A model for analyzing aircraft maintenance man-hour costs and the impact of expert systems

Abstract

The process for determining the impact on direct labor maintenance man-hours by applying expert systems to diagnosis aircraft discrepancies is addressed. Based on field interviews with Navy enlisted maintenance technicians and technical representatives, average direct labor maintenance man-hour cost savings are projected by applying expert systems. The interviews contained quantitative and qualitative information to formulate the potential cost savings. To enhance tuture investigative efforts, an empirical model is developed by the authors. The model categorizes failed components based on their average fault isolation times or beyond economical repair status of the organization. Based upon the categorization of components, the potential maintenance man-hours cost savings can be projected when applying expert systems to help resolve difficult and complex aircraft discrepancies.