What this is
What is an asset condition inspection?
What is an asset condition inspection?
A structured check of a tagged asset's general condition against defined criteria: structure, moving parts, electrical and control systems, and, where the asset sits in production, the hygienic state of product-contact surfaces. It produces a condition rating and a remaining-life estimate rather than a pass or fail against a legal standard.
Who should carry it out?
A technician competent in the asset type being assessed. Competence here means knowing how the asset degrades and what an early sign looks like, not just knowing how to work through the form's picklists.
How does it differ from a statutory examination?
A statutory examination, for lifting gear, pressure vessels or cranes, is a legal instrument with a fixed interval and a competent-person requirement set in law. An asset condition inspection is a maintenance instrument with no such legal force; it can run alongside a statutory examination but never substitutes for one.
Scope
When is an asset condition inspection required?
This inspection is the general instrument for a tagged asset's condition, and its most common misuse is covering ground a sibling template owns by law or by measurement method.
Use this template when
- A tagged asset reaches the inspection frequency set in the maintenance plan
- A new or reinstated asset needs a baseline condition recorded on entry to the register
- Condition trend needs establishing ahead of a capital planning cycle
- A breakdown or near miss elsewhere prompts an out-of-cycle check on a related asset
- A record is needed showing routine condition care as distinct from the asset's statutory examination
Do not use it for
- Lifting gear, pressure vessels, cranes and hoists, which carry a statutory examination interval and a competent-person requirement this template does not provide
- Vibration analysis, thermographic survey and oil analysis, which measure a specific failure mode with instrumentation rather than a general visual and functional check
- Racking, which has its own inspection because of the load-bearing consequence of a fault
- The building fabric itself, roof, walls, floors and drainage, which is assessed separately and against different criteria
- Anything outside KnowMaintain, which belongs to the workspace that owns that process
Compliance mapping
Which ISO 55001 cl.8.2 requirements does this satisfy?
ISO 55001 does not prescribe an inspection method for asset condition; it treats condition data as an input to asset management decisions, so the sections here matter for what they feed into more than for what they satisfy on their own.
| Clause | Requirement | Where it lands |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 55001 cl.8.1 | Operational planning and control of the processes needed to meet asset management requirements, including scheduled inspection | Header |
| ISO 55001 cl.9.1 | Monitoring and measurement of asset performance and condition against defined criteria | Structure and mechanics |
| ISO 55001 cl.9.1 | Criteria applied consistently across control and safety-related systems | Systems |
| ISO 55001 cl.8.1 | Operational control extended to conditions affecting product and process integrity, not only mechanical function | Hygienic condition |
| ISO 55001 cl.10.2 | Nonconformity identified at inspection is corrected and its cause addressed | Findings |
| ISO 55001 cl.8.2 | Management of change triggered where condition deterioration alters the performance or risk basis for the asset | Result |
| ISO 55001 cl.6.2 | Asset management objectives and planning informed by remaining life and condition trend | Result |
What it does not cover
- Statutory examination, for lifting gear, pressure vessels and cranes, which needs a competent person and a legally fixed interval this template does not provide.
- Vibration analysis or thermographic survey, which use instrumentation to catch a specific failure mode before it becomes visible.
- Building fabric inspection, a distinct instrument for the structure the asset sits inside: roof, walls, floors and drainage.
- The corrective work itself, which belongs in a work order and a maintenance record, not in the inspection.
- Formal asset criticality review, which sets the criticality banding this template only records.
Global
Asset Condition Inspection requirements by country
General asset condition is lightly regulated in itself; the duty that reaches it is usually the general one to keep work equipment safe and properly maintained, with ISO 55001 sitting above as a voluntary management framework.
OSH Act General Duty Clause; 29 CFR 1910 equipment-specific maintenance requirements
No general condition-inspection standard; specific equipment standards require maintenance in safe operating condition.
An asset with no equipment-specific standard is still covered by the General Duty Clause if a recognised hazard from deterioration goes unaddressed.
Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, reg.5
Work equipment must be maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair.
A maintenance log is expected where the consequence of failure is significant, and this inspection is the natural record of it.
ISO 55001
Management system requirement to monitor asset performance and condition against a defined methodology.
Certification auditors look for the trend across inspections and its link to the asset management plan, not the single latest score.
How to complete it
How to complete an asset condition inspection, step by step
The template scores against a fixed picklist. The parts that decide whether the record actually protects the asset are the ones no picklist can force.
A score means little on its own; it means something set against the previous three or four inspections of the same asset. A technician who cannot see the trend will rate today fairly and still miss that the asset has been sliding for a year.
Replacement planning should be driven by criticality multiplied by condition, not by condition ranked on its own. A Fair rating on a critical asset deserves attention a Fair rating on a standard asset does not, and the form only works if that distinction is carried into the decision.
Fixed On The Spot exists to separate a defect that is already resolved from one that still needs a finding record and an owner. Marking everything as fixed on the spot to avoid raising findings quietly erases the trail an auditor or investigator would later look for.
A remaining-life figure that is not tied to what would trigger early replacement, an unplanned failure, a parts obsolescence date, a capacity constraint, is a guess dressed as data. State the assumption behind the number, not just the number.
