Lockout devices removing

The valve was operated by compressed air, and the two air hoses, one to open the valve and one to close it, were connected up the wrong way around. The two connectors should have been different in size or design so that this could not occur. In addition, they were not disconnected, and a lockout device on the valve—a mechanical stop—had been removed. It is also bad practice to carry out work on equipment isolated from hot flammable gas under pressure by a single isolation valve. The take-off branch should have been slip-plated, and double block and bleed valves should have been provided so the slip-plate could be inserted safely (Figure 1-1), [16, 17]. 

The accident investigation evidence showed that this safe procedure was not followed specifically, the product takeoff valve was removed, the DEMCO valve was in the open position, and the lockout device was removed. This scenario was a serious violation of well-established and well-understood procedures and created the conditions that permitted the release and subsequent explosion. 

As described above, a lockout device can be used as a security measure to prevent unauthorized access to aboveground valves located within chemical processing systems. Valve lockout devices are locks that are specially designed to fit over valves and valve handles to control their ability to be turned or seated. These devices can be used to lock the valve into the desired position. Once the valve is locked, it cannot be turned unless the locking device is unlocked or removed by an authorized individual. 

Is each lockout/tagout device removed by the authorized employee who applied... 

Specific procedural steps for the placement, removal, and transfer of lockout devices or tagout devices and the responsibility for them... 

Lockout— The placement of a lockout device on an energy-isolating device, in accordance with an established procedure, ensuring that the energy-isolating device and the equipment being controlled cannot be operated until the lockout device is removed. 

Remove the lockout devices and re-energize the machine or equipment. The employee who applied the device will remove each lockout/tagout device from each energy-isolating device. 

Under what conditions would you remove someone else s lock from a lockout device ... 

Lockout or tagout shall be performed only by the authorized employees who are performing the servicing or maintenance. Affected employees are to be notified by the employer or authorized employee of the application and removal of lockout devices or tagout devices. Notification must be given before the controls are applied and after they are removed from the machine, equipment, pipelines, or other sources of hazardous energy. 

Each authorized employee shall affix a personal lockout or tagout device to the group lockout device, group lockbox, or comparable mechanism when the employee begins work and shall remove those devices when he or she stops working on the machine or equipment being serviced or maintained. 

Notify all affected employees in the area before the lockout device is removed. 

After all tools have been removed from the machine or equipment, guards have been reinstalled, and all employees are in the clear, remove the lockout devices. 

Temporary Removal of Lockout Device during Servicing... 

In the event a lockout device must be temporarily removed and the machine or equipment energized to test or position the machine, the authorized employee shall ensure safety in the following manner ... 

Removal of a Lockout Device in the Authorized Employee s Absence... 

If the authorized anployee is not available to remove the lockout device, it may be removed only under the following circumstances ... 

Any time a machine needs to be locked out across a shift change, the oncoming authorized supervisor shall ensure that his or her lockout device is removed. In the event this sequence is not followed and the lockout device is removed before the oncoming employee arrives, the oncoming employee must follow the entire lockout procedure before beginning work. 

Is each lockout/tagout device removed by the authorized employee who applied it [29 CFR 1910.147 (e)(2)(ii)]... 

Remove Remove lockout devices, chains, clamps, blanks, tags, etc. Double... 

Remove the lockout devices and reenergize the machine or equipment. Note The removal of some forms of blocking may require re-energization of the machine before safe removal. 

In a February 28, 2000 letter of interpretation, OSHA states that bolt cutters, or other devicedestructive methods, are not the only permissible means by which to remove a lockout device, if the employer can demonstrate that the specific alternative procedure, which the employer follows prior to removing the device, provides a degree of safety that is equivalent to the removal of the device by the authorized employee who first affixed it. 

Are all affected employees given prior notification of the application and removal of lockout and tagout devices [OSHA Reference. 147(c)(9)]... 

Institute procedures for the release of lockout/tagout, including machine inspection, notification and safe positioning of employees, and the removal of a lockout/tagout device. 

Require that each lockout/tagout device be removed by the employee who applied the device. 

When the authorized employee who applied the lockout or tagout device is not available to remove it, that device may be removed under the direction of the supervisor, provided that specific procedures and training for such removal have been developed, documented, and incorporated into the lockout/tagout program. Specific procedures include the following elements ... 

Making all reasonable efforts to contact the authorized employee to inform him/her that his/her lockout or tagout device has been removed ... 

Verification That Employee Has Been Informed Before Coming Back to Work That His/Her Lockout/Tagout Device Has Been Removed... 

---