enable mobility aviation

Time to Enable Mobility in

Aviation MRO Software Solutions

Puneet Gupta, Sandeep K. Dewangan, Sunil Gade

Summary

With the fortunes of MRO business mirroring that of the airline industry

in the global downturn, MRO players are under pressure to improve

productivity and cut costs. Hence, making investments in technology that

enable higher automation of maintenance, repair and overhaul processes

makes sound business sense. Independent Software Vendors (ISV) of

specialized MRO applications must seize this opportunity and mobilize

their solutions so that processes can be further automated. There are several

factors contributing to the enterprise-readiness of mobility - including

availability of device hardware and network connectivity as well as users’

favorable disposition towards mobile usage.

Jun 2009

2 | Infosys – White Paper

MRO business overviewEach year, the aviation industry spends a whopping amount on Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO), second only to fuel. In 2007, the size of the global MRO industry was estimated at US $ 45 billion; this is expected to touch US $ 61 billion by 2017. As per industry projections, the size of the worldwide air transport fleet will expand by nearly 50 percent in the decade to 2017, and consequently spur rapid growth of the MRO business.

Notwithstanding the emergence of software solutions for process automation in this space, aviation MRO remains a highly effort-intensive service business, sustaining on thin margins - for instance, labor accounts for an astounding two-thirds of the total cost of heavy maintenance of aircraft. It's the same with line maintenance, the most labor-intensive segment of this business. The reason? Although software applications for MRO processes are essentially run in a desktop or laptop-based environment, data capture and reporting continue to rely heavily on manual intervention. Indeed, it has been found that some maintenance and service personnel spend up to 80 percent of their time on just searching for and verifying information that is required to execute their tasks.

The automation imperative in MRO industryWith the fortunes of this business mirroring that of the airline industry in the global downturn, MRO players are under pressure to improve productivity and whittle down costs in a bid for survival. Indeed, expectations are that in 2009, revenues might fall below the levels of 2001, dragged down by the North American market which will take the largest hit. Should the markets pick up quickly, regions such as Latin America, Eastern Europe and Asia will lead the charge with an above average growth rate, thereby creating pockets of demand and supply imbalance. In this scenario, it is expected that there would be minimal impact on investments in new inspection methods and prognostic health monitoring implying that demand for these specific services would continue to be robust. That being said, even a relatively slow pull-back, that could take around four years, will create a demand that the industry will be hard put to meet with its current capacity. At the same time, it is expected that competitive pressures could erode the market share of higher cost MROs, forcing them to consider cost reduction strategies such as replacing manual effort with more automation in order to increase process efficiency.

While it is yet unclear as to whether the markets will stage a rapid comeback or take a few years to recover, it is imperative that in the interim, MRO service providers ready themselves to face a future most likely characterized by capacity shortage and rising labor cost.

Infosys – White Paper | 3

Given this scenario, making investments in technology that enable higher automation of maintenance and repair processes seems like an obvious course of action for MRO service providers. Independent Software Vendors (ISV) of specialized MRO applications must seize this opportunity and mobilize their solutions to automate processes even further, such that their clients’ dependence on manual effort comes down and they reap the benefits of higher efficiency and cost saving. It is equally important that ISVs recognize the need for expedient action.

Mobilization of MRO processes must surely form an integral part of any automation strategy. Advances in mobile computing and communication technology have enabled MRO software applications to be run on devices such as laptops, portable computers and PDAs. Past concerns about the enterprise-readiness of mobilization technology or its complexity of use are no longer valid. Enterprise mobility has taken giant steps in terms of capability, usability and affordability to become a very realizable option.

The following factors have made mobilization technology ready for deployment in MRO software applications:

• Handset options have multiplied manifold, ranging from high-end enterprise devices to low cost models for personal use. In keeping with the needs of industrial users, such as those working in the MRO business, extra-rugged mobile devices designed to withstand harsh environmental conditions are also available. Quite clearly, handset availability has expanded to cater to every type of end use and price point.

• Wireless technology has evolved to provide reliable, high speed 2.5 and 3 G connectivity, using which information is made available online, in real time to the remote field force. In this way, mobility enables dynamic work allocation and continuous progress reporting from the field, which is otherwise not possible in the “traditional” MRO workflow.

• Mobile usage has found widespread acceptance among end users, who use these devices to perform a number of functions in their daily lives. Therefore, they can be easily persuaded and trained to use mobility at work.

