What this is
What is an equipment failure report?
What is an equipment failure report?
It is the first record opened when an asset stops or degrades production. It captures the moment of failure, how it was discovered, what effect it had, and whether anyone or any product was at risk, under a case ID that later work orders, failure mode records and CAPAs attach to. It exists to fix the facts before memory of them decays.
How is it different from a failure mode record?
The equipment failure report is opened at the moment of failure by whoever is on the floor, using plain description and impact fields. The failure mode record is opened afterwards by the technician, using standard coded categories so patterns can be counted across many failures. One captures the event; the other classifies it.
What decides whether a full RCA is needed?
The Investigation Level field on this report, set against asset criticality, repeat failure status and safety or product risk. A critical asset with a repeat failure and a safety flag should never close on none required. The field is a judgement call the completer makes at the point of raising the case, not something assigned later by a manager reviewing the backlog.
Scope
When is an equipment failure report required?
This record covers the failure event: what happened, what it affected, and whether anyone or any product was put at risk. It is not the place to code the failure mode, describe the repair, or review why the same asset keeps failing.
Use this template when
- An asset has just stopped or degraded production and someone needs to log it before the detail is lost
- A new case is needed; each one gets its own ID in the form CASE-2026-000
- The failure needs an immediate safety or product-risk screen, not just a maintenance note
- A repeat failure needs flagging against the asset's history at the point of raising, not weeks later
- Downstream records — a work order, a downtime record, a failure mode record — need a case ID to attach to
Do not use it for
- Failure Mode Record, which codes how the asset failed using standard component and mechanism categories rather than a free-text description.
- Repair Record, which documents what was actually done to fix the asset, including parts replaced and settings changed.
- Temporary Repair Record, which documents a repair that is not permanent, with an expiry date and a plan for the proper fix.
- Breakdown Debrief, which reviews the response after the fact rather than capturing the failure as it happens.
- Production Impact Record, which quantifies lost output across a shift rather than logging a single asset's failure.
Compliance mapping
Which ISO 55001 cl.10.1 requirements does this satisfy?
ISO 55001 cl.10.1 requires that when an asset fails, the organisation reacts, evaluates the need for action, and reviews the effectiveness of what it did. The fields below are where that obligation lands on the form.
| Clause | Requirement | Where it lands |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 55001 cl.10.1 (a)-(b) | React to the nonconformity and evaluate the need for action to eliminate the cause | The failure |
| ISO 55001 cl.10.1 (c) | Implement any action needed and review its effectiveness | Response and impact |
| ISO 55001 cl.6.1 | Address risks associated with the failure before continuing operation | Safety and product |
| ISO 55001 cl.7.5.3 | Retain documented information as evidence, identifiable and traceable | Header |
| ISO 55001 cl.9.1 | Monitor and measure asset performance so failure data feeds evaluation | Response and impact |
| ISO 55001 cl.8.1 | Plan and control operations, including the criteria for acceptable risk during response | Safety and product |
| ISO 55001 cl.10.2 | Use nonconformity data to drive continual improvement of the asset management system | Response and impact |
What it does not cover
- Failure Effect, which is recorded as reduced output when the line was in fact stopped, understating the case before anyone downstream sees it.
- Investigation Level, which is set to none required on a critical asset with a repeat failure flag already ticked yes.
- Anyone At Risk, which is answered no without the Guard Or Safety Device Involved field having been checked first.
- Foreign Body Risk Created, which is left as no on a broken component in a food contact area, on the assumption that it will be caught downstream.
- Downtime Hours, which is left blank or estimated after the fact instead of pulled from the linked downtime record.
Global
Equipment Failure Report requirements by country
The failure event is universal, but three regimes attach consequences to specific fields here, and none is optional just because the case looks routine.
ISO 55001:2014, cl.10.1 and cl.7.5
Auditors sample failure cases and expect to trace the case ID forward through repair, RCA and CAPA without gaps.
A case closed with Action Required set to no and no downstream reference is exactly what an auditor pulls first.
Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC (Machinery Regulation 2023/1230 from Jan 2027)
A failure involving a guard or safety device is an essential health and safety requirement matter, not an internal note.
Guard Or Safety Device Involved answered yes should trigger the safety case path, not sit as a flag.
29 CFR 1910.147 (control of hazardous energy)
Where repair follows a failure that put someone at risk, isolating the asset is a distinct obligation from the failure record itself.
A safety case ID captured here should reflect that lockout was verified, not merely that a risk box was ticked.
How to complete it
How to complete an equipment failure report, step by step
The fields are simple to fill in. The four calls below are what actually decide whether the record is worth anything six months later.
Total Stop scores zero and Function Lost With No Immediate Effect scores three, which creates a quiet incentive to describe a stopped line as something milder. The field should reflect what the line actually did, not what it will most likely look like once cleared.
