Why Understanding Padlocks is Key to Effective Lockout/Tagout System

There’s no universal solution for a successful Lockout/Tagout program, but it is important to understand the difference in padlocks. The key to understanding lies in the names: “keyed alike” and “keyed different.”

In this guide, we help any organization with Lockout/Tagout needs choose between keyed alike or keyed different padlocks to implement the best system in place for unique needs.

Related: Build a Safety, Protection Foundation in Any Workplace with Lockout/Tagout

With keyed different padlocks, each lock has its own unique key. This ensures that each employee has complete control over their lockout padlock. This is ideal for simple lockout applications dealing with a manageable number of energy isolation points.

But while every lockout/tagout program is unique, a simple program usually has one or two energy isolation points.

As for keyed alike padlocks, each lock can be opened with the same key. This can reduce the number of keys an employee has to carry. However, keyed alike padlocks should never be shared among multiple employees. If more than one employee can open the same lock, the risk of accidental re-energization increases.

Different situations call for different programs, but here are some of the common use cases for keyed different padlocks:

• When larger teams are involved or a group lockout is being used
• Each authorized employee has a different lock assigned to them
• When lockout devices with multiple holes (such as hasps) are being used
• When a lockout board is being used and an employee can check out the padlock

Here are some considerations to make when evaluating keyed alike padlocks:

• When one employee is responsible for multiple isolation points
• Keyed alike should never be shared with multiple employees