How to build a PPM schedule (with a free template)
A planned preventive maintenance schedule is a list of every asset, every task it needs, how often, and when each visit happens. Here is how to build one from scratch, with a worked example and a template you can download.
A PPM schedule (planned preventive maintenance schedule) sets out which assets on each site need maintaining, what each task is, how often it is due, and when each visit is booked. For a contractor it is also the backbone of the contract: it decides what the client is paying for, what your engineers do on each visit, and what you can prove afterwards.
Building one takes six steps.
1. List every asset on every site
Start with an asset register: one row per unit, with its site, location in the building, make, model and serial number. For anything with refrigerant, record the refrigerant and charge too, because that decides its F-gas leak check interval. Walk the site if the client's list is old; a schedule built on a wrong asset list is wrong from the first visit.
2. Decide what each asset needs, and where the frequency comes from
Every task in a schedule should have a reason for its frequency. There are four, and a schedule should record which one applies, because that tells you which visits you cannot skip:
| Source | Example | Can it move? |
|---|---|---|
| Law | F-gas leak checks: every 12 months from 5 tCO2e, every 6 months from 50 tCO2e | No |
| British Standard | Fire alarm servicing at least every 6 months (BS 5839-1); emergency lighting tested monthly, with a 3-hour full-duration test each year (BS 5266-1) | Only with a fire risk assessment behind it |
| Manufacturer or SFG20 | Filter cleans, coil cleans, belt and bearing checks | Within the warranty and the contract |
| The contract | A client who wants four visits a year where two would do | By agreement |
3. Group tasks into visits
An engineer goes to a site, not to a task. Group the tasks for each site so one visit covers everything due around that time: if the air conditioning service is quarterly and the leak check annual, the leak check rides along with one of the four services rather than being a fifth trip.
4. Spread the visits across the year
Put each visit in a month, then check the load: twelve sites all due in March will not get done in March. Stagger sites across the quarter, keep each site in the same week of its month so clients know when to expect you, and leave room for reactive work in your busy season.
5. Decide what evidence each visit produces
For each task, decide what the engineer records: readings, photos, a pass or fail, the refrigerant added, the client's signature. The job sheet should ask for exactly that, so the record you need is the one the engineer fills in. Keep it against the asset, so each unit's history is in one place when a client or auditor asks.
6. Review it every year
Assets get added, replaced and removed, and a unit that kept failing may need a shorter interval. Review the schedule against what the engineers found, at least at each contract renewal.
Worked example: a three-site dental group
Crown Dental Practices has three surgeries, each with split air conditioning in the treatment rooms, plus a fire alarm and emergency lighting. Here is part of the schedule for one site:
| Asset | Task | Frequency | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Treatment room 1 AC (R410A, 2.5 kg) | Service: filters, coils, drain | Quarterly | Manufacturer and contract |
| Treatment room 1 AC (R410A, 2.5 kg) | F-gas leak check | Annual, with the Q1 service | 5.2 tCO2e, so the 5 to 50 band |
| Reception AC (R32, 1.8 kg) | Service: filters, coils, drain | Quarterly | Manufacturer and contract |
| Reception AC (R32, 1.8 kg) | F-gas leak check | Not required | 1.2 tCO2e, under 5 (R32 needs 7.4 kg to reach the band) |
| Fire alarm system | Inspection and service | Every 6 months | BS 5839-1 |
| Emergency lighting | Annual full-duration test | Annual | BS 5266-1 |
When a spreadsheet stops working
A spreadsheet is fine for one or two contracts. It stops working when you need to know what is overdue across every site, which engineer is certified for which task, and where last year's readings are. That is the point to move the schedule into software that books each visit when it falls due, puts the right tasks on the engineer's job sheet, and keeps the record against each asset.
PPMdesk does that as part of planned maintenance, with each unit in the asset register. If your schedule is in a spreadsheet now, bring it in as it is, or we move it across for you, free.
Frequently asked questions
What is a PPM schedule?
A planned preventive maintenance schedule lists every asset on each site, the maintenance tasks each one needs, how often each task is due, and when each visit is booked. It sets what a maintenance contract covers and what engineers do on each visit.
How often should air conditioning be serviced?
Servicing frequency comes from the manufacturer's instructions, the contract or SFG20, commonly quarterly or twice a year for commercial units. F-gas leak checks are separate and set by law: at least every 12 months for systems from 5 tCO2e, and every 6 months from 50 tCO2e.
What is the difference between PPM and reactive maintenance?
PPM is scheduled in advance to stop things failing; reactive maintenance is the call-out after something has failed. A good PPM schedule reduces reactive work, but a contractor still needs to fit reactive jobs around the planned visits.
Do I have to follow SFG20?
Only if your client or contract requires it. SFG20 is a widely used industry standard, and many FM clients specify it, but legal requirements such as F-gas leak checks apply whether or not SFG20 is used.
- GOV.UK, Checking F gas equipment for leaks
- Cherwell District Council, fire alarm and emergency lighting testing (BS 5839, BS 5266)
- Fire Protection Association, How to test emergency lighting
Checked on 4 November 2026. If anything here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.
