The importance of a lockout tagout program in your workplace is to ensure worker coordination with others, safety when on the job, and efficiency to get the maintenance done in a timely and appropriate way. It is always a high priority for an employer to make sure their employees do not end up injured or harmed on the job. Although accidents do occur from time to time, the lockout tagout program can decrease the chance of these accidents.
When working with equipment and elements that may be harmful, workers should provide caution, awareness and a focused mind to what they’re heading into. For instance, if someone tries to run machinery while someone else is performing maintenance, it could result in damage to the machine or, unfortunately, an employee. With a lockout and tagout program it will let your employees know when a machine is under maintenance and should not be used.
Some jobs in the workplace may also use energy which can consist of mechanical, electrical, chemical, and a variety of other different energies that could be found. Employees interacting with these energies are at major risk of health hazards if precautions are not chosen. For these types of industries the lockout tagout program comes in handy.
When an employee is trusted and given the sole responsibility to control and service these machines, this system gives them the right and order to lockout and tagout machines that need work or are being installed. These programs may be tedious, but if you teach your employees the guidelines on how to follow these steps and the importance of them, you can avoid disaster. Check out the OSHA standards for the lockout tagout program and make sure you’re following the right measures. If you have any questions on how to set up a lockout tagout program at your place of employment, contact Karl Environmental today!