What auditors find
Most common asset condition inspection findings
The record almost always exists and is almost always scored. The findings concern whether the scoring reflects the asset and whether a Fail actually goes anywhere.
| Finding | Clause | What fixes it |
|---|---|---|
| Condition rated without reference to the previous inspection, so a deteriorating trend is invisible in any single record. | ISO 55001 cl.9.1 | Compare against the prior score and rating before closing the assessment, and note the direction of travel. |
| Fail results left with no Element Tag or severity, so the finding cannot be grouped or prioritised against others. | Standard-specific | Require Element Tag and severity whenever Result is Fail, before the record can be closed. |
| Fixed On The Spot marked Yes with no detail of what was actually done. | Standard-specific | Record what was fixed in Deficiency Detail even where no finding record is raised. |
| Replacement Planning Needed set without any reconciliation against Asset Criticality. | ISO 55001 cl.6.2 | Route Replacement Planning Needed decisions through criticality banding, not condition rating alone. |
| A statutory-examination item, lifting gear, pressure vessel, crane, inspected on this general template instead of its dedicated record. | Standard-specific | Route statutory equipment to its own inspection template with its own legal interval. |
| Action Required marked Yes with no CAPA ID or owner assigned. | ISO 55001 cl.10.2 | Require an owner and a CAPA reference at the point Action Required is set to Yes. |
Case in point
Case in point: the asset that passed every quarter until it didn't
A packing-line gearbox was inspected quarterly for two years, scoring Pass or Partial on every mechanical item and an overall condition rating of Fair each time. Each individual inspection was defensible: bearings within tolerance, no visible corrosion, drives intact. Nobody compared one quarter's record against the last.
The gearbox seized mid-shift, and the investigation found the same two items, bearings and drives, had drifted from Pass to Partial and stayed there for six consecutive inspections, a trend that was visible only if the records were read together. No single inspection was wrong. The absence of a trend view across a correctly-scored history is what let a slow failure look like six unremarkable ones.
The template
The template, field by field
The form exactly as it installs. Every field, option, score and conditional rule is editable, and the links to other templates come with it.
6 sections
- Reference
- MNT-031
- Archetype
- Inspection
- Record ID
- INSP-2026-000
- Scoring
- Condition rating
- Direction
- High is good
- Singleton
- No
- Basis
- ISO 55001 cl.8.2
- Links
- Links Asset
- Tags
- Maintenance, Inspection
- Sections
- 6
- Fields
- 56
- Follow up fields
- 9
- Repeating sections
- 1
- Links out
- 4
Header
13 fieldsInspection ID*
Auto sequence. Format INSP-2026-00000.
The record's own ID. Other templates point at this value.
Status*
Drives who this goes to next.
- Planned2 pts
- In progress2 pts
- Complete3 pts
- Deferred0 pts
- Open0 pts
- Closed3 pts
- Overdue0 pts
Date and Time*
Raised By*
Site*
Site ID*
Format SITE-000.
Links to FDN-001 Site ID
Area
The area within the site.
Exact Location
Drop a pin for anything hard to find.
Asset*
Asset ID*
Format AST-0000.
Links to FDN-002 Asset ID
Inspection Frequency*
Asset Criticality*
Asset Age Years
Structure and mechanics
6 fieldsFrame And Mountings*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Welds And Joints*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Corrosion*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Moving Parts Condition*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Bearings And Shafts*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Drives And Couplings*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Systems
6 fieldsElectrical Enclosures*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Pneumatics*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Hydraulics*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Instrumentation*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Control System*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Safety Devices*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Hygienic condition
7 fieldsCondition Is A Food Safety Matter
Flaking paint, pitted stainless, perished seals and damaged welds all become harbourage sites. Equipment condition and product safety are the same problem here.
Product Contact Surfaces*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Seals And Gaskets*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Cleanability*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Paint And Coatings*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Rust Or Flaking*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Harbourage Points Developing*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Findings
Repeats7 fieldsResult*
- Pass3 pts
- Pass with conditions2 pts
- Fail0 pts
Severity
- Minor3 pts
- Moderate1 pt
- Serious0 pts
Element Tag
Groups deficiencies by hazard type across every template.
Deficiency Detail
Photo Evidence
Fixed On The Spot
Finding ID
Raise a finding record where this needs tracking to closure.
Links to FDN-015 Finding ID
Result
17 fieldsItems Assessed*
Excludes anything marked N/A.
Items Failed*
Score Percent*
Calculated on submission. High is good. N/A items leave the denominator.
Result Band*
- Pass3 pts
- Caution1 pt
- Fail0 pts
Completeness Percent*
How much of the template was actually answered. A high score on a half completed form is not a high score.
Overall Condition Rating*
- As new4 pts
- Good3 pts
- Fair2 pts
- Poor1 pt
- End of life0 pts
Remaining Life Estimate Years
Replacement Planning Needed*
- No3 pts
- Within 3 years2 pts
- Within a year0 pts
Action Required*
Raise the action record, then enter its reference here.
