Academic literature on the topic 'Aeronautical maintenance sector'

Abstract The paper broadly addresses how Industry 4.0 program drivers will impact maintenance in aviation. Specifically, Industry 4.0 practices most suitable to aeronautical maintenance are selected, and a detailed exposure is provided. Advantages and open issues are widely discussed and case studies dealing with realistic scenarios are illustrated to support what has been proposed by authors. The attention has been oriented towards Augmented Reality and Additive Manufacturing technologies, which can support maintenance tasks and spare parts production, respectively. The intention is to demonstrate that Augmented Reality and Additive Manufacturing are viable tools in aviation maintenance, and while a strong effort is necessary to develop an appropriate regulatory framework, mandatory before the wide-spread introduction of these technologies in the aerospace systems maintenance process, there has been a great interest and pull from the industry sector. Highlights Industry 4.0 practices most suitable to aeronautical maintenance are selected. Advantages and open issues are widely discussed and case studies are illustrated. Augmented Reality can support maintenance tasks. Additive Manufacturing can be useful to produce spare parts. A strong effort is necessary to develop an appropriate aeronautical regulatory framework.

Purpose This paper aims to exemplify the use of project management tools in the scheduling of aircraft maintenance activities. This process is known as maintenance, repair and overhaul and it has gained importance within the aeronautical sector due to its expected growth in the coming years; however, it also faces increasing competitiveness in its market. This fact gives rise to the need of acting in maintenance management and seeking lower costs while maintaining the quality of the service provided. The purpose of this paper is to propose the structuring of a procedure that aims to reduce the total maintenance time (downtime) and guarantee the delivery of the aircraft on time. Design/methodology/approach The paper, through a case study at a Brazilian aircraft maintenance center, used critical path method and critical chain project management, the latter being derived from the theory of constraints, with the purpose of analyzing resources systematically and synchronizing the activities in the precedence network. Findings As a result, it is shown that downtime can be reduced from 11 to 5 days and improvements are proposed to achieve greater market competitiveness. Originality/value This paper demonstrates the competitive advantage that resulted from the application of project management tools in the aircraft maintenance planning and execution.

Magnesium alloys are used in the aeronautical sector due to their excellent strength/weight ratios, motivated by the reduction of weight that their use entails. In this sector, drilling is one of the most common operations, if not the most, due to the large number of holes that are used in joining processes, mainly by riveting. The appearance of cracks is a risk to the structural safety of the components, such that it is necessary to regularly check them for maintenance and/or repair tasks. The present study tries to determine the optimization of the characteristics of the twist drills, which are re-sharpened successively to restore the cutting edge after use, as well as the operating parameters in machining. For this purpose, a full factorial experimental design was established, analyzing through the analysis of the variance (ANOVA) the response variables. Surface integrity was considered to carry out a global vision of the quality obtained, covering as response variables the surface roughness, the size of the burrs and the modification of the hardness produced, in addition to a topological characterization by optical means of machined surfaces. The main conclusion is that it is possible that the geometric optimization of the tools and the operating parameters considered in this study in drilling processes allow them to be performed, while maintaining quality and environmental requirements, and at the same time, maximize the productivity of operations.

Multimaterial hybrid compounds formed from lightweight structural materials have been acquiring great importance in recent years in the aeronautical and automotive sectors, where they are replacing traditional materials to reduce the mass of vehicles; this will enable either an increase in the action ratio or a reduction in the fuel consumption of vehicles and, in short, will lead to savings in transport costs and a reduction in polluting emissions. Besides, the implementation of production and consumption models based on the circular economy is becoming more and more important, where the repair and, for this purpose, the use of recyclable materials, is crucial. In this context, the analysis of a repair process is carried out by re-drilling Mg-Al-Mg multimaterial components using experimental design (DoE) based on Taguchi methodology, an analysis of variance (ANOVA) and descriptive statistics. The study concludes which are the significant factors and interactions of the process, comparing the results with previous similar studies, and establishing bases to determine the optimum thicknesses of hybrid magnesium-based component plates of drilled parts in the aeronautical industry, guaranteeing surface roughness requirements in repair and maintenance operations throughout their lifetime.

