The second unit of a two-unit coal power generation plant in Michigan was under construction while the first unit was operational. Bill and Jeff were two contract electricians performing precommissioning tests of certain equipment. Most of the tests required lockout/tagout (LOTO) of branch circuit breakers so that simulations could be run.
Because of the nature of the tests, they ran over more than one shift. Bill and Jeff had special permission to leave their locks and tags on the equipment over as many days as they needed. With this arrangement, they each had to leave a key (tagged with their name and phone number) at a designated station at the senior operator’s desk. Before leaving, they signed a form in which they listed what was locked out.
They came in on the second day of this project, and checked in at the senior operator’s desk. There was no notification regarding their LOTO. So out they went to resume their project. Bill was about to put his screwdriver on a terminal when Jeff held up his meter and said, “I know this is silly, but I always check.” Bill rolled his eyes and gestured for Jeff to go ahead. Much to their surprise, Jeff measured 120V.
How could this be? They must have made a mistake in LOTO, they agreed. So they decided to walk it down again. That’s when they found their locks had been cut off and placed along with their tags on top of a nearby disconnect switch. They knew at this point that someone “in-house” had cut their locks. Their choices at this point are:
- Quietly re-establish the LOTO. But this would mean letting a terrible safety violation go and blindly de-energizing a system someone may now be using.
- Call the home office and ask what to do.
- Check in the control room if it’s OK to resume their testing.
- Ask their supervisor to go with them to report the incident to the senior operator.
They chose the last option. Their supervisor called the home office beforehand to keep them apprised, and the home office supported that decision but said to speak only with the senior operator and to nobody else. The senior operator, upon learning of this, took the appropriate action per company policy. There was no “blowback” to the contractors or their firm.
In most companies today, you don’t rise to positions of responsibility and authority if you have a poor attitude toward safety. Insurance costs, liability concerns, and OSHA compliance are among the reasons company policy is, with rare exceptions, to take safety seriously. Many companies take it seriously for additional reasons. These include avoiding the loss of skilled workers, improving productivity (poor safety negatively affects productivity), and (in many cases) an attitude among management that people have a right to a safe workplace.
