Lockout/Tagout Procedure Template — OSHA 1910.147
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A Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) procedure template aligned to OSHA 29 CFR 1910.147 (The Control of Hazardous Energy). Equipment-specific procedures, the six steps OSHA requires, group lockout for multi-worker servicing, shift-change handover, and the annual periodic inspection that every employer with LOTO procedures must perform — and that OSHA Compliance Officers cite frequently as missing.
Designed for: US plant maintenance, industrial mechanics, electricians, millwrights, automation engineers, contractors, facility operations and safety managers
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Complete Guide to Lockout/Tagout Procedure (US)
What is a Lockout/Tagout Procedure?
A Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) procedure is the written, equipment-specific document that tells a worker how to safely isolate, lock and verify the de-energisation of a piece of equipment before performing servicing or maintenance. OSHA 29 CFR 1910.147 — the Control of Hazardous Energy standard — requires a documented procedure for every machine or equipment where employees perform servicing/maintenance, with very narrow exceptions for cord-and-plug equipment under the exclusive control of the worker.
When is it legally required?
OSHA 1910.147 applies whenever servicing or maintenance is performed on machines or equipment where the unexpected energisation, start-up or release of stored energy could cause injury. This covers production line maintenance, conveyor work, hydraulic and pneumatic systems, electrical panels, motors, robotics, packaging equipment, presses, mixers, blenders, agitators, valves on hazardous-fluid lines, and most plant maintenance. LOTO is consistently in OSHA's Top 10 most-cited standards, and the most common citation is no procedure at all — followed by procedure not equipment-specific.
Who is responsible?
OSHA 1910.147 names three categories: the Authorised Employee (trained to lock and tag, performs the LOTO and the servicing); the Affected Employee (operator whose work is affected by the LOTO but who doesn't perform it); and Other Employees (anyone else who could be in the area). All three categories must be trained, but only the Authorised Employee applies and removes the lock. Group LOTO uses a group lockbox with a primary authorised employee maintaining the master.
Where is it commonly used?
Every US manufacturing plant, food processor, pharma facility, refinery, chemical plant, paper mill, automotive assembly, packaging operation, warehouse with automated conveyors, water/wastewater treatment, power generation, mine, and construction site where equipment is serviced. Required by every major contract operator (Schlumberger, Halliburton, Cargill, Tyson, Tesla, GM, Toyota, Boeing) as a vendor prequalification document.
What a Complete Lockout/Tagout Procedure Includes
- Procedure number, date, revision history
- Equipment identification — make, model, asset tag, location
- Scope: when this procedure applies and when it does not
- All energy sources identified — electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic, mechanical (gravity, springs, rotating parts), thermal, chemical, radiation
- Magnitude of each energy source (voltage, pressure, temperature, weight)
- Isolation device for each energy source — disconnect, valve, blocker, pin
- Stored energy release method (bleed lines, lower loads, discharge capacitors)
- Six-step procedure: notify → shutdown → isolate → lock/tag → release stored energy → verify
- Verification method (try-start, voltage test, pressure gauge, physical movement)
- Locks and tags required — number, type, where applied
- Group LOTO procedure (if applicable): primary authorised employee, lockbox, sign-in/out
- Shift-change handover: continuity of lockout across shifts
- Re-energisation procedure: 6 steps in reverse with affected-employee notification
- Authorised employees by name (or by role with current roster attached)
- Annual periodic inspection — date, inspector, findings, corrective actions
- Procedure reviewed and signed by competent person
What's included in this template
Procedure Header
Number, equipment ID, revision, sign-off.
Scope & Application
When this procedure applies and exclusions.
Energy Sources
Every source, magnitude, isolation device, location.
Stored Energy
How residual or stored energy is released and verified.
Six-Step Procedure
Notify → Shutdown → Isolate → Lock/Tag → Release stored energy → Verify.
Verification Method
Specific test for each energy source — voltage, pressure, movement.
Group LOTO (if applicable)
Primary authorised employee, lockbox, sign-in/out.
Shift Change
Continuity of lockout, handover documentation.
Re-energisation
Reverse procedure with affected-employee notification.
Training & Roster
Authorised employees, training records, current roster.
Annual Periodic Inspection
Date, inspector, findings, corrective actions.
US Requirements and Best Practice
Legal expectations
- ● Written, equipment-specific procedure for each piece of equipment — 1910.147(c)(4)
- ● Authorised employees train and use locks/tags assigned only to them — 1910.147(c)(5) / (c)(6)
- ● Six-step shutdown procedure followed — 1910.147(d)
- ● Stored energy released before maintenance begins — 1910.147(d)(5)
- ● Verification of de-energisation before work — 1910.147(d)(6)
- ● Periodic inspection at least annually by an authorised employee other than the one(s) using the procedure — 1910.147(c)(6)(i)
- ● Training records: who, when, what — 1910.147(c)(7)(iv)
- ● Group LOTO procedure where multiple workers service the same equipment — 1910.147(f)(3)
- ● Shift-change continuity — 1910.147(f)(4)
- ● Outside contractor coordination — 1910.147(f)(2)
What inspectors typically look for
- ● Is there an equipment-specific procedure for the equipment being serviced — or just a generic policy?
