Published 10 Jul 2023
What are Maintenance Checklists?
Maintenance checklists and logbooks are tools used by technicians to document equipment maintenance inspections. Equipment maintenance involves the continuous process of checking, repairing, and servicing operating equipment to ensure businesses can function without interruption. Ultimately, maintenance checklists can be used to efficiently track records of actions performed and implement preventive measures for quality and safety purposes.
In this article
- Why is it important?
- How to Create a Maintenance Checklist in 3 Steps
- FAQs About Maintenance
- Using Mobile Applications for your Maintenance Inspections
- Featured Maintenance Checklist Templates
Why is it important?
Having a maintenance checklist is fundamental to having a well managed operation. A good maintenance checklist helps your maintenance team do their job efficiently and protects your business from unanticipated breakdowns and costs. Below are some of the key benefits of performing regular maintenance:
- Maintains reliability: ensures operating equipment is always available and in good working condition for the long term.
- Ensures safety: unexpected hazards are avoided such as machine failure and breakdowns which can cause accidents and injuries to surrounding people if left unchecked.
- Improves efficiency: defects are detected before they worsen. Operational downtime is reduced which saves both time and money.
- Provides good recordkeeping: consistent documentation of repairs and diagnostics can help identify broader trends and support future investigations.
How to Create a Maintenance Checklist in 3 Steps
Regular maintenance checks partnered with an effective maintenance checklist can help avoid further equipment failure and prolong their lifespan. Below are the 3 steps to building an effective maintenance checklist.
Step 1: Create a plan.
Establish the specifics of your maintenance management program such as, determining who will be involved in the maintenance project and what the goal is (e.g., decreasing equipment downtime or reducing maintenance costs)
Step 2: Determine items or areas to cover.
Once you’ve determined the specifics of your maintenance program, proceed with identifying the items or areas that will help achieve the goal of your maintenance program. Start assessing your environment, you can use the SWOT analysis as a framework. Having a full understanding of your environment will help you to create a checklist tailored to your work.
Step 3: Draft your checklist.
Having been fully equipped with the information above, you can start building your checklist. Here are some ideas of what you can put in your checklist:
Maintenance checklists typically answer the following questions:
- What is the visual and physical condition of the equipment, machine, or facilities?
- Are there physical defects found?
- What actions need to be performed?
- What is the overall maintenance inspection assessment?
- Who performed the inspection?
FAQs About Maintenance
A maintenance inspection is a process that evaluates the condition of an equipment, machine, or even structures of a building or facility. Maintenance inspections help identify issues before they worsen and result in costly repairs and operational downtime.
Depending on what is being inspected for maintenance, the checklist should cover its aspects and should be evaluated against relevant standards and requirements. It can also include last maintenance work done, repair history, and other information that will be crucial for the inspector.
Using Mobile Applications for your Maintenance Inspections
Paper-based maintenance checklists and logs can be a hassle to use and maintain for data gathering and record-keeping purposes. Producing defect reports can be challenging without the ability to easily include photo evidence. Losing paper documents can create unresolved issues that may not be addressed in a timely manner.
SafetyCulture can replace all of your paper-based maintenance checklists and logs. Completed maintenance reports can be more powerful and detailed with the ability to easily include photos with annotations to pinpoint key findings. Save all data captured using the SafetyCulture mobile app securely online in the cloud. Conveniently review organized information by logging in to your online dashboard.
We have collected 7 Maintenance Checklist Templates you can browse and download for free. All templates are 100% customizable and can be used for free on the SafetyCulture mobile maintenance app. SafetyCulture is free to use for small teams with plan pricing for premium features.
Featured Maintenance Checklist Templates
Vehicle Maintenance Checklist
A vehicle maintenance checklist is used to identify defects and mechanical issues for most vehicles. This template can be used by authorized inspectors to perform the following during inspection:
- Capturing general information of the vehicle including VIN, license plate and mileage
- Take a photo of the condition of the vehicle
- Physical checks of the brake system, coupling devices, engine operation, exhaust system, and other critical safety components
- Provide a list of recommendations
- Rate the overall roadworthiness of the vehicle
Heavy Vehicle Maintenance Checklist
A heavy vehicle maintenance checklist is used to identify problems and mechanical issues of heavy vehicles. It is used by certified technicians to prepare for the DOT annual vehicle inspection. The template has been built to guide the inspector to perform the following:
- Record the type, identification, and mileage of the vehicle
- Take a photo of the physical condition of the heavy vehicle
- Check the administrative conformance, brake system, fuel system, trailer conditions, and other components
- Provide helpful safe vehicle operation tips
- Overall condition ratings of the heavy vehicle
Generator Maintenance Checklist
A generator maintenance checklist is used to ensure diesel generators are readily available in case of power outages and can provide good power quality. Engineers can follow this template as a guide when performing inspections:
- Physical and visual checks of the diesel generator
- Capture photo evidence of leakage, damage, and defects
- Condition checks of battery, oil, and fuel
- Assess the overall condition of the diesel generator
- Provide digital signature and timestamp
CCTV Maintenance Log Template
A CCTV Maintenance log template is used to ensure surveillance equipment are operational. This template can be used by security teams to document any defects identified. The template has been built to guide the inspector to perform the following:
- Check the physical condition of cameras, wiring, and control equipment
- Record any defects found
- Document required repairs and send an in-app notification to the relevant contact
- Validate records of inspection with a digital signature and timestamp
HVAC Maintenance Template
HVAC Maintenance template is used to ensure building heating and air conditioning systems are running efficiently. HVAC contractors and property managers can follow these template instructions when performing their inspection:
- Identify the HVAC equipment
- Evaluate the physical condition then select between "OK, Needs Action, or N/A as your response
- Add comments and recommendations
- Complete the inspection with your digital signature
Fire Extinguisher Maintenance Schedule Template
A fire extinguisher maintenance schedule template is used to conduct a monthly fire extinguisher inspection to determine if the equipment meets the standards and safety measures for any emergency purposes. Trained professionals can follow this template as a guide when performing inspections:
- Check for fire extinguisher types (ABC, BC, A, D or K), inspection tags, seals, labels and extinguisher validity
- Identify and capture photos of defects
- Confirm the maintenance tag is signed by inspector which includes a time stamp
IT Maintenance Checklist
This IT maintenance checklist is used by IT professionals and managers to ensure the continuous and optimal working condition of computers. Use this digitized computer maintenance checklists to inspect if the computer’s hardware needs cleaning, repair, or replacement, and check if the software and security features are updated and running.
Machine Maintenance Checklist
A machine maintenance checklist template is used by manufacturing technicians in performing scheduled equipment preventive maintenance in the manufacturing facility. This ultimate machine maintenance checklist template has been designed to do the following:
- Make it easier for manufacturing technicians to adjust, fix, or clean equipment
- Determine cases when equipment diagnosis techniques are used such as cracking, corrosion, or loosening
- Include additional observations to ensure a comprehensive inspection
Equipment Maintenance Audit Checklist
Use this equipment maintenance audit checklist to assess tools and equipment used for operations. Ensure that all equipment is in good working condition to avoid accidents and costly repairs. You can customize this checklist according to your needs.
Audit Checklist for the Forestry Industry
The forestry industry can use this audit checklist to ensure safety, inspect processes, and proactively identify gaps in their operational tasks. Forestry crews and people in charge can directly create corrective actions and add recommendations, notes, or annotations directly through this template for increased visibility and swift responses. Further, this audit checklist is also downloadable and easily customizable.
