Work instruction template, filled in for one task
A work instruction is the one-page, at-the-station document for one task on one piece of equipment: the steps in order, the key point for each step (the thing that makes it safe or right), the reason for the key point, and a photo. It is narrower than an SOP (the SOP covers packing and dispatch; the work instruction covers loading the label printer at station 3) and it is written for someone standing at the machine. The format below is Training Within Industry's job breakdown sheet, which is still the clearest way to write one. The example is filled in for a real task.
What is in the template
Each section below says what goes in it, why it is there, and then shows the section filled in. The example: Written for loading a new label roll into a thermal label printer at a packing station. Change the model, the steps and the photos to match your equipment.
- Header
- Before you start: PPE, tools, materials
- Steps: important step, key point, reason
- Done when
- If something goes wrong
- Control and revision
1. Header
What goes here. Task, equipment or station (by ID, as labelled), work instruction number, version and date, the SOP it belongs to, the owner, and the time the task takes.
Why it is there. The station ID is what tells the person they have the right sheet for this printer and not the other model on station 5.
Filled in:
| Field | Entry |
|---|---|
| Task | Load a new label roll |
| Equipment / station | Thermal label printer, packing station 3 (asset PK-3-LP) |
| WI number | WI-PK-031 |
| Version | 3 · February 2026 |
| Part of | SOP WH-009 Packing and dispatch |
| Owner | Packing team leader |
| Takes | 2 minutes |
2. Before you start: PPE, tools, materials
What goes here. What to wear, what to have in hand, which materials by part number, and the state the equipment must be in (stopped, isolated, cooled).
Why it is there. A work instruction that starts at step 1 with the wrong roll in hand has already failed. Materials by part number stop the 4×6 roll going into the 4×4 printer.
Filled in
PPE: none beyond station standard (safety shoes). Tools: none. Materials: label roll 100 × 150 mm, direct thermal, 1-inch core, part LBL-4615 (blue box, shelf B2). Equipment state: printer on, print job paused on the screen (press Pause), not mid-print.
3. Steps: important step, key point, reason
What goes here. A table in three columns plus a photo column. The important step is what is done, in one line. The key point is the thing that makes it right, safe or easy. The reason is why: the consequence if the key point is missed. One photo per step where it helps; none where it does not.
Why it is there. This is the TWI Job Instruction breakdown. The key-point column is where the experience of the best operator is written down; the reason column is what stops the new person skipping it once no one is watching.
Filled in:
| # | Important step | Key point | Reason | Photo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Open the printer cover by lifting the green latch on the right side. | Lift, do not pull. Cover stays open on its own. | Pulling the latch cracks it (3 replaced last year). | |
| 2 | Remove the empty core and the old roll holders. | Slide the holders outward; drop the core in the recycling bin, not on the bench. | Cores on the bench end up in a shipped box. | |
| 3 | Check the printhead and the platen roller. | Wipe with the alcohol swab from the drawer if there is label residue; let it dry 30 seconds. | Residue causes faint prints and the carrier to fail the scan at dispatch. | |
| 4 | Set the new roll on the holders with the labels coming off the bottom of the roll, facing up. | Printing side up. The roll unwinds from underneath toward you. | Upside down is the most common error: the printer feeds a blank carrier and wastes a metre. | |
| 5 | Push the holders in until they just touch the roll edges. | Snug, not tight. The roll must turn freely by hand. | Tight holders drag; labels print skewed and the barcode fails. | |
| 6 | Feed the label under the guides and out of the front slot; slide the guides to the label edge. | Label passes under both guides, over the sensor, under the printhead. | A label over a guide jams on the first print. | |
| 7 | Close the cover until it clicks on both sides. | Press both corners. Check the cover is flush. | One side unlatched gives light leaks to the sensor and a 'media out' error. | |
| 8 | Press Feed once. Then print a test label from the screen (Menu → Test). | The printer feeds one blank and then stops on a gap. The test barcode scans with the station scanner. | A test label that does not scan here fails at dispatch with the customer's order in the box. | |
| 9 | Press Resume to continue the paused job. | Check the first live label against the screen: order number and carrier. | Confirms the job did not skip a label during the change. |
4. Done when
What goes here. The acceptance criterion: what the operator checks to know the task is finished and right.
