Lockout-Tagout (LOTO)

In short: Lockout-tagout (LOTO) is the OSHA-required practice (29 CFR 1910.147) of isolating and locking every energy source on equipment before servicing it, so the machine cannot start or release stored energy while someone is working on it.

Every energy source, electrical, steam, hydraulic, pneumatic, gravity, gets an isolation point that is locked and tagged by the workers exposed, and isolation is verified at zero energy before work begins. In a distillery that means pumps, agitators, conveyors, mills, and steam lines. A LOTO permit records the isolation points and the verifier, so the answer to "was it locked out" is a record. Spirit Sight tracks LOTO alongside <a href="/confined-space-hot-work-loto-permits/">confined-space and hot-work permits</a> on one live board.

What does a LOTO permit record?

The equipment, each energy-isolation point and the device applied, who applied the locks, and who verified zero energy before work started. When work completes, the permit closes with the locks removed by the people who placed them, and the record stays queryable.

Where does LOTO apply in a distillery?

Anywhere stored or supplied energy can move equipment or release material during service: mash agitators, transfer pumps, bottling-line machinery, grain conveyors and mills, and steam systems. Contractor crews servicing equipment fall under the host site's LOTO program too, which is why contractor safety and permits belong in the same system.

Tracking this in a spreadsheet? Spirit Sight records it where it happens and builds inventory, compliance, and the books from the same entry. See it on a demo.

Related

• Confined space, hot work, and LOTO permits
• Contractor safety management
• Distillery safety and EHS guide