What Planning & Scheduling (P&S) Actually Is
You will learn what planning & scheduling is, how it works, and why it matters to your workday.
Online maintenance technician training
PS400: Maintenance Planning & Scheduling for the Frontline
Learn what the maintenance planning & scheduling process looks like on the frontline, how it makes your job easier, how it secures your safety, and what to do to drive high quality maintenance execution.
What you will learn
Course objectives
The PS400 Maintenance Planning & Scheduling for the Frontline course gives you a clear, practical understanding of how planning and scheduling actually works. This is a simplified and condensed version of our PS200 course. It strips away the complexity of high-level management frameworks and focuses entirely on the knowledge that matters to frontline technicians and operators.
How Planning & Scheduling Eliminates the Chaos on the Plant Floor
You’ll understand how waste in planning creates the constant firefighting, last-minute changes, and incomplete job details that slow you down — and how fixing that waste gives you back time and control, improves your safety, and overall job satisfaction.
Your Role in Making Planning & Scheduling Work
You’re not a planner or scheduler, but you do have a critical role. You’ll learn what that role is and how doing it well compounds into massive gains in efficiency and reliability.
How a Properly Planned Job Protects Your Time
You’ll understand what the Frozen Weekly Schedule is, why it’s protected, and how it results in fewer interruptions, less frustration, and more predictable work.
How to Submit Work Requests That Actually Get Planned Properly
You’ll learn what constitutes high-quality work requests that make planners do their job right the first time.
How to Prioritise Work the Right Way
Not all jobs are equally important. You’ll learn how to use objective prioritisation frameworks (RIME or RAM) to identify what tasks are critical and those that can wait.
How to Manage Emergency Work Without Derailing Everything
You’ll learn proven techniques to handle unplanned work without losing control of the week’s planned schedule — a common issue faced by reactive organisations.
Plus much more — from understanding best maintenance practices, planning tools, key performance indicators (KPIs) and how your daily work contributes to them, to recognising the difference between a fully-planned, executable job and a poorly planned one, and effectively managing emergent work during the execution phase.
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Curriculum
Course structure
This course is designed for technicians and operators like yourself who deal with busy schedules and have no time to waste. It includes 14 brief, yet value-rich lessons delivered in a simple structure. Each lesson is under 12 minutes, totalling less than 2 hours of pre-recorded video. You can work through the lessons at your own pace, anytime, anywhere.
01
Lesson 1 — Introduction
We’ll walk you through the course, set clear expectations, and show you exactly how to get the most out of it. You’ll also learn where to find support if you have questions.
02
Lesson 2 — The Role of Maintenance
Why does maintenance matter? It’s because asset-intensive industries depend on it. In this lesson, you’ll see how maintenance directly impacts your personal safety, production targets, the organisation’s profitability, and what you can do to contribute.
03
Lesson 3 — What is Planning & Scheduling?
This lesson provides you with foundational knowledge on planning & scheduling. We’ll cover its 6 core elements and explain clearly what each function does. You’ll understand the difference between planning and scheduling, and how they work together to ensure the right work gets done at the right time by the right people.
04
Lesson 4 — The Value of Planning & Scheduling
Most organisations think low maintenance productivity is because their teams don’t work hard enough. That is plainly wrong. Low productivity happens because of all the waste that slips into the execution process. In this lesson, you’ll see how a smaller, well-organised crew accomplishes far more than a larger, disorganised one.
05
Lesson 5 — What’s In It For Me?
This lesson talks about the less tangible benefits of planning & scheduling — real benefits for you: stress reduction, better job satisfaction, improved safety, and a healthier work environment. We’ll show you why a predictable schedule and well-crafted job plan is essential for your overall wellbeing.
06
Lesson 6 — Planning & Scheduling as a Process
Planning & scheduling follows a repeatable process. In this lesson, you’ll see the key steps and understand why everyone must stick to this process all the time, every time. You’ll also see why proper documentation matters and how it sustains efficient work even when key people leave the organisation.
07
Lesson 7 — Creating Quality Work Requests
Lesson 7 teaches you the hard truth: garbage requests create garbage plans. You’ll learn the standards of a good work request and reinforce the Garbage In = Garbage Out Rule. You’ll understand that when you submit clear, detailed requests, planners can do their job properly and you benefit from executable job plans without delays and missing parts.
08
Lesson 8 — The Importance of Prioritisation
Lesson 8 teaches you that not all jobs are equally important. You’ll learn 2 objective frameworks used to prioritise work, the RIME and RAM. This will help ensure that critical, high-risk tasks are done first while protecting you and your team’s time and energy.