Why it is there. Without a done-when line the task is finished when the operator feels it is. With one, two operators finish at the same point.
Filled in
Done when: the test label scans with the station scanner, the first live label matches the order on the screen, and the cover is flush on both sides.
5. If something goes wrong
What goes here. The three or four faults most likely during this task, and what to do: fix, retry, call. With who to call.
Why it is there. This is the column that keeps the operator from pressing buttons at random. Three faults cover almost every call-out on a simple task.
Filled in
'Media out' with a full roll: cover not latched on one side, or the label is over a guide. Reopen and repeat steps 6–7. Faint print: clean the printhead (step 3); if still faint, call maintenance (ext. 310); the printhead may be worn. Labels skewed: holders too tight (step 5). Blank labels feeding: roll upside down (step 4). Anything else: pause the job, move to station 4, raise a maintenance ticket.
6. Control and revision
What goes here. Who approved it, the date, what changed, the review date, and the rule that the laminated copy at the station is replaced the same day the file changes.
Why it is there. Work instructions are the most-laminated and least-updated documents on a site. The revision line is what tells you the one on the wall is version 1.
Filled in
Approved: packing team leader, 12 Feb 2026. Changes: v3 added step 3 (printhead cleaning) after dispatch scan failures in January. Review: Feb 2027 or when the printer model changes. Station copy replaced: 12 Feb 2026 (initials).
Where work instructions go wrong
It is trying to be the SOP
A work instruction that explains the whole packing process is not at-the-station any more. One task, one page. The SOP is the parent; the work instruction is the child; number them so the relationship is visible.
No photos, or photos of the wrong machine
A picture of the printer at station 3, with the roll in the right orientation, is worth the whole key-point column. A stock photo of a different model is worse than none, because the operator trusts it.
Written at a desk
"Install the media according to the manufacturer's instructions" was written by someone who has not loaded this printer. Stand at the station with the best operator, do the task, write down what they do and why. The reason column cannot be written from a desk.
"As required", "appropriate", "sufficient"
Every one of these words hides a number the writer did not know. Snug, not tight; 30 seconds; both corners; part LBL-4615.
No done-when line
Then the task ends when the operator decides, and the test label that does not scan is found at dispatch.
The laminated copy is three versions old
The file is updated; the wall is not. Put the version on the sheet in large type and make replacing the station copy a step in the change itself.
It is only in one language
The person loading the printer at 3 am reads Polish. The photos help; the key points and reasons translated help more. A 90-second video of the task, in their language, is the version they will use.
Make it a video
The sheet is the controlled document at the station. A 60–90 second video of the same task, in the operator's language, on the station tablet, is the version the night shift will actually use. Send us the sheet and the photos.
Questions
What is the difference between a work instruction and an SOP?
Scope. The SOP describes a whole task or process (packing and dispatch); the work instruction describes one specific operation inside it on one piece of equipment (loading the label printer at station 3), at the level of hand movements. SOPs are read to learn the job; work instructions are read at the station while doing it.
How long should a work instruction be?
One page, landscape, in large type, with photos. If it does not fit, the task is two tasks. Split it. The TWI breakdown rarely needs more than 10 important steps.
Does every step need a photo?
No. A photo where orientation or position matters (which way the roll unwinds, where the label passes); none where the step is obvious (press Resume). Take photos at the actual station with the actual equipment, and retake them when the equipment changes.
What is the TWI format?
Training Within Industry's Job Instruction breakdown sheet, from the 1940s: each important step with its key points (what makes or breaks the step: safety, quality, ease) and the reasons for them. It is the basis of Toyota's standardised work sheets and the clearest layout for a one-page instruction, because it captures why, not only what.
Should work instructions be videos?
The best pairing is both: the one-page sheet at the station, and a 60–90 second video of the same task in the operator's language, shown at training and available on the station tablet. The sheet is the controlled document; the video is how most people actually learn it.
Sources
Turn your work instruction into a video
Send one procedure. We send back a 60-second branded video with a quiz, in your crew's languages. Free, no obligation.