Maintenance, Repair & Operations

Problem Descriptions in Work Orders

Oct. 16, 2018

To save time, make sure you're work order is clear.

If the problem description in a work order is unclear, the person to whom it is issued can guess at what needs to be done or can walk around asking relevant parties what they think. Either way wastes time and can result in fixing a problem that didn’t exist instead of the one the work order was issued for.

Today, a work order is typically issued from an Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) system or Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS). Everyone involved in creating or inputting the data for such a system needs to be familiar with the rules and accepted practices for doing so. Here are some things to address when doing so:

Is the work category preventive maintenance (PM), predictive maintenance (PdM), repair, or administrative work?
Don’t waste space in the problem description by including the asset name; that information is already provided elsewhere in the work order.
You don’t have to use all the allotted problem description space but provide enough information to clearly describe the problem.
Describe the problem rather than propose the solution or interpret observations. Writing an accurate description may require some research.

About the Author

Mark Lamendola

Mark is an expert in maintenance management, having racked up an impressive track record during his time working in the field. He also has extensive knowledge of, and practical expertise with, the National Electrical Code (NEC). Through his consulting business, he provides articles and training materials on electrical topics, specializing in making difficult subjects easy to understand and focusing on the practical aspects of electrical work.

Prior to starting his own business, Mark served as the Technical Editor on EC&M for six years, worked three years in nuclear maintenance, six years as a contract project engineer/project manager, three years as a systems engineer, and three years in plant maintenance management.

Mark earned an AAS degree from Rock Valley College, a BSEET from Columbia Pacific University, and an MBA from Lake Erie College. He’s also completed several related certifications over the years and even was formerly licensed as a Master Electrician. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE and past Chairman of the Kansas City Chapters of both the IEEE and the IEEE Computer Society. Mark also served as the program director for, a board member of, and webmaster of, the Midwest Chapter of the 7x24 Exchange. He has also held memberships with the following organizations: NETA, NFPA, International Association of Webmasters, and Institute of Certified Professional Managers.