09
Lesson 9 — Maintenance Planning
What goes into a proper job plan? In this lesson, we walk through the elements of work preparation — what a planner must include, how it eliminates waste, and the 6 Maintenance Planning Principles you should expect every plan to follow. You’ll learn to spot the difference between a fully-planned, executable job and a poorly planned one.
10
Lesson 10 — The Frozen Weekly Schedule
The agreed Frozen Weekly Schedule serves as your protection. In this lesson, you’ll understand why it’s protected, how it’s created and managed, and how to handle emerging work requests without derailing the week’s planned schedule. A reliable schedule means fewer interruptions and more productive time for you.
11
Lesson 11 — Key Roles in Maintenance Planning & Scheduling
In this lesson, we’ll talk about who does what. You’ll learn the roles of the Planner, Scheduler, and Supervisor — including their competencies, responsibilities, and who holds accountability for what. This clarity means you know exactly who to approach when maintenance issues arise at the shop.
12
Lesson 12 — Executing Work
This is where planning becomes reality. You’ll learn how a supervisor manages execution and keeps planning & scheduling on course even when things go wrong. We’ll also teach you how to manage emergency work so you remain in control, not spending the week dealing with daily frustrations.
13
Lesson 13 — Close Out and The Importance of Feedback
In this lesson, you’ll see how complete, accurate feedback provides massive opportunities for continuous improvement. After you finish a job, the close-out isn’t just a formality — your input actually helps improve future job plans, increases your professional credibility, and establishes your value within the organisation.
14
Lesson 14 — Moving from Reactive to Proactive
In this final lesson, you’ll understand that moving from reactive firefighting to proactive maintenance is a journey that requires discipline, patience, and consistency. When you commit to the process, you’ll see small, sustainable improvements compound over time.
Included
What’s included
- 14 Lessons inclusive of 2 hours of pre-recorded video
- Course slides (PDF), Transcript (PDF) and Audio of all lessons (MP3)
- Certificate of Completion (PDF)
- CMRP Recertification Credits
- Lifetime Access to Lessons
- Access to Additional Reading Materials
- Access to a Private Discussion Group
- Office Hours for Q&A
Meet your teacher
Erik Hupjé
My passion is for continuous improvement and keeping things simple. Through the Reliability Academy, I help Maintenance & Reliability professionals around the globe – people like yourself – improve their plant’s reliability and their organisation’s bottom line.
I am a Certified Maintenance & Reliability Practitioner (CMRP), Certified Reliability Leader (CRL), Certified Asset Management Assessor (CAMA) and a Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng).
But those are just credentials, it is my industry experience and practical approach to the topics I teach that our students and clients appreciate the most.
Pricing
Payment options
Full payment
$295
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Volume packages for teams: 20 seats for $4,500. 50 seats for $7,500.
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Other Planning & Scheduling Courses
PS100Planning & Scheduling
PS100: Implementing Maintenance Planning & Scheduling
The PS100 course gives you an understanding of how planning & scheduling should work in an industrial environment, how it adds value, and how to actually implement it in your organisation. Plus our proven implementation framework, tools and templates to make your improvements last.
10 Modules48 Lessons40hCertificate
$1,995View course
EN · ES · FR · TR · PTPS200Best valuePlanning & Scheduling
PS200: Maintenance Planning & Scheduling
The PS200 course gives you the same understanding of how planning & scheduling should work and how it adds value as our PS100 course, but without the implementation module. It doesn't include the implementation framework, tools and templates.
9 Modules41 Lessons35hCertificate
$1,295View course
EN · ES · FR · TR · PTPS300Planning & Scheduling
PS300: Maintenance Planning & Scheduling for Managers
The PS300 course is a condensed version of PS100 for maintenance managers. It covers the key planning & scheduling concepts a manager needs to lead an implementation and drive continuous improvement, without doing the planning themselves.
6 Modules16 LessonsCertificate
Coming soonView course
ENFree previews
Example course videos
PS400 FREE COURSE VIDEO #1
What’s In It For Me?
Lesson 5 is all about showing frontline technicians what’s in it for them — how effective planning and scheduling improves their daily work experience. From less stress and fewer breakdowns to better safety, job satisfaction, and pride in their work.
PS400 FREE COURSE VIDEO #2
Creating Quality Work Requests
Lesson 7 is all about understanding the importance of creating high-quality work requests — the starting point of the entire planning process. It shows how providing clear, relevant information upfront makes life easier for the planner, reduces delays, and helps ensure the job gets done right the first time.
Proof
What our clients say about us and our work
A breath of fresh air
“His newly created Maintenance and Scheduling course was a breath of fresh air…The content he provides is very comprehensive and easy to understand.”
