Caution Tag

Caution Tag for Lockout/Tagout Equipment Isolation

A caution tag is a hang-tag fitted with a punched hole at the top, tied directly onto an isolated valve, switch, breaker or piece of equipment during maintenance to warn other crew that the item is not to be operated. Unlike an adhesive sign fixed permanently to a bulkhead, this caution tag is a temporary, removable marker attached with a cable tie or wire loop, so it travels with whatever it is isolating and comes off again once the work is complete and the equipment is safe to return to service.

Referenced under IMPA 33.2501 and ISSA 47.525.01, the tag carries the standard yellow exclamation-triangle caution symbol along with printed ‘Authorised by’ and ‘Date’ fields, letting the crew member performing the isolation record who applied the tag and when. This accountability detail is what separates a proper lockout/tagout (LOTO) tag from a generic warning sticker, giving anyone who finds the tag later a direct point of contact before assuming it is safe to remove.

Supplied at 150x75mm, this caution tag is sized to hang cleanly from a valve handle, breaker lever or isolation point without obstructing access to nearby controls.

How Caution Tags Are Used During Isolation Work

During planned maintenance, a caution tag is looped onto the specific valve, switch or piece of equipment being worked on at the same time it is physically isolated, giving an immediate visual signal to anyone approaching that the item is out of service. Because the tag records who applied it and on what date, a colleague who needs more information, or who is unsure whether it is safe to proceed, has a clear reference point rather than having to guess whether the isolation is still active.

Caution tags are typically used in combination with a physical lockout device, such as a padlock or valve lockout clip, rather than as a stand-alone control. The tag communicates the warning to people nearby, while the lockout device physically prevents the equipment from being operated until the authorised person removes both.

Hang-Tag Format and Installation

This caution tag is supplied as a punched hang-tag rather than a self-adhesive label, since it needs to be removable and reusable across different isolation points as maintenance work moves around a vessel. It is fitted using a cable tie, wire loop or the vessel’s standard tagging cord threaded through the punched hole, allowing it to be attached and removed quickly without leaving adhesive residue on valve handles or switchgear.

Material, Sizing and Compliance

The caution tag is produced on durable, fire-retardant, photoluminescent laminated card stock a long-duration afterglow, so the warning stays visible if a vessel loses power while isolation work is still in progress. The material is waterproof and resistant to saltwater exposure, holding up to handling in engine rooms, deck machinery spaces and other working areas where lockout/tagout tags are most often used.

Tags of this kind support compliance with IMO Resolution A.1116(30) on graphical symbols for shipboard use, and fit into the same broader lockout/tagout discipline addressed in general workplace safety guidance published by Safe Work Australia, which covers isolation and tagging procedures for equipment under maintenance. See the complete Tie Tags range for the full set of matching lockout/tagout hang-tags used across a vessel’s isolation procedures.