Every year, between 150 and 200 fatalities and some 50,000 injuries occur due to failure to control the release of hazardous energy. Lockout/tagout (LOTO) refers to the OSHA-required practices and procedures to protect workers from unexpected start-up of machinery or hazardous energy released during service or maintenance.
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LOTO consistently appears on OSHA’s annual list of most-violated standards. OSHA maintains that compliance with the standard (29 CFR 1910.147) could prevent hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries, including amputations, each year.
This article reviews the standard, hazards, and solutions offered by a world leader in automation and LOTO services.