What Is Lockout Tagout (LOTO)? Step-by-Step Procedure for Saudi Workers

Lockout Tagout (LOTO) is the procedure that physically isolates a machine from every energy source before anyone services, repairs, or cleans it. For workers inside Saudi Arabia’s oil, gas, petrochemical, and construction sectors, this is not an optional best practice. It is a mandatory control measure required under OSHA 29 CFR 1910.147 and enforced through Saudi Aramco General Instruction GI 2.720. If your crew works on Aramco or SABIC sites, your workers need to know the LOTO procedure correctly. Not just in principle, but step by step.

This guide covers what LOTO is, the seven energy types it controls, who is responsible on a Saudi worksite, and the full procedure your authorized employees must follow before any maintenance begins.

What Is Lockout Tagout (LOTO)?

Lockout Tagout (LOTO) is a safety procedure that isolates equipment from all hazardous energy sources (electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, thermal, chemical, and gravitational) before maintenance or servicing begins. A lock physically holds the energy isolating device in the off position. A tag identifies the authorized employee who applied it and why the equipment must not be restarted. Together, they create a verified zero energy state: physical proof that no energy can reach the equipment while someone is working on it.

LOTO is governed internationally by OSHA 29 CFR 1910.147, which mandates written energy control procedures, trained authorized employees, and periodic audits. On Saudi Aramco facilities, the equivalent is GI 2.720 (Isolation and Lockout), which applies the same core principles within the Aramco Work Permit System under GI 2.710.

Why LOTO Matters on Saudi Industrial Sites

According to the International Labour Organization, over 2.3 million workers die from occupational accidents and work-related diseases every year globally. A significant proportion of those fatalities involve the unexpected release of hazardous energy during maintenance. That is exactly what LOTO is designed to prevent.

In Saudi Arabia’s oil, gas, and petrochemical sector, the risks are compounded. Equipment on these sites can hold multiple energy types simultaneously: an electric motor that drives a hydraulic pump connected to a pressurized pipeline at elevated temperature. Shutting off the power switch does not de-energize the system. Workers who skip or shortcut the LOTO procedure on such equipment are exposed to energies they cannot see or hear: pressurized fluid, stored spring tension, residual electricity in capacitors, or thermal energy in process lines.

OSHA data from the US indicates that roughly 120 workers die and 50,000 are injured annually from incidents involving hazardous energy control failures. On Saudi Aramco and SABIC sites, vendors and contractors are required to demonstrate LOTO competency through their Contractor HSE Program (CHSEP) before personnel are permitted to work on controlled equipment.

Seven Energy Types LOTO Controls

One of the most common errors workers make is assuming LOTO only applies to electrical power. Every authorized employee on a Saudi industrial site must be able to identify all of the following energy types before starting work:

Energy Type	Examples on KSA Sites	Risk if Not Isolated
Electrical	Motors, control panels, capacitors, VFDs	Electrocution, arc flash
Mechanical	Rotating shafts, springs, flywheels, conveyor drives	Crush injury, amputation
Hydraulic	Pressurized cylinders, accumulators, fluid lines	Sudden movement, injection injury
Pneumatic	Compressed air lines, pneumatic actuators, instrument air	Projectile force, valve slam
Thermal	Steam lines, hot process piping, heat exchangers	Burns, scalding
Chemical	Residual hydrocarbons, H2S in pipelines, caustic agents	Toxic exposure, fire, explosion
Gravitational	Suspended loads, elevated machine parts, raised platforms	Crushing, fall of object

On offshore and refinery turnarounds common in Jubail, Yanbu, and Ras Tanura, equipment routinely involves three to five of these energy types simultaneously. The LOTO procedure must account for all of them before any work begins.

Authorized vs Affected Employees: The Roles Every Saudi Crew Must Understand

Saudi Aramco GI 6.012 and OSHA 1910.147 both define three categories of personnel in any LOTO operation. Misunderstanding these roles causes the majority of real-world LOTO failures.

Role	Who They Are	What They Must Do
Authorized Employee	The worker who performs the lockout and does the maintenance work	Apply their own lock, verify zero energy state, remove their own lock only
Affected Employee	An operator or worker who normally uses the equipment, or works in the area where lockout is in progress	Know the equipment is locked out, never attempt to restart it, report any tampered locks or tags
Other Employees	Anyone else working in the area who could inadvertently affect or be affected by the lockout	Understand that locked-out equipment must not be touched, energized, or operated

The most critical rule: every authorized employee applies their own individual lock. A supervisor cannot lock out equipment on behalf of a crew. One worker, one lock, one key. On group lockout jobs (common on large Aramco turnarounds), each authorized employee clips their own lock onto a hasp at every isolation point. The equipment cannot be restarted until every lock is removed by the person who placed it.

The Step-by-Step LOTO Procedure for Saudi Workers

The following sequence follows OSHA 29 CFR 1910.147 and aligns with Saudi Aramco’s Lock, Tag, Clear and Try (LTCT) methodology used at Aramco-operated and Aramco-contracted facilities.

Step 1: Prepare and Identify All Energy Sources

Before touching the equipment, the authorized employee reviews the machine-specific LOTO procedure document. This document must list every energy source, every isolation point, and the specific method to control each one. Generic procedures that do not name the exact equipment are not compliant.

Preparation includes identifying: which circuit breakers, valves, or disconnects control this equipment; how many energy types are present; whether stored energy (pressure, spring tension, elevated loads) could remain after the power is removed; and whether a group hasp is needed because multiple workers will be on the job.

