Get lockout tagout right and you stop a machine starting up while someone's hands are inside it. In Australia the rules sit under the model WHS framework, and they draw a sharp line between a danger tag and an out-of-service tag — two different devices for two different situations. This is the plain-English guide: what the WHS rules require, what each tag records, who's allowed to remove one, and where durable engraved labels fit for permanent isolation-point ID.
The WHS framework
Isolation is governed by the model WHS Regulations from Safe Work Australia. The core duty: plant that could injure someone through unexpected start-up or the release of stored energy must be able to be isolated from all its energy sources. That means more than electrical — it covers mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, chemical, thermal and gravitational energy too.
Safe Work Australia's Model Code of Practice "Managing the Risks of Plant in the Workplace" recommends formal lockout/tagout procedures to control that energy. Machinery-safety isolation aligns with AS 4024, and personal-danger-tag practice is commonly cited against AS/NZS 4836, the safe-electrical-work standard. The duty-holder for all of it is the PCBU — the person conducting the business or undertaking.
The key concept: a tag doesn't lock anything
A tag is an information device only. It does not physically prevent re-energisation. The lock stops the restart; the tag communicates who, why and when. Lock and tag are used together — neither does the whole job alone.
This is the single most important thing to understand about LOTO. A danger tag on an isolator tells everyone to keep their hands off, but it can't physically stop someone throwing the switch. The lock does that. The tag carries the information; the lock carries the prevention. Used together, the lock prevents the restart and the tag explains who applied it and why.
Danger tags vs out-of-service tags
These two get mixed up constantly, and mixing them up is dangerous. They mean different things.
| Personal Danger tag | Out of Service tag | |
|---|---|---|
| Colours | Red / white / black | Typically distinct from the danger tag |
| Says | "DANGER — DO NOT OPERATE" | Equipment unserviceable / faulty |
| Purpose | Active personal isolation — someone is working on it | Marks equipment as defective / out of service |
| Records | Name of the person, date and time, the item of plant isolated (best practice adds reason and contact) | The fault / why it's out of service |
| Who removes it | Only the person named on the tag | Per the defect / maintenance procedure |
A personal danger tag is a live isolation device. It says someone is actively working on the plant and it must not be operated. Only the person whose name is on that tag may remove it — and they remove it before they leave site at the end of their shift, not someone else on their behalf.
An out-of-service tag is a defect tag. It marks equipment as unserviceable or faulty. It is not an active personal-isolation device. Because the two relate to entirely different circumstances, personal danger tags and out-of-service tags must not be used together on the same item.
One more to keep separate: scaffold tags are a different green/yellow/red status system for scaffold access. Don't conflate them with isolation tagging.
Is there an Australian Standard for tag artwork?
No — there's no single dedicated Australian Standard that sets danger-tag dimensions or artwork. Tag practice follows the WHS isolation framework plus the Safe Work Australia code of practice, with AS/NZS 4836 supplying the "only the person who applied it removes it" rule and AS 1319 supplying the danger colour and format — red, white and black. So if anyone quotes you a specific "tag standard number" or a fixed tag size, treat it with caution: the requirement is built from the WHS framework and those supporting standards, not from one tag-artwork standard.
Where engraved labels fit in LOTO
Disposable card danger tags are the right tool for per-job personal tagging — they're cheap, they're applied and removed by one named person for one task, and they're meant to be temporary. Nothing here replaces that.
Where durable engraved labels earn their place is the permanent side of the system — the fixtures that live on the plant for years and have to stay legible the whole time:
- Numbered isolation points — so a lockout procedure can refer to "Isolation Point 4" and everyone finds the same valve or isolator.
- Valve and isolator ID plates — permanent identification of each isolation device.
- Lockout station labels — identifying and organising the lockout point where locks and tags are stored.
These aren't the per-job tags — they're the permanent identification the per-job tags hang off. A printed label fades and curls; an engraved two-colour label can't, because the legend is cut through the colour cap into a contrasting core. The mark is the material, so a numbered isolation point reads the same in five years as on the day it went up.
Lay out your isolation-point and valve ID plates in our online label designer — set the size, type the legend, choose your colours and see the price instantly. Red/white is on the shelf for danger-themed identification, along with black/white, yellow/black, blue/white and green/white. See our electrical labels range, and for the material itself there's the what is traffolyte explainer. For permanent plates that need mounting holes or custom shapes, the Advanced Designer adds those plus an icon library.
Made by a qualified electrician in Townsville and shipped Australia-wide, with 1–3 business day production and no minimum order. Spec your isolation-point ID in the label designer, or phone 0432 736 559 to talk a site-wide numbering run through.
References
- Model WHS Regulations — Safe Work Australia (isolation of energy sources)
- Safe Work Australia — Model Code of Practice: Managing the Risks of Plant in the Workplace
- AS 4024 — Safety of machinery (machinery isolation)
- AS/NZS 4836 — Safe working on or near low-voltage and extra-low-voltage electrical installations (personal danger-tag practice)
- AS 1319 — Safety signs for the occupational environment (danger colour and format)
This article summarises publicly available WHS guidance on isolation and tagging and is not a substitute for professional advice or your site's documented isolation procedure. WHS regulations are adopted jurisdiction by jurisdiction — always confirm the requirements against the current model WHS Regulations, the relevant code of practice and your own safe-work procedures before relying on them.