Writing a work instruction for technicians: structure, example and checklist

Why the same work is done differently every time

In many technical businesses, the working method only exists in the experienced technician’s head. A new colleague learns it by riding along. Where it goes wrong:

• The instruction is too long. Nobody reads four pages of text in a boiler room.
• Checking without a criterion. Each technician decides for themselves what is in order.
• Two versions in circulation. The folder in the van is three years old, the PDF on the server is newer.
• No proof. Afterwards, nobody knows whether a step was done.
• The stand-in starts from scratch. The regular technician is on leave, and their knowledge has gone with them.

Work instruction, checklist or procedure?

The three words are often mixed up. Each answers a different question:

The instruction explains how; the checklist records that it was done. Do you work with a quality system, for example to ISO 9001? Then discuss with your quality manager or auditor which instructions you manage formally.

Writing a good work instruction: the structure

A fixed structure makes every instruction recognisable:

The risk analysis on site is not in it: the technician does that just before the work, with an LMRA (last-minute risk analysis) before the intervention.

These rules help when writing:

1. One task per instruction. Maintenance and repair in one document turns into a book.
2. One action per step, verb first. “Close the gas valve.” reads faster than “The gas valve is to be closed.”
3. A measurable criterion. “Pressure within the manufacturer’s values, value recorded” says more than “check pressure”.
4. A photo where proof matters. Before and after cleaning, a measurement printout, the rating plate.
5. Short enough for a mobile phone screen. Long explanations stay in the manual.
6. Test with a colleague who has never done the work. Where they hesitate, something is missing.

From work instruction to checklist

Every step with a criterion becomes a line in the checklist, with the answer that fits it: yes or no, in order or not, a measured value, a short text or a photo. A checklist for maintaining a heat pump or a water softener follows the same pattern.

Keeping track of versions, and making sure the instruction is read

• One owner per instruction, who approves a new version.
• One valid version. A new version replaces the previous one, and old printouts disappear from the vans.
• Confirm reading. For a new instruction or an important change, the technician confirms that they have read it.
• Every piece of information in its place. What applies to every unit of that type goes in the work instruction. What only applies to this installation belongs in its file. What only concerns this visit, such as the key left with the neighbours, goes in the instructions of the intervention.

An example: the annual maintenance of a gas boiler

A heating company maintains the boiler of an apartment building. The regular technician is on leave, and a colleague takes over the visit. The office has put in the instructions of the intervention where the key to the boiler room is and what was replaced last time. The colleague reads them on his mobile phone before setting off. The work instruction is the one for every boiler service (illustrative, to be adapted to your units):

1. Ask the customer about breakdowns since the previous visit.
2. Switch off the boiler, close the gas valve and let it cool down.
3. Clean according to the manufacturer’s manual, with a photo before and after.
4. Clean the condensate drain siphon, if the boiler has one.
5. Check the water pressure and record the value. In order: within the manufacturer’s values.
6. Restart the boiler and measure the combustion. Record the values and take a photo of the measurement printout.
7. Check the connections you undid for leaks. In order: no leak.

In the checklist, these become lines such as “gas valve closed” (in order or not), “water pressure” (value), “combustion measurement” (value and photo) and “leak test” (in order or not). That way, the colleague works the way the regular technician does.

How it works in Digitalnatie Service Suite

In Service Suite, you set down instructions at three levels. The technician reads the instructions of an intervention in the mobile app, with their assignment, in the intervention’s overview.

• Per intervention: when you create one, an optional intervention template fills in the type, the team, the duration and the instructions, which you can still change afterwards. You manage the templates in the settings. Later, editing the intervention’s details lets you change the instructions for the technician and the required photos.
• Per maintenance contract: the visit template sets the instructions, the duration, the type and the categories of each visit. The text of the contract’s terms and instructions becomes a task on every visit.
• Per installation: the installation’s file keeps manuals, certificates and photos, and for each document you choose whether the customer can see it in their portal. In the app, the installation record shows the product, the warranty, the next maintenance and the technician’s own previous interventions: what they need to know from the manual, you put in the instructions.

You manage checklists and documents to be read in the safety settings, each on its own tab. They have versions: you can change a draft freely, while publishing fixes the steps and replaces the previous version. New interventions get the published version. For scheduled interventions that have not yet started, recalculating the safety package first shows what they would get in addition; nothing is ever removed.

On site, they are on the safety tab of the intervention, next to the LMRA (see safety and compliance):

• The technician opens a document, which needs a connection, and confirms that they have read and understood it. A required document can block the start of the work.
• They fill in a checklist line by line: yes, no or not applicable, OK or not OK, a value or a text, and a photo when one is required. Then they confirm the checklist. The answers are saved even without a connection and sent later.
• If the situation is not right, they report a deviation, for example of the type procedure not followed or condition of the installation.

If the intervention requires photos, the technician can only close it as fully completed once those photos are there, together with the signatures.

What belongs on the report after the work is explained in what goes on a work order. How a colleague takes over with the unit’s history is covered in the service history per installation.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a work instruction and a procedure?

A procedure describes who does what and in what order, often across several people or departments. A work instruction describes how one task is carried out step by step, such as the maintenance of a boiler.

What makes a good work instruction?

One task, steps in the order of the work, one action per step with the verb first, a measurable criterion and a photo where proof matters. It is short enough for a mobile phone, and a colleague who has never done the work can follow it.

How do I make sure everyone uses the latest version?

Give each instruction one owner, a version number and a date, and take old printouts out of the vans. In Service Suite, checklists and documents have versions: publishing replaces the previous version, and new interventions get the published version.

Does a digital checklist work without a connection?

In Service Suite, the answers to a checklist are saved on the device and sent as soon as there is a connection. Opening a document does need a connection: the technician had better open it before going into a basement or boiler room without signal.

Can I set down a work instruction for every maintenance visit of a contract?

Yes. In Service Suite, the visit template of a maintenance contract sets the instructions, the duration, the type and the categories of each visit, and the text of the terms and instructions becomes a task on every visit.