How to write a lockout/tagout procedure that works at the equipment
Most LOTO procedures fail the same way. The binder says "turn off the disconnect, lock it, try to start it." Then the electrician opens the VFD and finds 650 volts DC still on the bus, or the mechanic breaks a flange on a coil that is still under 30 psi of 180°F water, or the control circuit is fed from a different panel on the other side of the building. The free lockout/tagout procedure template above is built around one idea: write the procedure standing at the equipment, and list every energy source on its own line.
What OSHA requires, in plain terms
Two OSHA rules come up for contractors, and which one applies depends on where you are and what you are doing:
- 29 CFR 1926.417 — construction. Controls that are turned off during work on energized or de-energized equipment or circuits must be tagged. Equipment and circuits that are de-energized must be rendered inoperative and tagged at every point where they can be energized. Tags must clearly identify the equipment or circuits being worked on. This is short, and it does not spell out a written procedure.
- 29 CFR 1910.147 — general industry. This is the full control of hazardous energy standard: a written program, equipment-specific procedures, training, and an annual inspection. It excludes construction, but it covers servicing and maintenance in operating plants, and most owners, industrial sites, and GC safety programs require contractors to follow it.
- NFPA 70E Article 120 (verify against the edition adopted by your AHJ or owner) covers how to establish an electrically safe work condition. Find every possible source, open the disconnects, check that the blades are actually open where you can see them, apply locks and tags, test for absence of voltage with a meter you have checked on a known live source, and ground where induced voltage or stored energy could be present.
If you do industrial or plant work, assume the owner will hold you to 1910.147 and 70E. A procedure that meets those will satisfy 1926.417 too.
The six parts of the procedure tab
1. Equipment and procedure identity
Write one procedure per machine or system, and give it a procedure number that goes on the lock tag and the log, for example LOTO-AHU-03. Record the revision, who prepared it, who approved it, and the last annual review date. The sheet sets the next review due date 12 months out.
2. Purpose and scope
Say what the procedure is for: filter and belt service, motor replacement, coil work, anything that puts a hand inside the unit or its enclosures. 1910.147 requires a specific statement of intended use. It also makes clear who may apply locks (authorized employees) and who only needs to be told (affected employees).
3. The hazardous energy source table
This is the heart of the procedure. Each row is one energy source, and it records:
| Column | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| Energy type | Electrical, control power, stored electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, thermal, chemical, gravity, spring, steam or process. |
| Magnitude | 480V 3Ø, 120V control, 650 VDC bus, 2,500 psi, 20 psi, 180°F. The authorized employee has to know the type and size of the energy before shutting it down. |
| Isolation device | The disconnect, breaker, valve, or blind that actually stops the energy. Pushbuttons, selector switches, and control circuits are not isolating devices. |
| Device location | Specific enough that a new hire can find it: "Elec Room 204, panel LP-2A, circuit 14." |
| Lockout method / device | Handle hasp, breaker lockout, gate-valve cover, ball-valve lockout, chain and lock. |
| Stored-energy release | Wait out the capacitor discharge time, bleed pressure, drain and cool, block or lower raised parts, release springs. |
| Verification method | A try-start at the local control, a live-dead-live test for absence of voltage, a gauge reading zero, a block that stops movement. |
The example in the template is a VFD-driven air handler with six sources: the 480V disconnect, 120V control power from a different panel, VFD DC bus capacitors, a fan wheel that windmills from building airflow, pneumatic damper air, and a hot water coil. That is a normal piece of equipment, and most "turn off the disconnect" procedures miss four of those six.
4. Shutdown, isolation and verification sequence
OSHA's sequence in 1910.147(d) is the order the step table follows: prepare, notify affected employees, do a normal shutdown, isolate every source, apply locks and tags, release stored energy, verify isolation, then start work. Each step has initials and time columns so the sheet can double as a field checklist. Two rules matter more than the others:
- Release stored energy after locking. If energy can build back up (a capacitor bank, a process line with a leaking valve), keep verifying the whole time you are working.
- Verify before anyone touches anything. Try-start, then put the control back to OFF. Test for absence of voltage on every phase, phase-to-phase and phase-to-ground, with a meter you have proven on a known live source before and after the test.
5. Restoration
Release from lockout in 1910.147(e) is the reverse: inspect the equipment and put guards back, make sure everyone is clear, have each person remove their own lock, notify affected employees, then re-energize. If the person who applied a lock is not on site, your written program has to cover removing it: confirm they are gone, make every reasonable effort to reach them, and make sure they know before they come back to work. The Lock & Tag Log flags these removals with CHECK.
6. Special conditions
Testing or positioning (bumping a motor for rotation) means clearing tools and people, removing locks, energizing, then fully re-locking before work continues. At shift change, the oncoming worker's lock goes on before the off-going worker's lock comes off. Outside contractors and the host employer exchange procedures before work starts.
The Lock & Tag Log: know who has a lock on what
On a big shutdown there can be forty personal locks on a dozen isolation points, and at 5 PM someone always asks "whose lock is this?" The log records lock number, assignee, craft, isolation point, procedure number, applied and removed date and time, who removed it, and supervisor sign-off. Formulas calculate hours locked and set the status:
- OPEN (red): the lock is on and no removal time has been entered.
- CHECK (amber): the lock was removed by someone other than the person it was assigned to. Document the absent-employee contact in Notes.
- Closed: the lock was removed by its owner.
Counters at the top show open locks and removals by someone else. Filter the status column before you leave site. Every OPEN lock should be one you meant to leave on.
Group lockout without guesswork
For crews and multi-craft work, 1910.147(f)(3) calls for a group procedure that protects each worker as well as a personal lock would. The Group LOTO tab covers the usual lockbox method:
- The authorized employee in charge locks every isolation point and puts the keys in the lockbox. The sheet checks that the key count matches the number of isolation points.
- Each worker verifies zero energy (or watches it being verified) and puts a personal lock on the box.
- Each worker removes only their own lock when they stop working on the equipment.
- The counter shows how many personal locks are still on the box. The group locks come off only at zero.
When more than one craft or employer is involved, one coordinator has overall LOTO control. The shift-change table records each transfer so protection is never interrupted.
Common LOTO mistakes this template is designed to catch
- Missing the second source: control power from another panel, a generator or PV backfeed, a UPS, or a tie breaker.
- Treating the VFD as off when its DC bus is still charged.
- Tagging a pushbutton instead of locking the disconnect.
- Testing with an unproven meter. Live-dead-live is not optional.
- A foreman's lock "covering" the crew with no group procedure.
- Locks left on for days with nobody sure whose they are.
Pair it with
- Energized Electrical Work Permit, for the rare cases where de-energizing is not feasible
- Electrical JSA template, which covers the task hazards around the lockout
- Arc flash label data sheet
- OSHA minimum approach distance chart
- Confined space entry permit, since permit spaces often need isolation first
- All free construction templates
When the lock log lives on a clipboard in the electrical room, nobody else can see it. Field PM's safety module puts JSAs, permits, and safety forms on every foreman's phone, files them to the job automatically, and shows the safety manager what is open. Start a free 30-day trial.
This template is a planning aid, not legal or engineering advice. Verify requirements against current OSHA text, the NFPA 70E edition adopted by your AHJ or owner, the equipment manufacturer's instructions, and your company safety program.
