Human Factors in Maintenance:

1
Human Factors in Maintenance A Twenty Year
Progress Report
and still counting
William B. Johnson Chief Scientific Technical
Advisor for Human Factors in A/C Maintenance
Systems bill-dr.johnson_at_faa.gov
2
Agenda

• AVS Chief Scientist Program (1 slide)
• Report card on early recommendations (14 slides)
• Maintenance Human Factors Presentation System
  (MHFPS) (6 slides)

3
Aviation Safety Organization
CSTAs Report here
Over 6700 Employees dedicated to Aviation Safety
4
What Year?

• In June of this year, the FAA sponsored a
  meeting of representatives of the aviation
  industry to review problems associated with aging
  aircraft. While much of this meeting addressed
  issues of hardware, metal fatigue, and corrosion,
  there was a discussion of human factors. Todays
  meeting reflects that growing interest in human
  factors and its potential contribution to
  continuing aviation safety.

Dr. Bill Shepherd FAA Office of Aviation
Medicine October, 1988
5
Recommendation Topics from 1988

• Communication must be improved
• Build error data bases
• Improve FAA 147 school curricula
• Supply of qualified maintenance personnel is
  inadequate

• Training technologies must advance
• Gate time pressure must be controlled
• Conduct task analysis of mechanic/engineer job
• Establish a RD centers/process
• Technical manuals

6
Communication must improve

• Meetings like this one
• 18 International Conferences on HF in Maintenance
• Pick up any aviation magazine
• New Guidance, OPS Manual, Web Sites and HF Guide
• Go to any conference
• Standard terms like
• Dirty Dozen
• Swiss Cheese
• Voluntary reporting
• Just culture
• Safety Management Systems

7
Build error data bases

• Boeing MEDA
• UK Confidential Incident Reporting Programme
  (CHIRP)
• NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS)
• FAAs Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASAP)
• Recent ICAO SMS activity
• But we can still do a better job of sharing

8
Improve FAA 147 school curricula

• Good progress in Europe?
• HF Training required for certification
• Recurrent training
• Poor progress in US
• HF not required
• Thanks for 1200 EASA certificates in US

9
Supply of qualified maintenance personnel is
inadequate

• An international challenge for sure
• Supply of qualified maintenance personnel is
  inadequate
• Desire or glamour is gone holidays, weekends,
  less pay benefits, etc.
• Cost to obtain license and time required is
  equivalent to BA degree
• Confounded by layoffs and contract maintenance in
  US
• Labor shortage affects the work environment
• Human resources
• Fatigue potential
• Increased risk
• Does this belong on an HF checklist?

10
Recommendation Topics from 1988 How are we doing
so far ???

• Communication must be improved
• Build error data bases
• Improve FAA 147 school curricula
• Supply of qualified maintenance personnel is
  inadequate

• Training technologies must advance
• Gate time pressure must be controlled
• Conduct task analysis of mechanic/engineer job
• Establish a RD centers/process
• Technical manuals

?
11
Training technologies must advance

• Desktop simulation (with real time)
• Improved CBT
• Improved embedded training systems
• Improved manufacturer documentation for training
• Good examples of WBT have emerged
• .however, in US, type-training is reduced

12
Gate time pressure must be controlled

• Improved staff awareness of error
• Improved procedural design and compliance
• Becoming more complex due to decrease in manpower
• Pressure is therethreats are there
• Safety Culture is critical
• Plan for Mx Ramp LOSA

13
Conduct task analysis of mechanic/engineer job

• Completed by university in US
• Approved maintenance organizations can do
• Software products and process available
• Should be an SMS component
• M-LOSA may help
• There are opportunities for improvement

14
Establish a RD center/process

• FAA Mx HF RD program
• European Adams2 and HILAS programs
• Airbus, Boeing and other manufacturer attention
  to Mx HF
• FAA established HQ ASI with budget
• FAA established Chief Scientific Technical
  Advisor
• EASA searching for Human Factors Expert

15
Technical manuals

• Much improved since 1988 but more needed
• Standardized formats across manufacturers
• New on-board tech. pubs. for new aircraft
• Web-based distribution
• and Not following published procedures remains
  the 1 challenge

16
Final scorecard from 1988

• Communication must be improved
• Build error data bases
• Improve FAA 147 school curricula
• Supply of qualified maintenance personnel is
  inadequate

• Training technologies must advance
• Gate time pressure must be controlled
• Conduct task analysis of mechanic/engineer job
• Establish a RD centers/process
• Technical manuals

17
Did not make 1988 list

• These mechanics, working at starting wages, find
  it difficult to make ends meet and often require
  second jobs.
• shortage of mechanics..This leads to overtime
  and longer than normal hours and again,
  contributes to the fatigue of an employee and
  associated vulnerability.
• night maintenance.The mechanic has to do his
  business during the day and often goes to work
  tired as a result.

Norman Grubb VP Engineering Henson Airlines
18
Agenda

• AVS Chief Scientist Program
• Report card on early recommendations
• Maintenance Human Factors Presentation System
  (MHFPS)

19
MHFPS System Contents

• Approximately 170 PowerPoint Slides (Many with
  speaker notes)
• 11 FAA Video Snippets (produced in 2007)
• 38 Animations (produced by Lufthansa Technical
  Training)
• A short, medium, and long presentation
• 7 content specific presentations (e.g., HF
  Overview, Fatigue, Error, etc.)

20
Launch Menu on DVD

21
2
History of Human Factors
22
Mx Human Factors has Evolved in 20 Years!
23
3
Human Factors Spectacles
24
What did you Learn about Human Factors Spectacles
from the Introductory Video?
What was the premise of the human factors
spectacles video? List 10 things that you see
while driving with your human factors spectacles
List 10 things that you see in this class with
your human factors spectacles List 10 things
that you see at work with your human factors
spectacles
List 11 things that see at home with the human
factors spectacles? List . in the mirror?
25
The Maintenance Human Factors Presentation System
- MHFPS
In US aam520-mmpi-2_at_faa.gov In
EU sec_at_ifairworthy.com
26
Summary

• AVS Chief Scientist Program
• Report card on early recommendations Maintenance
  Human Factors Presentation System (MHFPS)

27
Thank you, Bill Johnson 10.08.08