- ● Are all energy sources identified, including hydraulic, pneumatic and stored mechanical (springs, gravity)?
- ● Is the verification step real (voltage test on the specific terminals) or generic?
- ● Are the authorised employees on site actually trained, with current training records?
- ● Has the annual periodic inspection been done, and were findings corrected?
- ● If group LOTO: is there a lockbox, a primary authorised employee, and a sign-in/out record?
- ● Across shift changes: was lockout continuity maintained?
- ● If contractors are servicing equipment: did the host employer and contractor coordinate per 1910.147(f)(2)?
Common compliance mistakes
- Generic 'lock the disconnect' procedure not specific to the equipment
- Hydraulic or pneumatic energy source missed (electrical-only LOTO)
- Stored mechanical energy not released (raised load, compressed spring, charged accumulator)
- Verification step is 'try the start button' but not a voltage test on the actual terminals being worked
- Annual periodic inspection not done, or done by the same authorised employee using the procedure
- Locks shared between workers or removed by someone other than the applier
- No group lockout procedure on equipment routinely serviced by multiple workers
- Shift change with no documented handover of lockout responsibility
- Contractor performs LOTO with no host-contractor coordination
- Training records missing, outdated, or generic 'safety orientation'
Example Use Cases
Conveyor maintenance, packaging plant
Authorised employee follows the equipment-specific procedure for Line 7 conveyor: notifies the line operator (affected employee), shuts down via the HMI, opens the disconnect, applies their personal lock and tag, bleeds the pneumatic divert gate accumulator, releases the hydraulic tensioner via the manual bleed valve, verifies zero voltage at the motor terminals with a calibrated meter, verifies zero pressure on the pneumatic and hydraulic gauges, then proceeds. Re-energisation reverses the steps with affected-employee notification before HMI restart.
Group LOTO on a press during scheduled maintenance
Five mechanics service a stamping press during a Saturday outage. Primary Authorised Employee performs the equipment-specific LOTO and places the master locks on the disconnect and hydraulic isolation valves. Each mechanic places their personal lock on the group lockbox key holder before starting work. Sign-in/sign-out log on the lockbox. As each mechanic finishes, they remove their personal lock; the primary authorised employee removes the master locks last after confirming the equipment is clear.
Contractor electrician replacing an MCC bucket
Outside electrician arrives to replace a 480V MCC bucket. Host employer's plant supervisor briefs them on the host's energy control procedures and any plant-specific hazards (1910.147(f)(2)). Contractor uses their own locks and tags, follows the equipment-specific procedure for that MCC, verifies de-energisation with a phased voltage tester (live-dead-live), performs the work, then re-energises in reverse with the host operator standing by. Both parties sign the LOTO log.
How to use this template
- 1
Identify every energy source
Electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic, mechanical (gravity, springs, rotating parts), thermal, chemical, radiation. Missing one is the #1 LOTO fatality root cause.
- 2
Document the isolation device for each
Specific disconnect, valve, blocker, pin — by tag number and location, not 'the breaker'.
- 3
Plan the stored energy release
Bleed hydraulic and pneumatic lines, lower or block raised loads, discharge capacitors, allow thermal cool-down.
- 4
Write the six steps in order
Notify affected employees → Shutdown → Isolate → Apply locks and tags → Release/restrain stored energy → Verify zero energy.
- 5
Define the verification method
Try-start AND test the equipment at the work point. For electrical, use a phased voltage tester with live-dead-live verification.
- 6
Address group LOTO
If multiple workers service the equipment, use a group lockbox with a primary authorised employee maintaining the master locks.
- 7
Plan shift-change continuity
How does lockout pass between shifts without exposure? Documented handover, locks transferred or doubled before original lock removed.
- 8
Schedule the annual periodic inspection
Required by 1910.147(c)(6)(i). Performed by an authorised employee other than the one(s) using the procedure. Findings documented and corrected.
- 9
Train and roster authorised employees
Initial training, retraining when procedures or equipment change, retraining when inspection reveals deficiencies. Records on file.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Generic 'lock the disconnect' procedure not specific to the equipment
- Hydraulic, pneumatic or stored mechanical energy missed
- Verification step generic ('try the start button') with no voltage/pressure test
- Annual periodic inspection not done, or done by the same authorised employee
- Locks shared, removed by someone other than the applier
- No group LOTO procedure where multiple workers service the same equipment
- Shift change with no documented handover
- Contractor LOTO with no host-contractor coordination per 1910.147(f)(2)
- Training records missing, outdated, or generic safety orientation
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