Lockout/tagout energy control program generator
An energy control program is the written document OSHA expects before anyone services or maintains equipment that could unexpectedly energize, start up, or release stored energy. 29 CFR 1910.147 — OSHA’s general industry standard — requires the program to cover energy control procedures, employee training, and a periodic inspection performed at least once a year. Construction’s electrical standard, 29 CFR 1926.417, requires circuits and controls to be deenergized and tagged but does not set out a full program on its own, so most construction employers build their lockout/tagout program on the 1910.147 structure and apply 1926.417 to the electrical-circuit side of the work.
What you get
A ready-to-use PDF with your company filled in, version and effective date, a management signature block and an annual review line. Blank lines are left where only your site can answer.
- Scope and policy: lockout preferred, tagout only where a device cannot be locked out
- Roles: program administrator, authorized employees, affected employees, periodic inspector
- Equipment / energy source list, pre-filled with what you list
- Written step-by-step energy control procedure (shutdown, isolation, lockout/tagout, stored-energy release, verification)
- Release from lockout or tagout — the sequence before re-energizing
- Group lockout procedure for crew or shift work on the same equipment
- Shift and personnel change procedure
- Contractors and outside servicing personnel — information exchange
- Annual periodic inspection with the 1910.147(c)(6) certification record
- Training content, retraining triggers, and a sign-off log
- Annual review, revision log and management signature
Fill in and download
What the document is built on
- 29 CFR 1910.147(c)(1) — energy control program
- 29 CFR 1910.147(c)(4), (c)(5) — procedures and hardware
- 29 CFR 1910.147(d), (e) — application of control and release
- 29 CFR 1910.147(f)(2)–(4) — outside personnel, group lockout, shift change
- 29 CFR 1910.147(c)(6) — periodic inspection, at least annually, with certification
- 29 CFR 1910.147(c)(7) — training and communication
- 29 CFR 1926.417 — lockout and tagging of circuits (construction, electrical)
When the job needs documented training, not just a talk — certificate issued the same day.
Questions safety managers ask
How often does the periodic inspection have to happen?
At least once a year for each energy control procedure (1910.147(c)(6)(i)). It must be done by an authorized employee other than the one who normally uses that procedure, and the employer must certify the inspection happened — identifying the equipment, the date, the employees included, and who performed it.
Is a lock enough, or do we need the written procedures too?
Both. 1910.147(c)(1) requires a program consisting of procedures, training and periodic inspections — not just hardware. If the energy isolating device cannot be locked out, a tagout system is used instead, with the employer required to show the tagout program provides equivalent protection to a lockout program.
Does OSHA have a separate LOTO standard for construction?
Not a comprehensive one. 29 CFR 1926.417 requires deenergized circuits and controls to be rendered inoperative and tagged, but it does not lay out a full energy-control program the way 1910.147 does. Most construction employers who lock out mechanical and electrical equipment build their program on the 1910.147 structure and note 1926.417 for the electrical-circuit tagging requirement.
What is group lockout and when do we need it?
When a crew, craft or department services equipment together, 1910.147(f)(3) allows a group procedure — such as a group lockbox — that gives each employee a level of protection equivalent to a personal lock, with primary responsibility vested in one authorized employee and each worker attaching their own device to the group box when they start work.
Other program generators
A template, not legal advice. It gives you the structure and the regulatory elements; it becomes your program when you fill in the blanks, adapt it to your work, train your people on it and keep it current. Check the current standards and any state OSHA plan that applies to you.