What this is
What is a monthly PM checklist?
What is a monthly PM checklist?
It is the mid-frequency layer of planned maintenance, sitting between the weekly visual pass and the quarterly strip-down. It adds deeper mechanical, electrical and hygienic checks plus recorded measurements, and it is the first tier where a reading is compared against its own history rather than just judged pass or fail on the day.
How does it differ from the weekly and quarterly checklists?
The weekly checklist is a walk-round; nothing is opened up. The monthly checklist adds fastener torque, seals, insulation and drainage checks that take a spanner and a few minutes per point. The quarterly checklist goes further still, into strip-down and internal wear, which the monthly deliberately avoids.
Why does a checklist need a measurements section at all?
A single reading tells you the asset's state today. A trend tells you where it is going. The Measurements section is repeatable specifically so the same point can be logged month after month and compared, which is the only way a knockout item like 'Within Normal Range' catches a slow decline rather than only a sudden one.
Scope
When is a monthly pm checklist required?
This checklist sits at a specific depth: more than a walk-round, less than a strip-down. Running it for work that belongs one rung up or down the ladder produces records nobody can reconcile against the PM plan later.
Use this template when
- The asset is due its monthly cycle under the linked PM Plan
- A measurement point on this asset has an established baseline worth comparing against
- Fastener torque, seals, filters or bearing condition need checking without a full strip-down
- A prior finding on this asset needs a scheduled recheck rather than an ad hoc visit
- The linked PM Plan or Asset record requires this cycle to exist before it can close its own status
Do not use it for
- Weekly PM Checklist, which covers cleaning, belt and chain checks and minor adjustments — no torque, no measurements.
- Quarterly PM Checklist, which is for strip-down work: internal wear, corrosion, springs, pneumatics and reassembly.
- Meter Based PM Record, which triggers on runtime or cycle count rather than a calendar month.
- Lubrication Record, which covers routine greasing and oil checks on their own schedule, not folded into this one.
- Corrective Work Order, which is the record a Fail result should spawn, not a substitute for raising this checklist in the first place.
Compliance mapping
Which ISO 55001 cl.8.2 requirements does this satisfy?
ISO 55001 cl.8.2 sets planned maintenance in the context of controlled change and operational conditions; the sections below carry that intent into specific fields rather than leaving it as a general aspiration.
| Clause | Requirement | Where it lands |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 55001 cl.8.1 (Operational planning and control) | Maintenance is carried out under specified, documented conditions rather than technician discretion | Mechanical |
| ISO 55001 cl.8.1 | Electrical safety-critical components are checked against a stated condition standard, not just 'looks fine' | Electrical |
| ISO 55001 cl.8.2 (Management of change) | Deviations found during planned work are captured and routed to controlled correction, not informally patched | Findings |
| ISO 55001 cl.9.1 (Monitoring, measurement, analysis and evaluation) | Condition data is logged at defined intervals so degradation is visible as a trend, not just a point-in-time result | Measurements |
| ISO 55001 cl.8.1 | The asset's fitness for continued service is a distinct, recorded decision, not an inference from task completion | Result |
| ISO 55001 cl.7.5 (Information requirements) | Each record identifies the asset, the plan it discharges and the person accountable for the finding | Header |
| Regulation (EC) 852/2004 Annex II Ch I | Equipment in contact with food is maintained so it does not become a contamination risk | Hygienic condition |
What it does not cover
- Trend Versus Last Reading, which is optional and skipped whenever the reading itself sits inside range, so a value that is climbing steadily never gets flagged until it crosses the line.
- Reason If Late, which only appears once the task is already overdue, so the schedule slip itself is never examined while it could still be prevented.
- Second Signature from the area owner, which is required but is routinely collected days after the technician's, once the equipment is already back in production and the review is a formality.
- Items Assessed and Items Failed, which are typed in by hand rather than derived from the choice fields above them, so the two numbers rarely reconcile against a manual recount.