Magnesium alloys are increasingly used due to the reduction of weight and pollutants that can be obtained, especially in the aeronautical, aerospace, and automotive sectors. In maintenance and repair tasks, it is common to carry out re-drilling processes, which must comply with the established quality requirements and be performed following the required safety and environmental standards. Currently, there is still a lack of knowledge of the machining of these alloys, especially with regards to drilling operations. The present article studies the influence of different cutting parameters on the surface quality obtained by drilling during repair and/or maintaining operations. For this propose, an experimental design was established that allows for the optimization of resources, using the average roughness (Ra) as the response variable, and it was analyzed through the analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results were within the margins of variation of the factors considered: the combination of factor levels that keep the Ra within the established margin, those that allow for the minimization of roughness, and those that allow for the reduction of machining time. In this sense, these operations were carried out in the most efficient way.

Abstract: The image of the global aviation industry is dramatically changing. This derives in the first instance from dynamic development of the military and civil aircraft market, where a significant growth in demand and an increase in airliner deliveries over the next 15 years by at least 80% was forecasted. Aircraft manufacturers' revenues in services business, including maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) are boosting, too. All this provide favorable conditions for the development of new production technologies in the aviation sector, including Additive Manufacturing (AM) and Augmented Reality (AR). Though the research and development in the field of AM an AR began in the 1980s, only in the last decade AM and AR technologies have reached the necessary level of maturity to be widely used in design, manufacturing and assembly processes in aeronautics, including civil and military aircraft. There are good prospects for their use in aircraft’ maintenance, repair and overhaul as well. The transition from the initial period of formation of AM and AR technologies to the stage of technological growth and rapid development of relevant markets is evidenced by a number of factors. First of all, they include establishment of "dominant" technological designs based on AM and AR (certified additive production methods, new materials based on AM and machines for their production, special Augmented Reality headsets, etc.), as well as beginning of serial production of many AM-components and AR-platforms for the aviation industry. The participation of major aircraft manufacturers such as Boeing and Airbus in AM and AR R&D projects, the formation of "new" supply chains, the development of public-private partnerships (e.g. NAMII in the U.S.), as well as the formation of consortia and alliances of companies that develop and produce systems and parts for aircraft based on additive technologies and augmented reality, are also indicators of the transition to a new stage of development of these technologies and markets.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the use of activity-based costing (ABC) approach as an alternative option to the traditional cost accounting system. The contribution of this study is to demonstrate, through a simple example, the application of that costing system in a service (maintenance) industry, i.e. the paper intended to develop a procedure for a cost model that help in calculating any maintenance job cost, to a reasonable degree of accuracy, based on the actual activities performed. Design/methodology/approach – This research uses a simple example whereby hypothetical activities and cost data of maintaining an injector and a pump, of an internal combustion engine, are used, presented and analyzed based on the use of the developed procedure. Findings – ABC system provides more accurate cost estimates rather than the traditional “order costing” methods that uses unit-level costs which are variable in relation to change in service volume. Traditional cost methods distort the costs by applying overhead uniformly over different jobs of varied complexities and activities scope. On the other hand, ABC is a useful means to distribute the overhead costs in proportion (fairly) to the actual activities performed in a specific job and, hence, enhance the rationality of decision making, i.e. will not distort the accounting information used for cost reduction, pricing, and evaluation matters. The results obtained from the analysis showed that allocating costs to the maintained injector decreased from $83.55 to $71.95 and, finally, to $67.57 when using the workshop-wide, two-stage and ABC overhead allocation methods, respectively; while that of the pump increased from $298.90 to $340.34 and, finally, to $359.48 when using the same three methods, in the same order, respectively. The result is quite fair when considering the complexity of the fuel pump, in terms of design and maintenance, when compared with the injector. Notice that using volume to allocate overhead costs results in over costing high-volume products, e.g. injectors (simple in terms of design and operation) and under costing low-volume products, e.g. pumps (more complex in terms of design and operation). The paper recommends to use ABC as a more accurate and fair method when charging maintenance job orders based on the analysis of costing two maintained items in the same premise while consuming different overhead resources. Practical implications – This study attempts to analyze different methods to calculate a specific corrective maintenance job order. It strives to remedy the drawbacks of the traditional overhead costing of a job order when using principles related to the size of service, such as the direct labor cost/hours, as an allocation base. Consequently, the study proposed a new costing method, i.e. application of ABC. The traditional costing approach is considered by many firms as the best costing method. Nevertheless, it allocates overhead cost over job performed uniformly (equally) not differentiating between the complexity of the job and variety of the activities performed, e.g. using the same allocation base for “oil change” and “fuel pump adjustment” activities. So, ABC prevents cost distortions (unfairness) that could not be prevented by traditional cost accounting system. The author believes that the method presented in this paper will provide a useful management tool for costing maintenance jobs based on the appropriate selected activity drivers in maintenance workshops. The method could be applied for costing maintenance activities in maintenance of all industrial sectors. Originality/value – The use of traditional costing method has proven to be distorted by applying overhead uniformly over different jobs of varied complexities and activities scope. In this paper the authors strive to present an effective costing alternative that outperforms the traditional ones with regard to overhead allocation. The paper aims to find reliable and fair maintenance costing method, i.e. to find out the relationships between maintenance activities and cost drivers. Although, ABC is widely used in manufacturing industry, no application or current research has presented an applicable thorough worked-out example, with the exception, to the author’s knowledge, of one in the aeronautical industry, to implement ABC method in maintenance industry. The importance of using this method comes from the fact that it provides, relatively, accurate and fair maintenance bills that provide customer satisfaction and firm good image. Hence, the paper is relevant in this respect and intended to contribute to the practice of maintenance management.

