When thinking about difficult OSHA standards to adhere to, Standard 1910.147, which governs

lockout tagout, comes immediately to mind. It is long, complicated, difficult to reproduce, and

needs near-constant monitoring and updating. And given what it covers, it is often completely

misunderstood by management and safety personnel, leaving a huge vulnerability in any safety

plan.

Because of this, many companies hire third party occupational safety and health auditing firms

with a specialization in lockout tagout to create and monitor their lockout tagout procedures.

And while this might help to ensure everything is running smoothly, it can be very costly and

takes ownership and the safety team out of the equation. So if the firm is incorrectly monitoring

and running the plans, there is no oversight to correct the issue. Similarly, if there is a change in

machinery, technology, or personnel and the firm is not notified, the procedures may be out of

compliance and no one would know.

There are other companies which try to create and manage the procedures in-house. And if you

have someone well versed in lockout tagout procedures that is great. But to try to learn as you

go and create and maintain them can become an arduous task, draining time and resources from

the safety team. And while there are many online quick guides, they are not complete and cannot

guarantee that your procedures will be appropriate in your specific situation.

Fortunately, we have created our Factory Solutions Software. It is a web-based application which

allows you to create and maintain your lockout tagout procedures while we monitor them for

compliance. Should you attempt to update them in a non-compliant way, you will be notified. If

regulations change, you will be notified. But we do not take over the ownership, meaning you

remain in control.

If you have any questions about lockout tagout procedures or our Factory Solutions Software,

please contact us. If you have anything else to add about lockout tagout procedures and proper

monitoring of them, please leave a comment.