- Corrective Work Order ID, which stays blank whenever a fault is fixed on the spot, leaving no record in the maintenance system that a defect existed at all.
Global
Monthly PM Checklist requirements by country
The checklist itself is jurisdiction-neutral, but the Hygienic condition section puts it inside food equipment law wherever the plant processes food — and the three regimes below take different views of what 'maintained' has to mean.
FDA FSMA, 21 CFR 117.40
Equipment and utensils must be of sanitary design and construction, and maintained in a sanitary condition
A Fail on Product Contact Surfaces Sound or No Harbourage Points Developing is a food-safety event, not just a maintenance one — it should trigger the same escalation as a hygiene deviation, whatever the maintenance system calls it.
Regulation (EC) 852/2004, Annex II Chapter I
Equipment coming into contact with food must be kept in good repair and condition to minimise contamination risk
The monthly cadence has to be defensible against the actual soiling and wear rate of the equipment — a food business operator cannot point to a template frequency alone if the equipment fouls faster than that.
Retained Regulation (EC) 852/2004, Annex II Chapter I
Carried over post-EU-exit with the same substantive equipment maintenance duty
UK sites cannot treat this as a lighter-touch regime than the EU original; enforcement expectations on equipment condition track the retained text closely.
How to complete it
How to complete a monthly pm checklist, step by step
The fields are simple choices, but four judgement calls decide whether a completed monthly checklist actually means anything under review.
'Clear trend' versus 'Slight change' has no numeric threshold in the field itself. Two technicians looking at the same three-month run of readings can reasonably disagree, and without a stated tolerance band per measurement point, the field ends up reflecting mood as much as data.
N/A removes an item from the denominator with no reason captured. Reserve it for components that genuinely do not exist on that asset variant, and treat 'couldn't access it this cycle' as a Fail with a note — not an N/A — or the completeness figure quietly overstates coverage.
Fixed On The Spot with no Finding ID feels efficient, but it also means nothing downstream — spares usage, recurrence tracking, criticality review — ever sees that a defect existed. Reserve the on-the-spot path for genuinely trivial items, not for anything that took parts or more than a few minutes.
Area Owner sign-off is meant to be an independent check that the asset is fit to hand back, not a rubber stamp on the technician's own assessment. If it is routinely applied without the owner walking the asset, the second signature adds a name to the record without adding the review it represents.
What auditors find
Most common monthly pm checklist findings
The same six weaknesses surface across sites running this checklist, in roughly this order of frequency.
| Finding | Clause | What fixes it |
|---|---|---|
| A measurement is logged month after month with no Trend field completed | ISO 55001 cl.9.1 | Make Trend Versus Last Reading required whenever a prior reading exists for that same measurement point, not merely available. |
| N/A is selected on a Mechanical or Electrical item with no reason recorded | ISO 55001 cl.8.1 | Add a short mandatory reason field that appears whenever N/A is chosen on any scored condition item. |
| The area owner's second signature is dated after the asset is already back in production | ISO 55001 cl.7.5 | Capture the signature timestamp against Equipment Fit For Service so a late review is visible in the record, not just implied. |
| A Fail is fixed on the spot with no photo and no Finding ID | Regulation (EC) 852/2004 Annex II Ch I | Require Photo Evidence on any Fail regardless of whether it was resolved immediately, so hygiene-relevant faults leave a trace. |
| Completed On Time is 'Late' or 'Not completed' but Reason If Late is blank | ISO 55001 cl.8.1 | Enforce Reason If Late as required whenever Completed On Time is not 'Yes', rather than leaving it merely visible. |
| Corrective Work Required is 'Yes' with no Corrective Work Order ID entered | ISO 55001 cl.8.2 | Block submission on this combination instead of treating the linked field as optional guidance. |
Case in point
Case in point: a climbing reading that nobody trended
A refrigeration compressor's vibration reading came back 'within normal range' for three consecutive monthly visits — 4.1, 4.6, 5.2 mm/s — each one comfortably under the 7.0 mm/s knockout threshold. Trend Versus Last Reading was left blank each time, because the field is optional and every individual reading passed.