Augmented Reality (AR) enhances the comprehension of complex situations by making the handling of contextual information easier. Maintenance activities in aeronautics consist of complex tasks carried out on various high-technology products under severe constraints from the sector and work environment. AR tools appear to be a potential solution to improve interactions between workers and technical data to increase the productivity and the quality of aeronautical maintenance activities. However, assessments of the actual impact of AR on industrial processes are limited due to a lack of methods and tools to assist in the integration and evaluation of AR tools in the field. This paper presents a method for deploying AR tools adapted to maintenance workers and for selecting relevant evaluation criteria of the impact in an industrial context. This method is applied to design an AR tool for the maintenance workshop, to experiment on real use cases, and to observe the impact of AR on productivity and user satisfaction for all worker profiles. Further work aims to generalize the results to the whole maintenance process in the aeronautical industry. The use of the collected data should enable the prediction of the impact of AR for related maintenance activities.

The Civil Aviation Sector in India includes Airports, Scheduled and Non-Scheduled, Domestic Passenger Airlines Helicopter Services, Ground Handling Services, Maintenance and Repair Organizations, Flying Training Institutes and Technical Training Institutions. The government has issued the National Civil Aviation Policy on 2016. The Civil Aviation Sector currently contributes $72 billion to Gross Domestic Product. The National Civil Aviation Policy covers the policy areas such as Regional Connectivity, Safety, Air Transport Operation, 5/20 requirement for International Operations, Bilateral Traffic Rights, Fiscal Support, Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul, Air Cargo, Aeronautical ‘Make In India’. The Central Government announces that the foreign airlines now will be allowed to invest in domestic airlines up to 49 percent. The researcher has to study the impact of FDI Inflows in Aviation Sector in India and Annual Growth Rate of FDI Inflows in Aviation Sector in India. FDI is necessary for all stakeholders and partners to work together to maximize the benefits of air transport, and to support the sustainable growth of aviation by connecting more people and more places. Aviation has continued to expand. It has weathered crises and confirmed long-term resilience, becoming a crucial means of transport. Historically, air transport has doubled in size every 15 years and has grown earlier than most other industries. The researcher has used Statistical Tools such as, Trend Analysis, Descriptive Analysis, and Regression. The present study covers period of ten years taking from 2009-10 to 2018-19. The research paper concludes the positive growth and positive impact of FDI in Aviation Sector

Abstract The improvement in the performance of delivery reliability in Make-To-Order (MTO) companies is an important competitive criterion in the current market environment. This research investigates how a diagnostic framework can be used to identify how delivery reliability is influenced by Production Planning and Control (PPC) decisions. For the development of this research, a case study was carried out in two workshops of a company of the aeronautical maintenance sector. In the workshops studied, delivery reliability performance is influenced by the erroneous determination of due dates (focus on DP-Date time Promissing), with the capabilities being overestimated. The main contribution of the application framework presented is an aggregate analysis of the behavior of the lateness in a certain period of time. Future research should develop criteria for subset creation and further study the framework in order to improve it.

