The main components of an airplane are equivalent, in many ways, to those of a nuclear power plant. Here at SAM Technology Engineers you will find an authorised distributor of materials handling equipment in New South Wales.

In the first place, the people in charge of the maintenance of a nuclear power plant and of a fleet of airplanes have the same objectives:

• Guarantee the safety, availability and reliability of the equipment.
• Comply with the security requirements defined by regulatory bodies, in the case of nuclear power plants, and manufacturers in the case of airplanes.
• Make sure that the work to be carried out is carried out within the established deadlines and with all the quality guarantees.
• Continuously improve the facilities of the plant (or the aircraft fleet) to contribute to the expansion of its operational life.
• Perform inspections and tests, predictive and corrective maintenance, replace equipment and components and update systems.

Aircraft must also undergo scheduled shutdowns, as do nuclear power plants. In both cases, they serve to perform a series of maintenance activities to ensure their safety. In addition, at the nuclear power plants the fuel is recharged.

Maintenance tasks in an airplane system

During the operation cycles of the plant, another type of work is carried out with the installation in operation. In the case of airplanes, this corresponds to online maintenance, which is carried out at night or between flights. In both cases, there may be circumstances that oblige to re-plan and reorganize the task sequence to meet all the requirements:

• Definition of content of works
• The appearance of new works after the review
• Changes in the sequence of work to be performed

Both in the case of nuclear power plants and aircraft, it is necessary to perfectly manage the tasks to avoid unnecessary problems.

Airplanes usually present between 30% and 50% of additional jobs that appear after the inspection and whose realization can unbalance the operation of scheduled tasks to be jobs that cannot be based on detailed schedules with start and end dates.

This type of management can cause saturation and confusion when deciding which are the priority problems, which is why during 2015 an alternative was successfully implemented based on the following changes:

Replace the concept of dedicated resources and instead group the resources so that they are global and can be shared according to their needs (chains, positions, etc.). In this way, with a pool of resources, you can better manage the uncertainty of their availability.

Plan reviews at two levels:

• Level 1 (or general level): the phases or process of each revision do not vary despite the uncertainty
• Level 2 (or level of detail): managed by team leaders and supervisors, can vary during project execution and provides supervisors with daily priorities during execution.

Identify the longest chain (critical chain) of level 1 and protect it with a margin of time (known as buffer).

Daily the number of open tasks of level 2 will be controlled to minimize multitasking and be able to concentrate on few jobs.

Every day in the management meeting decisions are made so that the buffer is under control and everyone is organized despite the uncertainty.

Each review is associated with a preparation process that begins 45 days before the arrival of the aircraft and is monitored at different intervals of the month. This strategic process consists of having everything necessary from the departments involved so that it is not necessary to stop at the moment of assigning personnel to the review.

The result of these and other more specific changes was an increase of 25% in the availability of aircraft with fewer hours dedicated by personnel. In addition, reliability on the date of departure of the aircraft approached 100%, which the airline improved its punctuality levels. The average reduction in the period of major revisions of aircraft exceeded 25%.

How the maintenance of commercial aircraft is carried out

Commercial airplanes facilitate the day to day of the thousands of people who need to travel from one point to another in the world in a short period of time. These powerful machines carry hundreds of passengers in each flight, so it is essential that they go through an exhaustive control and maintenance that guarantees the safety of each and every one of the passengers, including, of course, the crew.

How the maintenance of commercial aircraft is carried out

The maintenance of commercial aircraft is based on periodic inspections, more or less deep, after a certain time of use..

The intervals between one revision and another depend on the number of flight hours, the number of cycles, or specific periods of time. In any case, the revision begins with the assembly of several scaffolding and cranes that allow reaching the higher areas of the device, then begin to review all the necessary parts.

Types of maintenance reviews

There are different types of maintenance reviews that are scheduled according to the plan, to conserve the airplane in the best possible way. In the same way, unscheduled checks will be carried out whenever some type of breakdown or problem in the machine is detected.

Transit reviews

They are made before each flight or scale to check the general aspects of the airplane, such as the condition of the tires or the level of oil, etc.

Daily reviews

Every day the oil level is checked 15 or 20 minutes after the engines turn off, at which time the reading will be more accurate.

48 hour reviews

Every 48 hours, general questions are checked on the condition of the aircraft, such as checking wheels and brakes, replenishing fluids, inspecting the fuselage and interiors, etc.

Time limit revisions

When an aircraft flies for too many hours, reaching almost to the limit of its possibilities, it is necessary to review the engines and other systems and controls that have worked continuously.

Operating limit cycle reviews

Some elements of the plane are inspected depending on the number of cycles performed (set of take-offs and landings), because it is when they are used. These revisions include the landing gear, the turbine blades, the engine components, etc.

PS Review

It is a periodic review service carried out by some companies. In this review, the aircraft is visually inspected to rule out other maintenance needs.

Letter reviews

This maintenance program is carried out at the most appropriate times for the system or equipment. It aims to ensure the safety of passengers and ensure the perfect condition of all components of the aircraft.

Here at Sam Technology you will find top quality materials handling equipment for top efficient results. Keep in mind that the use of inadequate equipment can lead to accidents as well as the paralysis of the work due to breakdowns.