By month four the reading hit 8.9 mm/s and the checklist finally flagged a Fail, triggering an emergency work order and two days of lost cooling capacity. The three prior readings, plotted together, showed the failure coming a full quarter out — the data existed, it just was never compared to itself.
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.
7 sections
- Reference
- MNT-024
- Archetype
- Checklist
- Record ID
- PM-2026-000
- Scoring
- Complete with knockout items
- Direction
- High is good
- Singleton
- No
- Basis
- ISO 55001 cl.8.2
- Links
- Links Asset, PM Plan
- Tags
- Maintenance, Preventive
- Sections
- 7
- Fields
- 61
- Follow up fields
- 10
- Repeating sections
- 2
- Links out
- 5
Header
16 fieldsPM ID*
Auto sequence. Format PM-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
PM Plan ID
Links to MNT-021 Plan ID
Work Order ID
Links to MNT-002 Work Order ID
Due Date*
Completed On Time*
- Yes3 pts
- Late1 pt
- Not completed0 pts
Days Late
Reason If Late
Mechanical
6 fieldsBearings Condition*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Seals And Gaskets*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Fasteners Torque Checked*
- Yes2 pts
- No0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Wear Parts Measured*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Alignment Checked*
- Yes3 pts
- Not required3 pts
- No0 pts
Play Or Backlash Checked*
- Yes2 pts
- No0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Electrical
6 fieldsConnections Tight*
- Yes3 pts
- Some loose1 pt
- No0 pts
Insulation Sound*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Enclosures Sealed*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Contactors Condition*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Cooling Fans Working*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Earth Bonding Intact*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Hygienic condition
6 fieldsProduct Contact Surfaces Sound*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
No Harbourage Points Developing*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Drainage Clear*
- Yes3 pts
- Partly blocked1 pt
- Blocked0 pts
Seals Intact And Cleanable*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Paint And Coating Sound*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
No Rust Or Flaking*
- Pass2 pts
- Partial1 pt
- Fail0 pts
- N/Aexcluded from denominator
Measurements
Repeats5 fieldsMeasurement Point*
Reading*
Units
Within Normal Range*
- Yes3 pts
- Marginal1 pt
- No0 pts
Trend Versus Last Reading
A reading inside range but climbing steadily is the one worth acting on.
- Stable3 pts
- Slight change2 pts
- Clear trend0 pts
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
15 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.
Any Task Not Completed*
- No3 pts
- Yes0 pts
Reason Not Completed
Corrective Work Required*
- No3 pts
- Yes1 pt
Corrective Work Order ID
Links to MNT-002 Work Order ID
Equipment Fit For Service*
- Yes3 pts
- With restrictions1 pt
- No0 pts
Next Due*
Technician*
Signature*
Area Owner*
Second Signature*
MNT-024 · record IDs look like PM-2026-000 · Links Asset, PM Plan
Open in KnowellaRun it with agents
From a document you fill in to a programme that runs itself
Filling in the form is the easy part. Trending a reading against its own history, chasing a late second signature, and making sure a Fail actually produces a Corrective Work Order is the work that quietly slips.
Holds every monthly checklist against its Asset and PM Plan record, plots Measurements readings across visits automatically, and flags when a Trend field was left blank on a reading with prior history.
Picks up electrical and hygienic condition Fails and routes them into the same escalation path as a safety or food-hygiene deviation, rather than letting them sit as a maintenance-only record.
Watches the Hygienic condition section specifically, correlating repeated Partial results on product contact surfaces or drainage against complaint and audit data from the same area.
Rolls completion, overdue cycles and open findings for every asset into one view, chases the second signature when it is missing, and holds every write for your approval before it touches a record.
This template lives in KnowMaintain — asset maintenance. Work orders, planned maintenance, calibration, reliability and shutdowns.
