World energy leaders, government officials, decision makers, and more than 100,000 oil and gas trade professionals from 125 countries are gearing up for ADIPEC 2016, to be held from 7-10 November at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC)

Shell and BP have had mixed results in Q3 2016 but both are wary of the low oil price and the potentially detrimental effect on their profits

Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) can save lives during machine maintenance and interventions in production facilities. Between 15-20 per cent of workplace accidents can be avoided with LOTO, which is why the procedure should be part of any ambitious go-for-zero programme that bans accidents from the workplace. Get the free LOTO guide!

Machine specific isolation

In principle, Lockout/Tagout isolates machines from their energy supply during interventions, which prevents them from being reactivated prematurely. To implement Lockout/Tagout in the workplace, machine-specific procedures need to list the necessary steps to isolate every machine. Writing these specific procedures requires some expertise and a thorough knowledge of Lockout/Tagout principles. Brady Corporation supports companies in creating and writing safe machine-specific procedures based on worldwide best practices.

Easily implementation procedures

Machine-specific procedures need to be evaluated by several stakeholders, often spread out over various sites. Brady proposes the LINK360™ software to easily introduce, approve or edit, scale and communicate machine-specific procedures for Lockout/Tagout.

Once approved, LINK360 enables users to upload on-site pictures of the machinery and its energy isolation points. Once finished, the cloud-based software can print the machine-specific procedure for communication near its machine.

Tools & devices

To actively isolate a machine in line with the company-approved procedures, a number of lockout devices and padlocks are needed. For every energy isolation point, including handles, buttons, valves, levers and others, a Lockout/Tagout device exists that blocks them in the off-position. A padlock will lock the device itself in place so that machinery that is being serviced cannot be re-energised accidentally.

With best practice machine-specific procedures, software to easily create and evaluate them, and the tools to isolate any machine from its energy sources, companies can avoid accidents during machine interventions and push a go-for-zero programme to the next level.

Meet Brady at ADIPEC 2016 in Abu Dhabi (UAE), booth H 14 – 14130.

Download the Free Lockout/Tagout guide book ‘Safer machine interventions’

ABC Orjiako, chairman of Seplat told Oil Review Africa that the low oil price environment, as well as Nigerian local content requirements, present opportunities for the company