How To Create And Maintain An O&M Manual [With Examples]

Steps for creating and maintaining operation and maintenance manuals

Creating O&M manuals can be a long and arduous process. It is better completed in different installments. After each step, it is a good practice to reflect on the work done before and note how it can be improved. 

We have outlined the steps you can follow to create and maintain a purposeful O&M manual.

Make a plan and the outline of the document

The manual and what goes into it should be planned well in advance. This is a perfect time to create an outline and think about stakeholders that will need to be part of the process. The purpose of creating the manual has to be clearly defined and include the audience the manual is intended for. A general outlook of the next steps should also be thought through in the planning phase.

Gather necessary documentation and information

You have to observe the daily routine of the technicians and operators to write procedures and outline best practices. You have to interview the technicians, operators, and engineers to understand how they perform their duties. 

Grab OEM guidelines, user manuals, warranties, flowcharts, and other documents you want to include in the O and M manual.

Create the first draft

Segregate the information according to the outline created in the planning phase. Give a structure to the information collected. Make formal procedural steps that could be understood. Create flowcharts with relevant drawings and tables when applicable to visualize important information and make it easier to digest and follow. Review and compile the work done so far.

When you’re finished, you should have the first draft of the document.

Gather feedback

You should share the first draft with the stakeholders and its future users. Gather opinions from everyone and note down what needs improvement. Depending on the feedback, you might have to go and collect additional information. This can be done multiple times until the final draft can be created.

Finalize the document

Have one final look at the document. You can check if some things can be bolded or highlighted in any other way. After you’ve done polishing the document, it is time to publish and distribute the manual. Make sure everyone knows where it can be found, what it covers, and how to use it. 

Regularly update the manual

Over time, you are bound to come across new information and details that should be included in the document. Likewise, you will purchase new assets, change existing workflows, and expand existing operations. The manual has to be updated to stay relevant. 

As your operations grow, so should your operations and maintenance manual. For this reason, it is better to create an electronic version and store it in a CMMS and other digital systems. This way, it can be easily updated and accessed from any device.

O&M manual templates and examples

You do not have to start everything from scratch. You can rely on existing templates to outline your version of the document. 

There are many O&M manual examples and templates from various industries and facilities you can use for inspiration:

Templatelab offers templates for different types of manuals that can be downloaded for free. While these are not really operation and maintenance manuals, they do give a general idea of how the document can be structured. Here is an O&M manual example from the construction industry.Here is an example of an O&M manual for a nursing home.Plant operating manual from KLM Technology group.Standards for creating O& M manuals for South Australian Water Corporation.

While the structure of these documents is similar, the contents vary depending on the purpose of the document. That reiterates how important it is to have a plan in mind before creating the operation and maintenance manual.

Maximizing the usefulness of maintenance manuals with a CMMS

Operation and maintenance manuals are the perfect places to outline general procedures and guidelines. To avoid cluttering the document with overly specific information, most maintenance departments will want to keep machine maintenance manuals separate. However, that makes sense only if you are using a computerized maintenance management system like Limble.

Why? Because Limble is a cloud-based software with barcode integration and a centralized asset card and barcode integration.

Cloud-based means that the manuals can be accessed via any mobile device with an internet connection. Barcode integration means that a technician can just scan the barcode on an asset and the app will automatically open the centralized asset card (seen in the image below) which contains all maintenance information about that particular asset (general info, maintenance history, maintenance manual…).

Having quick and easy access to maintenance manuals is one of many benefits of having mobile maintenance software as it leads to significant workflow improvements. It cuts down on inefficiencies, boosts productivity, and reduces idle time.

Key takeaway

There is no point in creating an operation and maintenance manual if nobody is going to use it. Structure the document in a logical manner, use visual aids to explain and summarize complex processes, make the document easily accessible, and push people to use the document instead of interrupting their colleagues in their daily activities. It takes time to develop and maintain an O&M manual and this is the best way to maximize its utility.

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