Your supervisor sends you to help Bob on the big robotic welder. It’s a complex system, so you can understand why he might need help.
Bob doesn’t need just an assist; he really needs someone to perform separate tasks from what he’s doing. You ask Bob to walk you through his lockout/tagout, so you can hang your own locks and tags. He says he doesn’t have time. What should you do?
Tell Bob he’s on his own and report to your supervisor. While crews often work under the lead person’s lockout/tagout, this is an unsafe practice that depends on communication skills rather than a physical lock. And it shows an attitude of “what can I get by with?” instead of an attitude of making sure everyone is safe.
In this particular case, Bob essentially wants two (one-person) crews to work under the same locks and tags. That’s really asking for trouble.
Always hang your own lock. If there’s not room for multiple locks on the device, use a multi-lock hasp or find another way to isolate power so multiple locks can be used.
