A Compliance Spreadsheet Alternative for UK Buildings
Most building compliance registers start life as a spreadsheet: one row per duty, a last-done date, a next-due date, and a column for where the certificate is. It works until the person who built it leaves, a building is added, or an auditor asks for a duty nobody thought to add a row for. PM Assist keeps the same register, but the duties come configured, the certificate sits behind each row, and the gaps are shown rather than left blank.
What a Spreadsheet Cannot Tell You
A spreadsheet only knows the duties somebody typed in. The most dangerous line in a compliance register is the one that is not there — a legionella risk assessment for a block nobody realised had a cold water storage tank, or the LOLER examination for a platform lift added after the sheet was built. A blank row is visible; a missing row is not.
It also does not hold the evidence. The certificate column points at a folder, an inbox or a person, and the date in the cell is whatever was typed, not what the certificate says. When an auditor asks to see the evidence behind a date, the work starts then.
- Only tracks the duties someone remembered to add
- Dates are typed, not read from the certificate
- The evidence lives somewhere else
- One person usually understands how it works
Spreadsheet, Enterprise CAFM or Compliance Register
There are three common ways to run building compliance. The table compares the approaches rather than individual products.
| Spreadsheet | Enterprise CAFM | PM Assist | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duties configured for you | No | Usually in an implementation project | Yes, UK duties out of the box |
| Shows duties with no record | No | Depends on configuration | Yes, per building |
| Certificate behind each record | Linked by hand, if at all | Attached | Attached, searchable, and read by AI on Pro |
| Reminders before things fall due | Conditional formatting | Yes | Yes, by email |
| Cost to start | Staff time | Quote and contract | Free, then from £59 a month |
Moving Your Records Across
Moving off a spreadsheet does not mean retyping it. Add each building with its property type and the duties that normally apply are suggested. Upload the building's certificates in one batch; on Pro, AI reads each one and proposes the issue date, the next due date and any remedial actions, with the page each came from, for a person to check before it counts. Upload the handed-over asset register as a spreadsheet or PDF and, on Pro, AI proposes the assets for you to tick, and planned maintenance is generated from them.
Every new account starts with a 7-day free trial of the Starter plan, so the register can be set up on your own building before paying anything.
Compliance & CAFM
Compliance, maintenance and documents in one place
PM Assist is building compliance software with the O&M manuals built in: every paid plan includes the compliance register, planned maintenance and mobile inspections.
- The compliance register is set up from each building's property type, with gaps shown for duties that have no record.
- Planned maintenance is generated from the asset register, with the tasks and frequencies already written.
- AI reads your certificates and proposes the dates and remedial actions; a person checks them against the source document before they count.
Frequently asked questions
Can we import our existing compliance spreadsheet?
Will the AI get the dates right?
Can we export the register back to a spreadsheet?
Put the spreadsheet down
Add a building, upload its certificates and see every duty that applies — including the ones the spreadsheet never had a row for. Start free with a 7-day trial.
- Upload and organise building documentation
- AI-powered search across all your manuals
- Source-cited answers for every query
- Team collaboration and access control
- No credit card required to start