The purchase and use of high quality safety padlocks in combination with lockout devices forms an integral part of any industrial safety programme. When an authorised employee turns a piece of industrial machinery off, whether for maintenance, repair or any other reason, a lockout device and safety padlock should be applied to ensure that no other person is able to reenergize the machine. Having such safety procedures in place protects both employees and their employers, preventing accidents in the workplace and helping employers to comply with international and local safety legislation.

Issues to consider when deciding which safety padlock to purchase include:

The most popular materials for the construction of safety padlocks are Xenoy®, aluminium, and steel. Whilst each material is durable enough to withstand the high temperatures and pressures of industrial environments, each has distinct characteristics that may make it more suitable for certain environments than others.

Xenoy®: Xenoy® is a GE Plastics composite material, which consists of polycarbonate, polyester, mineral and glass fibres. Xenoy® padlocks can withstand temperatures from -70 to +350 F and are light, portable, resistant to impact and resistant to both UV and chemical corrosion.

A non-conductive alternative is available, which is particularly suited to use in electrical lockout procedures, and in mining, hospital and military environments.

Aluminium: very highly resistant to corrosion, from UV light, chemicals and other environmental causes. They are durable and are also capable of withstanding extremes of temperature, having been successfully tested from -70 to +350 F.

Steel: extremely strong, and are both temperature and corrosion resistant. They are heavier than both Xenoy® and aluminium padlocks.

A properly constructed industrial safety programme will operate on a policy of ‘one employee, one key’, meaning that for any padlock applied to a lockout device only one authorised employee will carry a key that is able to open the padlock, and thus be able remove the device. This policy leads to standard safety padlocks being supplied ‘keyed different’, but other options are available:

Keyed different: each padlock comes with one key, which only opens that padlock.

Keyed alike: each padlock within a set comes with one key, which opens all padlocks within the set. Useful when one worker requires several padlocks to secure different lockout devices.

Master keyed: each padlock within a set is keyed different, but a master key is also supplied which opens all padlocks within the set.

Colour

Safety padlocks used for lockout procedures must be easily identifiable and distinguishable from other padlocks used in the workplace. Colour-coding of padlocks is the easiest way to achieve this; Xenoy® padlocks are available in 8 different colours, and colour bumpers and stickers can be used to mark aluminium and steel padlocks.

Labelling

Safety padlocks can be supplied with a wide range of labels- from ‘Danger’ as part of a warning system for employees, to identification labels incorporating the name and/or photo of the employee who applied the padlock. Laser engraving of padlocks is also available for a more robust identification system- engraving of the name of the employee or company is a popular option. Both Xenoy® and aluminium padlocks can be laser engraved.

For expert advice on choosing safety padlocks, as well as a whole range of other Lockout Tagout products, call us on 01642 244017 or email us