Martijn HaddersManager Global Maintenance & Asset Management at HenkelWorth every penny
“An excellent course worth every single penny. I wholeheartedly recommend it to all practitioners, beginners and mature maintenance or operations managers alike, as everyone can benefit from it.”
Andrej AndrojnaQuantum Consulting, SloveniaA really valuable course
“The videos are really good, and Erik explains everything with a wealth of knowledge.”
Dan StuartMaintenance Delivery Lead at Petrofac UKFAQs
Frontline Planning & Scheduling FAQs
The course is provided by Reliability Academy. While we were previously an Approved Education Provider accredited by the Society for Maintenance & Reliability Professionals (SMRP), the SMRP discontinued their accreditation program in 2020. The course continues to offer the same high-quality, accredited-level content. However, we can no longer promote the course as such but we are actively seeking other international accreditation options. Meanwhile, you can still use the course to earn credit hours towards ongoing professional development and retain your CMRP status.
Yes. You get immediate access to all 14 lessons after purchase. We recommend you work through them in order as each lesson builds on the last, but you control the pace. You can complete the entire course in one sitting or spread it over weeks.
No. The PS400 is designed to be concise and focused. There is no mandatory homework or assignments. However, you will have 4 short quizzes throughout the lessons to help you retain the most important information.
Yes. Once you’ve completed all lessons and quizzes, you’ll take a final, online, multiple-choice exam. You must pass it to receive your Certificate of Completion.
You can start immediately as soon as you purchase the course. You’ll have lifetime access, so you can revisit lessons anytime, even during an active maintenance cycle if you need a refresher.
Yes. After you complete all lessons and pass the final exam, you’ll automatically receive a Certificate of Completion (PDF) that you can download and share immediately.
First, there’s an exclusive community accessible only to course students. You can ask questions about the content and discuss topics with fellow students. You’ll get authoritative answers from me or a specialised coach. Second, we hold regular Office Hours where you can dial in live and ask questions. If time zones make that difficult, simply email your questions in and listen to the replay afterward — it’s stored in the student-only area. Third, we also offer dedicated coaching programs called Reliability Sprints where we train and coach your team on implementing the processes we teach. If you’re interested, schedule a call with me. If you or your organisation need more comprehensive support, get in touch. We’re here to help.
You get lifetime access. Once you enrol, you can learn at your own pace, anytime, anywhere. Five to ten years from now, you’ll still have access to revisit lessons whenever you need them.
Absolutely. Simply email me at team@reliabilityacademy.com with your full details and the number of people you want to enrol. I’ll send you a quotation.
We’ve had thousands of students love our courses. That’s why we’re confident that you’ll love it too and get your money’s worth. But if you are not satisfied with what you see inside, we offer a 30-day money-back guarantee, no questions asked, provided: (1) you have completed the first 3 lessons; (2) you have not completed the entire course; (3) you request the refund within 30 days of purchase. Also, if turnover is a big concern for your organisation, we offer a 24-month turnover guarantee: if someone we have trained leaves your company within 24 months of starting our training, we will train their replacement free of charge.
Not at all. All content is delivered through our web-based Learning Management System (LMS). You’ll only need a modern web browser, such as Chrome, Edge, or Safari. A reliable internet connection is recommended, but since the materials are pre-recorded, you retain maximum control. You can choose precisely when, where, and on what device you view or listen to the course content, as it is fully accessible on your desktop, tablet, or smartphone.
The course is currently available in English only. However, due to high requests for international availability (including French, Spanish, Arabic, and Italian), we are planning to launch other language versions in the late 2020s. If you secure the Professional or Corporate Edition of the English course today, your lifetime access automatically includes all future language versions without extra cost once they become available.
Yes, we have a standard discount table which is applied when companies purchase the course for multiple students. The best option is to schedule a call with me and we can talk through all the options tailored to your needs.
Yes, we offer a licensing option. This gives you the right to rebrand the training, modify it to suit your organisation’s practices, and then host it in your own Learning Management System. However, you will not obtain derivative rights or the right to re-sell the course. Schedule a call with me if you want to learn more about this opportunity.
P.S. Getting planning & scheduling in order changes how you work. When it’s done right, you spend less time searching for parts, less time waiting for job details, and more time doing what you’re good at — quality maintenance work. You also get something else: predictability. Instead of endless firefighting, your week becomes more manageable. Instead of constant surprises, you know what’s coming, you’re prepared for it and that matters. With this online training, there’s no reason to wait. Learn the planning & scheduling practices that directly impact your day, your safety and wellbeing straight from the comfort of your chair.