None required and quick debrief both close the case fast. The decision should be driven by Asset Criticality and Repeat Failure, both of which sit on the same section, not by how much backlog the team is carrying that shift.
Warning Signs Beforehand distinguishes none from yes, not reported from yes, reported. The gap between the last two options is the whole point of the field, and it only works if operators are not penalised for admitting a sign was missed.
A broken component in a food area is a foreign body event until proven otherwise. Answering no here should follow an actual check of the product path, not a default because the failure looked mechanical rather than contamination-related.
What auditors find
Most common equipment failure report findings
The failure report is where reliability programmes actually break, because the fields that matter later are the ones easiest to rush past at the moment of failure.
| Finding | Clause | What fixes it |
|---|---|---|
| Failure Effect is downgraded to reduced output on cases where downtime hours later show a full stop | ISO 55001 cl.10.1 | Cross-check Failure Effect against the linked Downtime Record before the case can be marked complete. |
| Investigation Level is set to none required on assets flagged Critical with Repeat Failure ticked yes | ISO 55001 cl.10.2 | Require a second signature to close a critical, repeat-failure case at none required or quick debrief. |
| Guard Or Safety Device Involved is answered without reference to what actually failed | ISO 55001 cl.6.1 | Make the field a required check against the What Happened description, not a standalone tick. |
| Foreign Body Risk Created defaults to no on food-area failures without a documented product check | ISO 55001 cl.8.1 | Require a brief note of what was checked whenever the answer is no in a food contact area. |
| Action Required is set to no with no Priority or CAPA ID captured, leaving no trace of the decision | ISO 55001 cl.10.1 | Keep the reasoning for no action visible on the case, not just the outcome. |
| Cases close without a Failure Mode Record ID on critical assets | ISO 55001 cl.9.1 | Prompt for the coded failure mode record before final sign-off on critical assets. |
Case in point
Case in point: the reflex none required
A packing line motor failed twice in eight weeks. Both times, Failure Effect was set to reduced output rather than total stop, and Investigation Level went to none required because the belt was swapped and the line restarted within the shift. Repeat Failure was answered no both times, because nobody checked the asset's history before closing the case.
By the third failure the motor had failed completely, downtime ran to six hours, and the eventual RCA found bearing wear a condition monitoring route would have caught at the first case. The two earlier reports carried case IDs and told the investigation nothing, because the fields that would have flagged the pattern were filled in on autopilot.
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.
4 sections
- Reference
- MNT-013
- Archetype
- Record
- Record ID
- CASE-2026-000
- Scoring
- Impact band
- Direction
- High is bad
- Singleton
- No
- Basis
- ISO 55001 cl.10.1
- Links
- Feeds RCA, Work Order
- Tags
- Maintenance, Failure
- Sections
- 4
- Fields
- 42
- Follow up fields
- 7
- Repeating sections
- 0
- Links out
- 9
Header
10 fieldsCase ID*
Auto sequence. Format CASE-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
The failure
9 fieldsTime Of Failure*
Discovered By*
How Discovered*
Condition monitoring catching it beats an operator hearing it, which beats a total stop.
- Condition monitoring4 pts
- Routine inspection3 pts
- Operator noticed2 pts
- Alarm2 pts
- Total stop0 pts
What Happened*
Failure Effect*
Total stop, reduced output, quality effect or function lost with no immediate effect.
- Function lost, no immediate effect3 pts
- Quality effect1 pt
- Reduced output1 pt
- Total stop0 pts
Warning Signs Beforehand*
- None1 pt
- Yes, not reported0 pts
- Yes, reported3 pts
Warning Detail
Photograph
Failed Component Retained*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Safety and product
7 fieldsAnyone At Risk*
- No3 pts
- Yes0 pts
Safety Case ID
Thread key
Guard Or Safety Device Involved*
- No3 pts
- Yes0 pts
Product At Risk*
- No3 pts
- Possibly1 pt
- Yes0 pts
Hold ID
Links to QUA-003 Hold ID
Foreign Body Risk Created*
A broken component in a food area is a foreign body event until proven otherwise.
- No3 pts
- Yes0 pts
Foreign Material Report ID
Links to QUA-009 Case ID
Response and impact
16 fieldsWork Order ID
Links to MNT-002 Work Order ID
Downtime Record ID
Links to MNT-011 Record ID
Downtime Hours*
Asset Criticality*
Repeat Failure*
- No3 pts
- Yes0 pts
Investigation Level*
- None required3 pts
- Quick debrief2 pts
- 5 Why2 pts
- Full RCA1 pt
- Cross functional RCA0 pts
Failure Mode Record ID
Links to MNT-014 Record ID
RCA ID
Links to FDN-013 RCA ID
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
Technician*
Signature*
Maintenance Manager*
Second Signature*
MNT-013 · record IDs look like CASE-2026-000 · Feeds RCA, Work Order
Open in KnowellaRun it with agents
From a document you fill in to a programme that runs itself
The form captures the failure in a minute. Keeping the pattern visible across dozens of cases, and making sure a critical asset's repeat failure never closes quietly, needs a workspace behind it.