Step 2: Notify Affected Employees

Before shutting down, the authorized employee notifies all affected employees that the equipment is going out of service and why. On a Saudi Aramco site this notification typically happens as part of the Work Permit process under GI 2.710. The permit must be obtained before any LOTO begins.

Operators who normally use the equipment need to know the machine is isolated, when it went down, and who to contact. They must not attempt to restart it for any reason, including production pressure.

Step 3: Shut Down the Equipment

The authorized employee shuts the equipment down using its normal stopping procedure. The machine must reach a complete stop. Rotating parts must stop, conveyor belts must be stationary, pneumatic actuators must complete their cycle.

Do not attempt to lock out equipment while it is running. Shutdown comes first.

Step 4: Isolate All Energy Sources

This is the critical step most workers rush or do incompletely. Every energy source connected to the equipment must be physically isolated at its source, not just at the machine control panel.

For electrical energy: open the main disconnect and isolate at the panel, not just the local stop button. For hydraulic and pneumatic energy: close the supply valve at the header. For process pipelines: close and chain the block valve. For thermal energy: close steam supply and drain lines. For gravitational energy: lower suspended parts to a resting position or block them mechanically.

Every isolation point gets a lock and a tag.

Step 5: Apply Locks and Tags at Every Isolation Point

The authorized employee applies their personal lock to each energy isolating device. The tag must include the employee’s name, contact information, the date, and a statement that the device must not be operated.

Where multiple authorized employees are working on the same equipment, a group hasp is installed at each isolation point. Every worker clips their individual lock onto the group hasp. No single person controls access to the equipment. It remains locked until every worker has removed their personal lock.

On Saudi Aramco sites, locks are typically color-coded by department, and tags follow the format specified in GI 6.012. Contractors must use their own CHSEP-approved lock sets, not Aramco’s.

Step 6: Release or Restrain Stored Energy

After the locks are applied, the authorized employee must eliminate any residual energy that could still cause harm. This step is separate from isolation because energy can remain stored in a system even after all supply sources are blocked.

Bleed down pneumatic lines to atmospheric pressure. Drain hydraulic circuits and open bleeder valves. Discharge capacitors in electrical circuits using an approved bleed resistor. Block or lower suspended machine parts that could fall under gravity. Allow process equipment time to reach ambient temperature before entry.

Do not proceed to the next step until all stored energy has been released, blocked, or dissipated.

Step 7: Verify and Test for Zero Energy State (Lock, Tag, Clear and Try)

This is the final gate before work begins. The authorized employee verifies that the equipment is truly de-energized by attempting to operate it by pressing the start button, opening the control valve, or applying the operating control, while remaining clear of any moving parts or energy release points.

On Aramco sites, this step is called “Try” in the LTCT sequence: Lock, Tag, Clear, Try. If the machine does not start and no energy releases, the equipment is confirmed to be in a zero energy state and work can begin. If anything moves, trips, or energizes: stop. Return to isolation step and find what was missed.

A verification step without a physical Try is not complete LOTO.

Restoring Equipment After Maintenance

When the work is complete, LOTO removal follows a defined sequence, in reverse order and with equal care.

The authorized employee removes all tools, materials, and personnel from the work zone. Guards and safety devices are reinstalled. The employee notifies all affected employees that the equipment is about to be returned to service. Then, and only then, each authorized employee removes their own lock and tag from every isolation point. No other person is permitted to remove someone else’s lock except in a documented emergency procedure. Even then, it requires supervisor authorization and written record.

Energy is restored in the sequence specified in the LOTO procedure document. The machine is started and monitored to confirm normal operation.

LOTO on Saudi Aramco Multi-Contractor Turnarounds

On large maintenance turnarounds at Aramco refineries or SABIC plants, it is common for crews from multiple contractors to work on the same process unit simultaneously. This creates a group LOTO challenge that requires specific controls beyond single-worker procedures.

Each contractor provides its own trained authorized employees who apply their own locks. A facility-level isolation log tracks which equipment is under LOTO, by which contractor, for which scope of work. If Contractor A’s crew finishes and removes their locks but Contractor B’s crew is still working on the same system, the equipment cannot be restarted. Contractor B’s locks remain in place.

This is why LOTO training cannot be generic. Saudi workers and contractors on Aramco sites need training that covers the group lockout procedure, the Aramco-specific tagging format, and the interface with the GI 2.710 Work Permit system. A crew trained only on OSHA 1910.147 in a classroom in the US has not been trained for what they will encounter at Jubail Industrial City.

EUTC Global delivers LOTO training in Arabic and English at our Al Khobar centre and on-site at client facilities across the Kingdom, with content aligned to both OSHA 29 CFR 1910.147 and Saudi Aramco site requirements. This is part of our broader oil and gas safety training in Saudi Arabia program.

For facilities that also require confined space entry work during the same maintenance window, LOTO and confined space procedures often run in parallel. See our guide on the confined space entry permit process in Saudi Arabia for how these two procedures interact on site.

Frequently Asked Questions About LOTO in Saudi Arabia

LOTO is among the mandatory HSE trainings for Aramco vendor companies required before crews can access controlled facilities. EUTC Global’s LOTO safety training program is available in Arabic and English, with classroom delivery in Al Khobar and on-site delivery anywhere in the Kingdom. Enrol in LOTO training at EUTC Global or contact us to arrange a corporate group session for your maintenance crew.