Submitted by Aelson Maciera (aelsoncm@terra.com.br) on 2017-10-10T13:29:21Z No. of bitstreams: 1 DissTKK.pdf: 6363757 bytes, checksum: c18f1887d457c1920bc3a2ff568e2f25 (MD5)<br>Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (producaointelectual.bco@ufscar.br) on 2017-10-10T17:27:10Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 DissTKK.pdf: 6363757 bytes, checksum: c18f1887d457c1920bc3a2ff568e2f25 (MD5)<br>Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (producaointelectual.bco@ufscar.br) on 2017-10-10T17:27:20Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 DissTKK.pdf: 6363757 bytes, checksum: c18f1887d457c1920bc3a2ff568e2f25 (MD5)<br>Made available in DSpace on 2017-10-10T17:31:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DissTKK.pdf: 6363757 bytes, checksum: c18f1887d457c1920bc3a2ff568e2f25 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-06-08<br>Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)<br>The improvement in the delivery reliability performance in Make-To-Order (MTO) companies has been becoming an important competitive criterion in the recent market context. Thus, it gets clear the importance of researches able to present tools to help the identification of enhancement opportunities in the matter of delivery reliability. The identification of opportunities requires a structure of diagnosis of the recent situation. However, depending on the performance problem to be diagnosed, a theoretical understructure based on specific scientific knowledge is needed. This work presents the framework developed by Soepenberg et al. (2012c) based on Workload Control (WLC) concepts. Such framework is composed by a structure for the diagnosis process of the reliability performance that allows browsing from the obtained performance to the subjacent causes related to Production Planning and Control (PPC). The aim of the present work is to present the WLC as well as the diagnostic tools with the purpose of elucidating their applicability through the framework developed by Soepenberg et al. (2012c) in a real context through a case study. The results of the case study indicated that the framework is a key instrument for diagnosis due to the accuracy by which it defines the causes of delays of the orders related to the PPC decisions. The application of the framework indicated that the lack of spare parts is the most impacting factor on delays, however this is not a cause only related to the company PPC decisions, but to external factors that are out of the company’s reach. Another result obtained is the verification that most of the orders are concluded before the date set. This is due to the lack of accuracy in the definition of the delivery dates and to the estimative mistakes of the capacity to be used for the maintenance of each part number, whose responsibilities rely on PPC.<br>A melhoria no desempenho da confiabilidade de entrega em empresas Make-To-Order (MTO) vem se tornando um importante critério competitivo na atual conjuntura de mercado. Diante do exposto, fica evidente a importância de pesquisas que apresentem ferramentas para o auxílio na identificação de oportunidades de melhorias no que se refere à confiabilidade de entrega. A identificação de oportunidades de melhorias requer uma estrutura de diagnóstico do desempenho da situação atual. No entanto, dependendo do problema de desempenho a ser diagnosticado, um arcabouço teórico com base no domínio de conhecimentos específicos da científica é necessário. Este trabalho apresenta o framework desenvolvido por Soepenberg et al. (2012c), que se baseia nos conceitos de WLC. Tal framework consiste em uma estrutura para o processo de diagnóstico do desempenho da confiabilidade de entrega, que permite navegar a partir do desempenho alcançado para as causas subjacentes relacionadas ao PCP. O objetivo do presente trabalho é apresentar o WLC, bem como as ferramentas de diagnóstico com o propósito de elucidar suas aplicabilidades através do framework desenvolvido por Soepenberg et al. (2012c) em um contexto real através de um estudo de caso. Os resultados do estudo de caso apontaram que o framework é um importante instrumento de diagnóstico devido à precisão para a determinação das causas de atraso das ordens relacionadas às decisões de PCP. A aplicação do framework identificou que a falta de peças é o fator mais impactante nos atrasos, porém a mesma não é uma causa relacionada somente as decisões de PCP da empresa, mas a fatores externos que não podem ser controlados pela empresa. Outro resultado obtido é a constatação de que a maioria das ordens é concluída antes das datas estabelecidas. Esse fato é resultado da falta de acurácia na determinação das datas de entrega e do erro na estimativa da capacidade a ser utilizada para a manutenção de cada part number, cuja responsabilidade dessas atividades é do PCP.

A simulation of performance degradation for an aeronautical gas turbine engine (Honeywell T55 L712) is presented. The effects of turbine (low and high pressure stages) erosion on the engine performance have been investigated in some detail. The behavior of the engine has been simulated using a dynamic model implemented in Matlab-Simulink. Using a throughflow code the LPT and HPT have been simulated and their performance maps have been obtained with a high level of accuracy. In order to understand the effects of turbine erosion nine degradation levels have been introduced and the LPT and HPT performance have been computed using the abovementioned throughflow code. The degradation levels have been based on stator erosion effects (increase of throat section and blade thickness reduction) only according to the experimental evidence from the engine tests from Piaggio Aero Industries. The introduction of the modified turbine characteristics into the Matlab-Simulink model has allowed the degradation effects on the overall engine performance to be tested and discussed. Finally, using experimental data from the industrial maintenance database, the link of each level of degradation with the number of the engine operational time (hours) has been obtained.