs, or if it makes more sense to manage their lockout tagout needs in house. And while this is a smart question to ask, it is important to ask yourself and your team relevant follow up questions which will help uncover the company’s ability to handle lockout tagout internally.

It is imperative that you look at your employees when making this decision. If, for instance, you have a lockout tagout expert on staff who can be dedicated to the project, at least in the short term while building a lockout tagout procedure, then your company is in a better situation than a company which will be relying upon a safety team that is new to lockout tagout. Further, you need to consider what tasks the individuals who will be assigned to the lockout tagout project are currently working on. If they are stretched thin as it is, where will the extra time needed for lockout tagout come from? If it will create an environment where the staff is not able to effectively review the lockout tagout procedures, then a serious problem could result.

Another important aspect of a lockout tagout project is the required timeframe. If you need this project completed in 2 days, you will be far less capable of properly training a staff as you would if you had 3 months to completion. Additionally, you need to determine if the lockout tagout monitoring is a part of this project, and if so how that will be managed by your staff.

Once you have asked yourself these questions, you are in a better position to make your decision. A simple cost analysis will help you decide which option is best financially. Armed with that information, you can then decide if it will be easier to hire a safety consulting firm or to manage your needs in-house.

If you have any questions about the benefits of outsourcing your lockout tagout needs, please contact us. And if you have anything else to add about the pros and cons of outsourcing, please leave a comment.

Standard 1910.147 covers the control of hazardous energy, which is also known as lockout tagout. Lockout tagout procedures are among the most difficult to institute and are even more difficult to maintain as a company changes over time. In 2011, this standard was responsible for nearly 4,000 citations. But, lockout tagout procedures are also crucially important, as a lockout tagout accident generally leads to serious injury or death, and led to 120 fatalities and 50,000 injuries in 2011.

The first thing to consider when setting your lockout tagout procedures is what, exactly, lockout tagout is. Per OSHA, lockout tagout procedures cover “the servicing and maintenance of machines and equipment in which the unexpected energization or start up of the machines or equipment, or release of stored energy, could harm employees.” (1917.147 (a)(1)(i)) What this means is that any machine which can harm an employee at start up, or any other time through stored energy, must be included within the procedures. Employers must determine all of the isolation points within all of these machines, create standards to control this hazardous energy, and properly label the offending machines.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to determine the isolation points, especially given the sometimes cryptic nature of this standard. It is for this reason we always recommend contacting a professional when establishing or updating procedures. Depending upon your particular needs, a consultation might suffice or a full audit might be required to ensure compliance. But whatever your need is, this is definitely one of those hazards where it is better to be safe than sorry.

For more information on creating lockout tagout procedures, or to schedule an audit, please contact us. And if you have anything to add about Standard 1910.147, please leave a comment.