- No2 pts
- Yes0 pts
Priority
- High0 pts
- Medium1 pt
- Low3 pts
CAPA ID
Format CAPA-2026-00000.
Links to FDN-014 CAPA ID
Action Owner
Next Inspection Due*
Technician*
Signature*
Reliability*
Second Signature*
MNT-031 · record IDs look like INSP-2026-000 · Links Asset
Open in KnowellaRun it with agents
From a document you fill in to a programme that runs itself
The inspection is the easy part. What actually slips is the trend across inspections, the finding that never got tracked to closure, and the criticality that was never reconciled with the score.
Holds the inspection history against the asset register, surfaces the trend across inspections rather than the latest score alone, and routes replacement candidates to planning.
Flags Fail results tagged to a safety-related system, electrical, guarding, safety devices, into the incident and hazard register rather than leaving them inside the maintenance record.
Watches for condition trend against criticality, raises a review where a critical asset drifts without a matching planning decision, and holds writes for approval.
This template lives in KnowMaintain — asset maintenance. Work orders, planned maintenance, calibration, reliability and shutdowns.
Meet KnowMaintain→Glossary
Asset Condition Inspection definitions and key terms
- Condition rating
- The overall judgement of an asset's state, from As new to End of life, used to prioritise replacement and capital planning ahead of failure.
- Remaining life estimate
- A technician's estimate, in years, of how long the asset can continue in service before replacement, used as an input to capital budgeting.
- Asset criticality
- A banding, Critical, Important or Standard, describing the consequence of the asset failing, independent of its current condition.
- Element tag
- A classification applied to a Fail result that groups the deficiency by type across every inspection template, used for pattern analysis.
- Statutory examination
- A legally required inspection of specific equipment, lifting gear, pressure vessels, cranes, carried out by a competent person at a fixed interval and not satisfied by a general condition inspection.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about asset condition inspection
Can this template replace a statutory examination?+
No. A statutory examination is a distinct legal instrument with its own interval and competent-person requirement. This template can run alongside it, on a different frequency, but never in place of it.
Should condition or criticality drive the replacement decision?+
Both, multiplied together. A Fair rating on a critical asset needs attention a Fair rating on a standard asset does not. Using condition alone ranks the replacement queue by the wrong axis.
What does N/A mean on a scored item?+
That the item does not apply to this asset, and it is excluded from the denominator when Score Percent is calculated. N/A is not a way to skip an item that does apply.
Why does the form ask about hygienic condition on a general asset check?+
Where an asset sits in a production area, its physical condition and food safety risk are the same problem: flaking paint, pitted stainless and perished seals become harbourage sites regardless of whether the asset itself is mechanically sound.
Who should complete the inspection?+
A technician competent in the asset type, meaning they understand how it degrades and what an early sign looks like, not merely someone who can work through the form.
What happens after a Fail?+
It is either fixed on the spot and recorded as such, or raised as a finding with an owner and a due date. A Fail with neither is a defect the record has lost track of.
Keep going
Related templates and programmes
Industries this is written for
Programmes this belongs to
Used together in Asset Inspection and Statutory Examination
Vibration Analysis Record
Records vibration readings taken from rotating equipment
Thermographic Survey
Records infrared images of electrical panels, motors and bearings to find hot spots
Oil Analysis Record
Records laboratory analysis of lubricating oil, covering wear metals, contamination and additive condition
Ultrasonic Inspection Record
Records ultrasonic readings used to find air leaks, electrical discharge and early bearing wear
Pressure Vessel Inspection
Checks pressure vessels and their safety devices for corrosion, damage and correct operation
Crane and Hoist Inspection
Checks cranes, hoists and their controls for wear, function and load rating
More in Asset Inspections
Vibration Analysis Record
Records vibration readings taken from rotating equipment
Thermographic Survey
Records infrared images of electrical panels, motors and bearings to find hot spots
Oil Analysis Record
Records laboratory analysis of lubricating oil, covering wear metals, contamination and additive condition
Ultrasonic Inspection Record
Records ultrasonic readings used to find air leaks, electrical discharge and early bearing wear
Pressure Vessel Inspection
Checks pressure vessels and their safety devices for corrosion, damage and correct operation
Crane and Hoist Inspection
Checks cranes, hoists and their controls for wear, function and load rating
Written and reviewed by
Siddarth Singh
Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Knowella
Certified Safety Professional and industrial and systems engineer with more than a decade inside food supply chain, freight and manufacturing operations. This page was written against the current text of the standards it cites, not against secondary summaries of them.
- Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Board of Certified Safety Professionals
- MBA, University of Chicago Booth School of Business
- MS and BS, The Ohio State University, Industrial and Systems Engineering
- Six Sigma Black Belt
Sources and last review. Reviewed 16 August 2026 against:
- ISO 55001:2014 clauses 8.1, 8.2, 9.1, 6.2 and 10.2
- ISO 55000 — Asset management, overview, principles and terminology
- Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, regulation 5 (GB)
- OSH Act Section 5(a)(1), General Duty Clause (US)
This page is general guidance, not legal advice. Confirm requirements with your jurisdiction’s regulator.