Meet KnowMaintain→Glossary
Monthly PM Checklist definitions and key terms
- PM
- Planned (or preventive) maintenance: scheduled work carried out to prevent failure, as distinct from corrective work carried out after something has already gone wrong.
- Knockout item
- A scored field where a specific answer (typically a Fail) is intended to force attention regardless of how well everything else scored, rather than being averaged away in an overall percentage.
- Fit for service
- A distinct go/no-go judgement on whether an asset can safely return to production, made separately from whether the individual checklist tasks were completed.
- Condition monitoring
- The practice of tracking a measurable property of an asset over time — vibration, temperature, current draw — to detect degradation before it causes failure.
- Backlog
- Planned or corrective work that is due or overdue but not yet closed; visible backlog age is what a schedule compliance figure can otherwise hide.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about monthly pm checklist
Why does the monthly checklist have a Measurements section when the weekly one doesn't?+
The weekly checklist is a visual pass; nothing is measured or compared. The monthly checklist introduces a repeating measurement block specifically so readings can be trended month over month, which only becomes meaningful once there is a history to compare against.
What happens if Trend Versus Last Reading is left blank?+
Nothing blocks submission — the field is optional, and Within Normal Range alone still scores. That is the template's main weakness: a reading can be 'in range' every month while still climbing toward failure, and the trend comparison that would catch this is not enforced.
Does a Fail always need a Corrective Work Order?+
It should whenever the fault is not resolved immediately. Fixed On The Spot is meant for trivial items only; anything that needed parts, took real time, or has a safety or hygiene dimension should carry a Corrective Work Order ID so the fault has a record beyond this one checklist.
Can N/A be used to skip an inconvenient item?+
It can be, and that is the risk. N/A is meant for components that genuinely do not exist on a given asset variant. Used to skip anything that was merely hard to reach or would have required a longer stoppage, it inflates the completion figure without inflating actual coverage.
Who needs to sign the completed checklist?+
The technician who did the work, and the area owner as a second, independent signature confirming the asset is fit to hand back. The second signature is only meaningful if the owner actually reviews the findings rather than countersigning as a formality.
How does this checklist connect to the Asset and PM Plan records?+
Site, Asset and PM Plan ID are all linked fields pulled from the Asset register and Preventive Maintenance Plan, so each monthly record ties directly back to the schedule that generated it and the asset it was performed against, rather than standing alone.
Keep going
Related templates and programmes
Industries this is written for
Programmes this belongs to
Used together in Planned Maintenance
Asset Register
Holds every piece of equipment, machine, vehicle and tool you track
Tool and Equipment Register
Holds portable tools, gauges, lifting accessories and small equipment that sit below asset level but still need control
Maintenance Request
Asks maintenance to look at a problem or carry out a job
Work Order
The main record for a planned maintenance job, covering what, where, who and when
Corrective Work Order
Covers a repair to fix something that has already failed or degraded
Emergency Work Order
Covers urgent work where equipment has stopped or become unsafe
More in PM Schedules
Preventive Maintenance Plan
Sets out what preventive work each asset needs, how often and why
Daily PM Checklist
Covers daily checks such as lubrication points, fluid levels and visual condition
Weekly PM Checklist
Covers weekly preventive tasks including cleaning, belt and chain checks and minor adjustments
Quarterly PM Checklist
Covers quarterly preventive tasks that usually need the asset stopped
Annual PM Checklist
Covers the yearly overhaul tasks, including full strip down where required
Meter Based PM Record
Schedules maintenance on running hours, cycles or distance rather than the calendar
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.7.5, 8.1, 8.2, 9.1 — Asset management systems
- Regulation (EC) 852/2004, Annex II Chapter I — hygiene of foodstuffs, equipment requirements
- Retained Regulation (EC) 852/2004, Annex II Chapter I (UK)
- US FDA FSMA, 21 CFR 117.40 — sanitary design and maintenance of equipment and utensils
This page is general guidance, not legal advice. Confirm requirements with your jurisdiction’s regulator.