Page 11 - RCM - A Practical Guide

RCM - A Practical Guide

HOW DO WE KNOW THAT WHAT WE’RE DOING IS RCM?
Ok, it’s a loaded question.
RCM , as a concept, is a set of non-proprietary ideas. That means that an organisation looking to
implement an RCM culture has the option to choose from established guidance material like RCMII or
MSG-3, can tailor them or just write their own. But how to ensure that the RCM process follows is true
enough to the principles to be called an RCM process?
In 1999 SAE International issued JA 1011 - (R) Evaluation Criteria for Reliability-Centered Maintenance
(RCM) Processes. This can be considered the authoritative document for defining what an RCM
process should contain, as a minimum, in order to be called RCM.

WHAT EFFECT DOES IMPLEMENTING RCM HAVE?
In truth, modern examples of cost savings are difficult to come by but indicative savings can be found
from the very inception of RCM in the 1960s/70s.
Significant cost reductions were achieved through the application of these processes. Firstly, the
benefits resulted in a massive reduction of items sent to overhaul e.g. Douglas DC-8 identified 339
items for scheduled overhaul. The initial programme for the DC-10, now using MSG-2, assigned only 7
items for overhaul.
Secondly there was a similarly large reduction in overall maintenance man-hours e.g. under the initial
maintenance programme developed for the Boeing 747 it took United Airlines 66,000 man-hours of
major structural inspections to reach an inspection interval of 20,000 flight hours. Using traditional
methods for the less complex Douglas DC-8 over 4,000,000 man hours were expended.
Figure 2 - Yearly Accident Rate per Million Flights, demonstrates the significant advances made
through a combination of improved design and better maintenance.

11
© ASPIRE CONSULTING LTD +44 (0) 1827 723820