A machine maintenance checklist is the record a technician fills in during a planned visit to a production machine: proof it was locked out before anyone reached inside, what was cleaned, oiled, adjusted and replaced, what the safety devices did when tested, how the machine ran afterwards, and who accepted it back. This checklist follows the visit in the order the work is done, keeps every work section closed until the lockout is confirmed, and scores each check Pass, Fail or N/A so anything left wrong becomes a finding. Fill it in here and download a PDF without creating an account, or speak while you walk, and the document writes itself.
Lockout first, and the form will not let you skip it
Maintenance and servicing are when guards come off and hands go inside, which makes them the riskiest minutes in a machine's week. The first working question on this form asks whether the machine is isolated, locked out and proven at zero energy. Until the answer is Yes, every other work section shows a single line telling the technician not to start.
Once it is Yes, the form records who fitted the locks, how many points were locked, and whether stored energy — springs, raised tooling, accumulators, flywheels — was released and a start attempt made with everyone clear.
What a preventive maintenance visit covers
The core of the visit is the same on most production machines: clean off swarf, dust and old oil so leaks and cracks can be seen; check fasteners and match marks; lubricate every point on the chart with the right grade; inspect and tension belts and chains, feel bearings and couplings; check hydraulic and pneumatic hoses, fluid, filters and pressures; and open the electrical panel to look for heat marks, loose terminals and damaged cables.
Machines without hydraulics or air skip that section with one answer. Anything the technician spots along the way — a crack, abnormal heat or noise, vibration, a leak — is ticked in a list of signs found and described, so it shows in the report rather than in someone's memory.
Parts replaced, and why
Each part changed gets its own line: what it was, its part number, how many, why it was changed — worn to its limit, broken, leaking, or due on schedule — and the state of the old one. Over months, those lines become the machine's parts history, which is what tells a planner whether an interval is too long, or a supplier's part is wearing early.
Proving it before production gets it back
After the work, the guards go back on, tools and rags come out, each lock is removed by the person who fitted it, and power is restored. Then the safety devices are tested one by one — emergency stops, guard interlocks, light curtains, limit switches and sensors — before the machine is test run, first empty and then on parts.
Hand-back is a decision, not a tick: returned with no restrictions, returned with restrictions written down, or not returned. The technician signs, and so does the operator or supervisor taking the machine back, so both sides agree what state it was in.
Common questions
How often should production machines get preventive maintenance?
Follow the maker's schedule first, then adjust it to how hard the machine works and what your records show. Many shops run quick weekly checks, a fuller monthly or quarterly visit like this one, and an annual overhaul, with intervals measured in hours or cycles where the machine counts them.
Why does the checklist ask for lockout before anything else?
Because most maintenance work puts hands near parts that could move, and an unexpected start-up or release of stored energy during servicing is a well-known cause of serious injury. Making the lockout the gate keeps the order right on every visit.
What is the difference between preventive and corrective maintenance?
Preventive maintenance is planned work done to keep a machine running — lubrication, adjustment, inspection and scheduled part changes. Corrective maintenance is the repair after something has failed. This form is for the planned visit, though it can also record the checks after a repair.
Should the operator be involved?
Yes. Operators notice changes in sound, heat and quality before anyone else, so ask them what they have seen before you start. They, or their supervisor, should also accept the machine back at the end and sign for it.
Can I add checks specific to my machine?
Yes. Copy the template into your account and add the maker's own items — a spindle runout check, a die height reading, a filter change — so each visit asks exactly what that machine needs.