Maintenance Planning Essentials – Introduction and Expectation Stages

Little has been done in most facilities to standardize maintenance planning.  Strategies vary from planner to planner and in many facilities, last year’s plan is used without modification, or there is no plan at all.

To improve facility management performance, your plan for next year should build on what you have learned this year.  Below are the first two parts of a maintenance plan format example:

Introduction:

This stage of the planning process sets the scope and the tone.  Usually this stage consists of a purpose statement.  Your goal is to outline the needs of the facility, the general desired outcomes from the maintenance department, the time frame of the plan, etc.

Performance Expectations:

In this stage, the relevant performance expectations of the maintenance plan are detailed.  This might include energy cost reductions, facility improvement projects, recycling goals, and business factors that affect maintenance.

Your objective at this stage is to set goals that are achievable and strategic to the facility.  Trying to outline all of the factors important to the facility is unrealistic.

You should include some method of tracking performance to ensure that each goal is measurable with desired performance outcomes that include timelines.  Tools such as Facility Maintenance Software can be an essential part of your performance tracking plan.