Lockout Tagout Guide

Lockout Tagout is the process of disabling machinery or equipment to prevent the release of hazardous energy which may harm workers. Lockout Tagout is also referred to as Equipment Isolation.

Equipment Isolation is just one part of an overall system for managing the safety of workers when they need to access powered equipment. The total lockout tagout system / LOTO incorporates the following components and tasks:

• Preparation
  • Develop Isolation Procedure
• Execution
  • Identify
  • Isolate
  • Lock
  • Release Stored Energy
  • Verification of Isolation
  • Record Isolation Procedure Progress
• Completion
  • Analyse Isolation Procedure Performance
  • Isolation Procedure Management Reporting

What is Isolation Confirmation?

The use of electrically powered plant and equipment is often preferred over other sources of energy. It is clean, easily reticulated and controlled. However, it is invisible. This makes it challenging to confirm that all sources of electrical energy are removed from equipment. In other words equipment that is not operating may be powered but prevented from running due to a remote control signal. For this reason Verification of Electrical Isolation is a particularly important step.

Confirmation or verification is often performed on the following isolating equipment:

• Isolation Switches
• Disconnects
• Circuit Breakers (CBs)

Typical Isolation Procedure testing methods include:

• Testing Dead or Test for Dead
• Attempt Start
• Observation of Visual Break Isolators (VBIs)
• Pilot lamp indication of energised phases

In many cases these isolation verification methods are complex, potentially misleading and expensive to perform.

More “Confirming Electrical Isolations” Information?

The “Confirming Electrical Isolations” Technical Paper presents a full analysis of:

• Why you need to confirm electrical isolations
• What options are available to confirm electrical isolations
• What you need to consider when deciding on a method for confirm electrical isolations
• Industry Best Practice methods for confirming electrical isolations

Isolation Procedure Steps and Redbusbar Products?

SwitchFix is used for effectively locking out an isolation switch or disconnect.

DeadEasy and SwitChek are used to verify that power circuits supplying electrically powered equipment are de-energised.