Lockout tagout steps stop a machine from starting or releasing energy while someone works on it: prepare, shut down, isolate, lock and tag, release stored energy, verify, then keep it locked and release it in order. They matter most in maintenance: in several European countries, 10-15% of fatal workplace accidents in 2006 were related to maintenance work.[1]
This post answers three questions:
- How many steps do the rules name?
- What does each step involve, and which device does it need?
- What keeps it safe during the work and at release?
Part 1: How Many Steps Does LOTO Have?
Six, in the version most people know. The US lockout standard, OSHA 29 CFR 1910.147, lists them in paragraph (d): preparation, shutdown, isolation, applying locks and tags, controlling stored energy, and verifying isolation. Paragraph (e) then covers release from lockout.[2] European rules cover the same ground in different groupings:
- Machinery, EN ISO 14118:2017: defines isolation and energy dissipation as four actions: isolating, locking, dissipating or restraining stored energy, and verifying that the first three worked (clause 3.3).[3]
- France, INRS ED 6109: describes consignation in four phases (separation, locking and signalling, dissipation, verification and identification).[4]
- Germany, DGUV Information 209-015: lists six measures before maintenance, including switching off, securing against restart and checking that stored energy is gone.[5]
- Switzerland, Suva: the eight vital rules for maintenance include switching off and securing the installation with your personal padlock (rule 3) and making stored energy safe (rule 4).[6]
None of them ends at verification: the lockout must stay on during the work and come off in a set order. That is the "and more", steps 7 and 8.
Part 2: The Lockout Tagout Steps at a Glance
| Step | What it means | Device |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Prepare | Identify the machine, its energy sources and isolation points; inform operators | Written procedure; lockout station |
| 2. Shut down | Stop the machine with its normal controls | None |
| 3. Isolate | Open the disconnector, close the valves, cut air and hydraulic supplies | Isolators on the machine; breaker and valve lockouts |
| 4. Lock and tag | Each worker's own padlock on each isolation point, with a tag: who, when, why | Personal padlock, hasp, lockout tag |
| 5. Release stored energy | Bleed pressure, discharge capacitors, block raised parts, wait for rundown | Bleed valves, blocks, supports |
| 6. Verify | Try to start; test for absence of voltage; read the gauges | Voltage tester, pressure gauges |
| 7. Keep it locked | Locks stay on through breaks; hand over at shift changes | Group lockbox |
| 8. Release | Clear the machine, inform people, remove own locks, restore energy | None |
The devices for steps 3 and 4 work best kept together: most sites hold them in lockout tagout kits, one per crew or machine type.
Part 3: Steps 1 to 6 in Practice
1. Prepare
Identify the machine, list every energy source (electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic, mechanical, thermal, chemical, gravity) and find each isolation point. Plan the job and check what can go wrong before anyone starts.[6] The steps for that machine belong in a written procedure: see our lockout tagout procedure guide. Tell operators before you stop anything.
2. Shut down
Stop the machine with its normal controls. Switching off is not securing: without a lock, someone can switch it back on, picking the wrong switch or assuming the work is done.[5]
3. Isolate
Separate the machine from every supply at the isolation device: main disconnector, valves, air and hydraulic supplies. Isolate as close to the work as you can, so the isolation is easy to check.[4] On linked lines, isolating only the unit you work on may not be enough.[5]
4. Lock and tag
Everyone working puts their own padlock on every isolation point and removes it themselves.[5] Use dedicated padlocks, not ones taken from a toolbox or locker.[4] Our LOTO Padlock - Steel - 38mm holds its key while the shackle is open, so the key cannot leave an open lock. A main switch usually takes up to three padlocks; with more people, add a hasp.[5] The Safety Hasp - Steel Hasp / Nylon Body takes up to six. The tag says who, when and why.
Best Practice: One person, one lock, one key. A spare key may exist, but kept where other workers cannot reach it. Group locks where every key opens every lock are not a protective measure while people are in the danger zone.[5]
5. Release stored energy
Bleed pressure, discharge capacitors, lower or block raised parts, and wait until moving parts have stopped.[5] Where energy cannot be removed, restrain it, for example by blocking a suspended load.[4]
6. Verify
Try to start the machine with its normal controls, then return them to off.[2] On electrical isolations, test every conductor, including neutral, with a purpose-made voltage tester at the place of work. A multimeter or test screwdriver does not count. Treat the test as work on live equipment.[4] This step is the "tryout" in LOTOTO.
Part 4: Steps 7 and 8: During the Work and at Release
7. Keep it locked
Locks stay on through breaks and until the job is done. Shift changes and multi-day jobs need a set handover, so the machine is never without a lock.[4] For several crews and many isolation points, see complex lockout and shift changes.
8. Release
Before energy goes back: tools and parts out, guards refitted and working, everyone clear and informed. Each person removes only their own lock.[2] Then restore energy in the order the procedure sets. Release is not always the lockout in reverse: base the order on a risk assessment.[4] Record the work and hand the machine back to production.[5]
Real-World Case: After maintenance on a filter unit, its lid was left open to dry, with signs saying the work was unfinished. Days later the signs were gone and the lid closed but not bolted. When a pump was switched on, hazardous substances escaped.[5]
Part 5: Where The Lock Box Fits
Our lockout kits carry the devices for steps 3 and 4, grouped by energy type. The Valve & Electrical Lockout Kit, polypropylene case holds four 38 mm steel padlocks, six hasps, twelve tags, breaker lockouts, a gate valve cover, a valve handle lock and a cable lockout.
For step 1, a Lockout Tagout Station - Padlocks & Hasps keeps up to 40 padlocks, 8 hasps and tags at the point of use, under a lockable cover. Write the steps down for each machine with our free Lockout/Tagout Procedure template (PDF, Word or Excel).
Equipping a Site for Lockout?
Contact The Lock Box with the energy sources and isolation points on your machines, and we will propose the kit and padlocks for each procedure.
References
- EU-OSHA. Maintenance and Occupational Safety and Health: A statistical picture, p. 41 (2010). https://osha.
europa. eu/ sites/ default/ files/ maintenance_ OSH_ statistics. pdf - OSHA. 29 CFR 1910.147: The control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout), paragraphs (d) and (e). https://www.
osha. gov/ laws- regs/ regulations/ standardnumber/ 1910/ 1910. 147 - ISO. ISO 14118:2017: Safety of machinery, Prevention of unexpected start-up, clause 3.3 (EN ISO 14118:2018 in Europe). https://www.
iso. org/ standard/ 66460. html - INRS. ED 6109: Consignations et déconsignations, 3rd edition, October 2020, sections 4.1, 4.2 and 5.1. https://www.
inrs. fr/ dam/ inrs/ CataloguePapier/ ED/ TI- ED- 6109. pdf - DGUV. DGUV Information 209-015: Instandhaltung an Maschinen und Anlagen, June 2026, sections 3.1.1 and 4.1.5. https://publikationen.
dguv. de/ regelwerk/ dguv- informationen/ 338/ instandhaltung- an- maschinen- und- anlagen - Suva. Acht lebenswichtige Regeln für die Instandhaltung (84040.D), rules 1, 3 and 4, revised March 2022 (in German, French and Italian). https://www.
suva. ch/ de- ch/ download/ regeln- und- tipps/ acht- lebenswichtige- regeln- fuer- die- instandhaltung- - 84040. d