Guide
The construction equipment maintenance log
Updated 23.10.2026
A maintenance log is the written history of each machine: services, repairs, parts, inspections and hour meter readings. Kept properly, it prevents breakdowns, proves the maintenance was done and raises the resale price. Here is what it should contain, how to keep it and how to set one up in an hour.
What is a maintenance log for construction plant?
It is the life record of a machine. For an excavator, wheel loader, mini excavator, dumper or aerial work platform, it holds everything done to the machine since it joined the company. Each entry says what, when, at how many hours, by whom and at what cost.
Most firms already have this information, but scattered: dealer invoices in a binder, a notebook in the workshop, the rest in the mechanic’s head. The problem is not missing data. It is that nobody can find it when it matters: a breakdown, an inspection, a sale.
Why keep a maintenance log for your plant?
First, breakdowns cost more than maintenance. A missed service, an air filter never changed, a hydraulic leak reported and then forgotten, and the machine stops in the middle of a job. The log shows what is due and what has been left.
Second, resale. Buyers pay more for a machine with a full history, services on time and repairs documented. Without records, they assume the worst and negotiate accordingly.
Third, inspections. During a Suva visit, an assessment after a claim or a customer audit, you need to show what was done. A printable log answers in minutes.
Finally, the law. In Switzerland, Article 32b of the Ordinance on Accident Prevention (OPA/VUV) requires work equipment to be maintained according to the manufacturer’s instructions, taking into account its use and place of operation, and the results of maintenance to be recorded. Responsibility stays with the employer; see our guide to the maintenance obligation for details.
What should a plant maintenance record contain?
A good log is short and complete. Someone who does not know the machine should understand its condition in two minutes. Here is a practical list to adapt to your fleet:
- Identification: make, model, serial number, year, internal fleet number.
- Hour meter reading at every job, and regularly in between.
- Services: date, hours, work done, oils and filters replaced, who did it.
- Due dates: next service in hours, inspections and checks by date.
- Repairs: fault, cause, work done, status (in progress, awaiting parts, completed), downtime.
- Parts: part number, supplier, fitting date, warranty.
- Inspections: result, defects found, action taken.
- Costs: parts and labour, so you know what each machine really costs.
- Documents: invoices, inspection reports, photos of damage, the manufacturer’s manual.
Paper, Excel or plant maintenance records software?
A paper logbook has real advantages. It stays in the cab, needs no battery or signal, and everyone can use it. But it gets dirty, goes missing and gives no overview: to see which machines are due for a service, you have to open every book.
An Excel sheet is free and flexible. For two or three machines looked after by one person, it is often enough. The limits come quickly after that: one file on one computer, several versions going round, no reminders, no photos, and a row deleted by mistake is gone without trace. Above all, the operator on site cannot reach it.
Maintenance software costs a subscription and a little setting up. In return, everyone writes in the same place, on site or in the workshop, due dates are calculated and reminders go out on their own. It does not replace the mechanic’s judgement; it simply stops information getting lost.
Our honest view: with fewer than three machines and one person in charge, a well-kept spreadsheet can do the job. Beyond that, or once several people are involved, a digital log such as Godet saves time every week.
Get started in an hour with Godet
Godet is a digital maintenance log built in Valais, Switzerland, by a former construction plant mechanic. It runs in the browser on a computer, tablet or phone, with nothing to install. Here is how to set up your fleet in about an hour:
- Add your machines one by one, or import your existing Excel list. Each machine appears in a 3D garage, green, orange or red depending on its condition.
- Check the due dates. Each new machine gets a service every 500 hours and an annual safety inspection; adjust both to the manufacturer’s manual.
- Enter the last known service and the current hour meter reading. The next due dates are worked out for you.
- Print the QR labels and stick them in the cabs. A scan with a phone opens the machine record, even without signal: the entry is sent once the connection returns.
- Invite your operators and mechanics, each with their own role. Operators log hours (or photograph the hour meter: the reading is suggested, then checked) and report defects.
- Turn on email reminders, daily or weekly.
Who fills in the log, and when?
A log is only worth something if it is filled in. The rule that works: whoever does the job writes it down, straight away, in two lines. The mechanic records the service at the end of the job, not on Friday evening from memory. The operator reads the hour meter once a week and reports what they notice: a leak, a noise, a warning light.
The workshop manager keeps the overview: what is coming due, what is overdue, what is waiting for parts. An entry is never deleted; if it is wrong, it is struck through with a reason. That is what gives the log its value during an inspection.
To plan how often each machine needs a service, read our guide to construction equipment service intervals.
Frequently asked questions
Is a maintenance log for construction equipment mandatory in Switzerland?
Article 32b OPA/VUV requires work equipment to be maintained according to the manufacturer’s instructions and the results to be recorded. The format is not prescribed: paper, spreadsheet or software. For details, ask Suva and the manufacturer.
Is an Excel spreadsheet enough as a maintenance log?
For a few machines and one person in charge, often yes. Once several people write in it or the fleet grows, duplicate versions, missing reminders and no access from site become a problem.
How long should a machine’s history be kept?
The simplest approach is to keep it for the machine’s whole life in the company, then hand it to the buyer. A complete history helps at resale and during an assessment.
Does maintenance software replace telematics?
No, the two work together. Telematics gives location and hours. The log keeps what was done to the machine, by whom, with which parts and at what cost.