Lockout/Tagout in Nuclear Environments
Case Study
Plant required non-sparking, arc-resistant, flexible electrical lockout solution.
Non-sparking nylon padlocks and plastic mounting solved challenge.
Safety increased; implemented engraved, non-conductive LOTO across the plant.
Nuclear power plants are regularly audited internally, and externally by governmental agencies to make sure employees and inhabitants in the wider region remain safe. Nuclear power plant owners leave no stone unturned to avoid even minor incidents in the plant. Every single piece of equipment is subject to rules and specifications, and every action is guided by procedure.
Meet the most stringent safety requirements
Electrical lockout that is solid, light, non-conductive and resists electrical arcs
Challenges
A large nuclear power plant needed to be able to lock out electrical circuits. The plant’s stringent safety requirements included non-conductiveness, electrical arc resistance, solidness and lightness. The plant also needed a flexible lockout solution that could fit any piece of equipment as is.
Solutions
Nylon padlock
Brady’s nylon padlock proved to be the only one that did not spark in any of the extensive competitive tests done by the nuclear plant’s specialists. With Brady’s nylon padlock delivering as it promised, the specific Lockout/Tagout challenges of the nuclear plant were almost solved.
Plastic mounting rails
Together with the nylon padlock, Brady also offered plastic mounting rails and blocking bars that can easily and temporarily be applied in order to lock out electrical equipment without the need for any permanent changes. The nuclear plant ordered the full solution because it will help to increase safety for it employees, and because it does not pose any risk to nuclear and other operations on-site.
Brady provided the nylon padlocks in 7 colours, all engraved with team names so employees and management can easily identify who locked out which circuits for safe interventions.
Results
The nuclear power plant successfully addressed its stringent electrical lockout requirements—including the need for non-conductive, arc-resistant, and solid yet lightweight materials—by implementing Brady's full LOTO solution. Competitive tests confirmed the nylon padlock was the only one that did not spark. This, combined with plastic mounting rails and blocking bars, provided a flexible, easily applicable safety system for all electrical equipment without requiring permanent modifications. The padlocks were supplied in seven engraved colors by team name, significantly boosting safety and accountability for maintenance interventions.