Isolation and Lockout Procedure

Purpose. This procedure sets out how machines and plant are shut down, isolated from all energy sources, locked and tested before any maintenance, cleaning or repair work begins, and how they are safely returned to service.

1.Scope

This procedure applies to every item of plant at Ironbark sites and to customer plant worked on by Ironbark crews. It covers electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic, stored mechanical, gravitational, thermal and chemical energy. Where a customer site has its own isolation procedure, that procedure takes precedence and Ironbark workers must be trained in it before starting work.

2.Steps to isolate

The worker must identify every energy source on the plant using the drawings and the isolation points listed in the equipment register. The plant must be shut down by the normal stop control, each isolation point must be operated and a personal lock and tag fitted by every person who will work on the plant. Stored energy must be released or restrained, and the isolation must be proven by attempting to start the plant before work begins.

• Identify all energy sources and isolation points
• Shut down using normal controls and notify affected personnel
• Isolate each point and fit personal lock and danger tag
• Release or restrain stored energy: bleed hydraulics, vent air, block suspended loads
• Test for dead by attempting to start; confirm zero energy
• Record the isolation on the job card

3.Personal locks and tags

Each worker holds a personal lock with a single key that no other person must use. A personal lock must never be removed by anyone other than the person who fitted it, except under the lock removal process authorised by the Maintenance Services Manager after every reasonable attempt to contact the lock holder has been made and documented.

4.Group isolation

Where more than three workers are on one isolation, the supervisor will apply an isolation lock to each point and place the keys in a lock box. Each worker then fits a personal lock to the lock box. The supervisor holds the group isolation register and must confirm all personal locks are removed before the isolation locks are released.

5.Returning to service

Before de-isolating, the supervisor must confirm that all guards are refitted, tools and materials are cleared, all workers are clear of the plant and all personal locks are removed. The plant is then de-isolated in the reverse order, tested and handed back to the operator with the job card signed by both parties.

6.Training and audit

A worker must not perform an isolation until they have completed isolation training recorded in the training matrix and have been observed by their supervisor. The Quality and Safety Manager will audit at least two live isolations per month and record the results in the corrective action log.