What is a preventive maintenance schedule?
A preventive maintenance (PM) schedule lists the service tasks each vehicle needs, how often, and when each was last done. Its job is to make work due before a fault forces it, so vehicles are serviced at a time you choose instead of when they break down.
This fleet maintenance schedule template in Excel tracks intervals by kilometer, by date or both, whichever comes first. It works out the next due point, how much is left and a status for every task, and adds work orders, spare parts and a backlog review for the weekly maintenance meeting.
How to use the preventive maintenance schedule in Excel
- List your vehicles on the Vehicles sheet with their current odometer.
- Add one row per vehicle and task on the PM schedule: the interval in km, days or both, and the date and odometer when it was last done.
- Update odometers weekly. The schedule reads them by vehicle ID.
- Filter by status. Open a work order for every Overdue and Due soon task.
- Close the work order with parts, hours and date, then update "Last done" on the schedule so the next due point moves on.
How does the schedule calculate what is due?
In the example, TRK-07 had its oil changed at 36,000 km with a 15,000 km interval, so it is due at 51,000 km. At 50,500 km it has 500 km left: due soon. TRK-11 passed 60,000 km and is overdue by 1,200 km.
How to set preventive maintenance intervals
Start from the vehicle maker's service schedule. Use both km and days for tasks that age as well as wear, such as oil and brake fluid, so a vehicle that drives little is still serviced. Shorten intervals for severe use: heavy loads, dust, heat, short trips or long idling. Keep the same task names across vehicles so you can filter and compare them.
| Task | Typical basis | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Engine oil and filter | km and days | Whichever comes first. |
| Brake inspection | km and days | Shorter for urban stop-start work. |
| Tire rotation | km | Record the tread depth at each rotation. |
| Annual or periodic inspection | days | Leave km empty. |
Work orders and spare parts
Every job, planned or unplanned, gets a work order. The total cost is parts plus labor hours times the rate, and days open count until the job is closed. Jobs open more than 7 days are highlighted. On the Spare parts sheet, a part is marked for reorder when stock falls to its minimum.
Maintenance backlog review
The Backlog review sheet brings the numbers for the meeting together: overdue, due-soon and OK tasks, open work orders and those open more than 7 days, planned against unplanned jobs and their cost for the month, and parts to reorder. Six questions keep the meeting focused on decisions, including what gets done this week, which vehicles come off the road, and which faults keep coming back.
Limits of a maintenance schedule in Excel
The schedule is only as current as the odometer readings and the "last done" entries. If readings are a week old, a task can pass its due point unnoticed. The template does not read odometers or engine hours from the vehicle and does not send reminders.