Discussion - s1039cn10015

DOE-STD-1039-93

3. DISCUSSION

DOE facilities are required to establish administrative programs to control equipment and system

status. A program for controlling equipment and system status, or status control, must be broad

in scope. It should incorporate measures to ensure awareness by operating personnel concerning

the physical configuration and operating status of equipment and systems. It should contain

methods to maintain system operability in accordance with design requirements. DOE Order

5480.19 addresses several individual programs that comprise portions of the status control

program, including Lockouts and Tagouts (Chapter IX), Independent Verification (Chapter X),

Logkeeping (Chapter XI), and Operations Turnover (Chapter XII). These programs assist in

establishing effective control of equipment and system status and are appropriately referenced

within this guide.

Proper control of equipment and systems requires clear lines of responsibility and authority. The

facility status control program should clearly designate the authority and responsibility for

controlling status to ensure proper configuration. All personnel must understand the importance

of keeping the operations supervisor and other designated operations personnel informed of

activities that could affect the status or operability of equipment.

Effective control of equipment and system status also means coordinating operations and

maintenance activities. Equipment deficiencies must be promptly identified for correction in the

work control system. Locking and tagging should be performed by qualified operations

personnel to ensure that all energy and hazardous material sources are properly isolated, and

required safety functions are not inadvertently disabled. The operations supervisor should sign

the work control documents to authorize the start of all maintenance activities, including testing,

calibration, and related activities. A process for post-maintenance testing should be in place to

ensure that all operation of equipment is controlled by approved operating procedures and that

appropriate maintenance and operations personnel are represented during the testing. The status

or alignment of equipment should be verified as part of restoring the equipment to service

following outages for maintenance or design modifications.