Track defect findings to closure

When an inspection checkpoint fails, that failure is a finding: something is wrong on a specific asset, and someone has to fix it and prove it was fixed. The Defect findings tab collects every failed checkpoint across all your inspections in one list, so nothing gets lost inside an individual inspection report.

Where to find it

Open Inspections and choose the "Defect findings" tab. The list shows every checkpoint currently recorded as failed, newest first. Reading the register is available on every plan.

The five statuses

A finding's status is worked out automatically from the corrective work order linked to it — you never have to keep the two in step by hand. Only the final verification is something a person records.

Raising a work order from a finding

If a finding has no work order yet, click "Create work order". FreeMaint raises a corrective work order pre-filled with the asset, the location and the failed checkpoint, and links it to the finding. Clicking twice never creates a duplicate. If your template already creates work orders automatically on failure, findings arrive here with the link already in place.

Verifying a correction

Once the repair is done, go back to the finding and click "Verify & close". Confirm you have checked on site that the problem is actually gone. This step is deliberately separate from finishing the work order: a completed work order proves work happened, not that the defect was corrected. ISO 9001 and ISO 45001 both require this verification, and it is recorded against your name. If the defect comes back, reopen the finding.

Repeat findings

When the same checkpoint fails again on the same asset in a later period, the new failure is recorded as its own finding and both are tagged "Repeat". Two open findings for the same checkpoint is a signal, not a duplicate: it means the problem was seen twice and still is not fixed. Use the "Repeat findings only" filter to spot chronic problems worth a deeper fix.

Narrowing the list

• Search by checkpoint, asset or template
• Filter by status to see only what is still open
• Filter by severity, which defaults to the risk level set on the checkpoint
• Show only repeat findings

Running a root cause analysis on a finding

When a defect deserves more than a repair — it keeps coming back, or it points at a process problem — press Analysis on the finding. FreeMaint opens a problem-solving record, PDCA by default and switchable to 5 Why, Ishikawa, A3 or DMAIC, already linked to that finding. The analysis, its corrective actions and their effectiveness check then live in the Continuous improvement register alongside everything else, instead of in a separate spreadsheet. Pressing Analysis again on the same finding always reopens the same record; it never creates a second one. Opening an analysis requires the Enterprise plan, but reading one you already have never does.

1. Open Inspections and go to the Defect findings tab.
2. Press Analysis on the row you want to investigate.
3. Work through the method's steps, then add corrective actions with an owner and a due date.
4. Once the actions are done, record whether they were effective — that is what closes the loop for an audit.

One report for the whole defect

On any finding, "Full defect report (PDF)" produces a single document covering the entire history: the inspection the defect was found in, the finding itself with its evidence photo, the corrective work order and everything that happened on it, the root-cause analysis with its corrective actions and their effectiveness check, and finally who verified the correction and when. This is what an ISO 9001 auditor asks for, and it replaces having to open seven screens and export three files. Sections you do not use are simply left out.

Cards or table

The register offers two layouts, and your choice is remembered. Cards show each finding in full. The table shows one row per finding — number, date, inspection, asset, location, work order, analysis, status and actions — which is faster when you are reviewing many defects at once. Work order and analysis references are clickable in both.

Requiring the corrective work to be finished first

By default a finding can be verified and closed even while its corrective work order is still open, because fixing something on the spot and finishing the paperwork later is a real way to work. If your quality system does not allow that, an administrator can turn on either or both prerequisites under Company settings → System: require the corrective work order to be finished, and require the problem-solving record to be resolved. When a prerequisite is not met, the "Verify & close" button is disabled and tells you which record is holding it up. Findings with no work order and no analysis are never affected.