Holds the failure report library against the asset register, flags when Repeat Failure should have been yes based on case history, and keeps the case ID chain to RCA and work order intact.
Watches the safety and product fields on every case — Anyone At Risk, Guard Or Safety Device Involved — and makes sure a yes here actually opens the linked safety case rather than sitting as a flag.
Picks up Foreign Body Risk Created and Product At Risk, and connects them through to the hold and foreign material report so a failure with product implications does not stay a maintenance-only record.
Rolls open failure cases and their impact bands into one view across sites, and holds every write to the case for your approval before it changes a record.
This template lives in KnowMaintain — asset maintenance. Work orders, planned maintenance, calibration, reliability and shutdowns.
Meet KnowMaintain→Glossary
Equipment Failure Report definitions and key terms
- Case ID
- The identifier in the form CASE-2026-00000 that threads a failure through downtime, repair, RCA and CAPA — the self key here and the thread key other templates link back to.
- Impact band
- The composite score this template produces, built from how the failure was found, its effect, and whether it repeated. High is bad: a high band signals a worse failure.
- Downtime hours
- The measured stoppage time linked to a downtime record, used to check Failure Effect was described honestly and to feed metrics like MTBF.
- Asset criticality
- A fixed classification — critical, important or standard — carried onto the case so investigation level and priority can be judged against how much the asset matters, not how the failure looked on the day.
- Foreign body risk
- The judgement that a broken or lost component may have entered the product stream. Treated as a food safety event by default, not assumed absent until specifically ruled out.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about equipment failure report
What is the equipment failure report template based on?+
It is built against ISO 55001 cl.10.1, the nonconformity and corrective action clause of the asset management standard. ISO 55001 sets out how organisations get value from physical assets across their whole life, and this record is where a failure first enters that system.
What sections does the equipment failure report contain?+
Four sections: Header, The failure, Safety and product, and Response and impact. Together they hold 42 fields, 28 of which are required, running from the case ID through to the technician and manager sign-off.
How often is an equipment failure report raised?+
A new case is raised at the moment the failure happens, not reconstructed afterwards from memory. Each one gets its own case ID in the form CASE-2026-000, so it can be traced through repair, cause analysis and prevention.
Which programme does the equipment failure report belong to?+
Reliability and Predictive Maintenance, the programme that sets maintenance intervals from actual failure behaviour rather than a fixed calendar. This record supplies the raw failure data the rest of that programme depends on.
How is an equipment failure report scored?+
Scoring produces an impact band where high is bad, built from how the failure was discovered, its effect on production, and whether warning signs existed and were reported. It is designed to surface which failures deserve scrutiny, not to produce a tidy percentage.
Can the equipment failure report template be changed?+
Yes. Every field, option, score and conditional rule is editable, and the links to Root Cause Analysis and the Work Order template travel with it. Most teams install it as shipped, run it for a cycle, then adjust the investigation-level thresholds to match what they actually see.
Keep going
Related templates and programmes
Industries this is written for
Programmes this belongs to
Used together in Reliability and Predictive Maintenance
Root Cause Analysis
Finds out why something happened rather than who was involved
Failure Mode Record
Records how an asset failed, using standard failure mode codes rather than free text
Repair Record
Records what was actually done to fix the asset, including parts replaced and settings changed
Temporary Repair Record
Records a repair that is not permanent, with an expiry date and a plan for the proper fix
Repeat Failure Review
Reviews an asset that has failed the same way more than once
Production Impact Record
Records what the failure cost in lost output, scrap and late orders
More in Breakdowns
Failure Mode Record
Records how an asset failed, using standard failure mode codes rather than free text
Repair Record
Records what was actually done to fix the asset, including parts replaced and settings changed
Temporary Repair Record
Records a repair that is not permanent, with an expiry date and a plan for the proper fix
Repeat Failure Review
Reviews an asset that has failed the same way more than once
Production Impact Record
Records what the failure cost in lost output, scrap and late orders
Breakdown Debrief
A short review straight after a significant breakdown, capturing what happened and what would have helped
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 cl.10.1 — Nonconformity and corrective action
- ISO 55001:2014 cl.6.1 — Actions to address risks and opportunities
- ISO 55001:2014 cl.7.5 — Documented information
- Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC — Essential health and safety requirements
- 29 CFR 1910.147 — The control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout)
This page is general guidance, not legal advice. Confirm requirements with your jurisdiction’s regulator.