The good news is that mobility has started to make inroads into the MRO business. With valuable process-related information being made available online, in real-time to their personnel, the early adopters among MRO service providers have reaped the benefits of lower cost, reduced cycle time, increased productivity and improved customer satisfaction. A global corporation with over US $ 11 billion in revenues from their aviation business, cut the time for logging and processing inspection readings by half when they replaced their paper-based system with one run on pocket PCs. The value of mobility to the aviation MRO business is once again demonstrated in the response time of one of the world’s largest providers of such services - 90 percent of all service calls are now attended to within ten minutes or less.


Typical MRO processes and bottlenecksThe potential impact of mobility on MRO process applications can be ascertained by understanding the work and documentation flow in a typical maintenance activity. The engineering team analyzes and monitors process control data and alerts the planning and scheduling personnel to any impending maintenance requirements. Maintenance tasks are scheduled, work orders are created and resources are allocated accordingly.

At the start of each day, work requests are created centrally on a software system by a team that may need to put together information from multiple sources. These work requests have to be printed and manually handed over for use by field personnel, who, in the absence of mobility, depend on paper-based instructions. Therefore, despite automation, manual intervention is required to access and transmit the work requests from a central office to various field locations.

MaintenanceEngineering

Maintenance Planning andScheduling

Material ManagementPurchase Requests

lairetaM

seuqeR

ts

• Parts Inventory Management• Procurements• Shipping and Receiving• Warehouse operations• Tool management• Loan/borrowing

Repairing and inspection

Warehouse

Maintenance Personnel

Searching Technical Data, Manuals,

Data sheetsTechnical specs

Status ReportingLogging Work Hours

Work Allocation

CustomerRelationship/Sales

HR Management

Material Handling

$ $$

Work order informationProceduresJob cards

Work LicensePart History

Pay to $

Technical Coordination

ReportInspectionLogs


Once the work request is handed over at the beginning of the day, in the absence of field force connectivity, the central office has no visibility into the status of the assignment until it is logged into the system after completion. Another drawback of this workflow is that mid-day allocation or re-allocation of tasks is difficult.

Clearly, this work cycle and related information flow is quite paper and labor-dependent and is riddled with duplicated effort, human error and process bottlenecks.

Constraints dogging MRO processesOn the other hand, MRO service providers that are at the midway stage of the process automation maturity cycle, and still operating in a desktop-based environment, have to contend with the limitations of their process software which obstruct the achievement of key performance metrics. Insufficient automation in information management adversely impacts all MRO processes, as illustrated below:

• Maintenance and repair work suffers from unavailability of OEM and engineering data both prior to and during execution. Also, in the absence of online information, teams are unable to collaborate in real time.

• Maintenance management activities are constrained by a lack of integrated data management and consequently fall short of performance and reliability expectations. Their inherent inflexibility also leads to inefficiency in change management.

• Similarly, material management personnel are left to grapple with the inefficiencies that creep into inventory and tool management processes: for instance, lack of timely information on material availability could lead to improper ordering, which can finally result in either an overstocked or stock-out situation, both of which drain revenue.

• Work force management is constrained by a lack of dynamic work allocation and the absence of real-time information exchange. The dependence on paperwork leads to labor inefficiency and error incidence.

• In the absence of online access to customer data (such as past order history, current order status, pricing and commercial terms), details of promotional activities or decision support, the sales force could lose valuable time and business while trying to close a deal. In the bargain, their customers may feel less than satisfied.

• Since the unavailability of real-time information extends to customer service as well, client relationships are threatened by slow responses to emergency calls, inadequate reporting on status to customers, and the absence of an effective feedback gathering mechanism.


Mobility can make a big difference to MRO processesSoftware applications used for facilitating MRO processes for line maintenance, heavy maintenance, engine maintenance and component maintenance can be mobilized to save both labor and time. In particular, line and heavy maintenance processes are highly labor intensive and time critical. Mobility can make a large number of these processes, such as work order management, maintenance planning, reliability analysis, logging of data and inspection and status reporting more efficient.

Process Line Maintenance

Heavy Maintenance

Engine Maintenance

Component Maintenance

Work Order Management High High High High

Maintenance Planning and Tracking High High High High

Dynamic Resource and Manpower Allocation High Medium Low Low

Configuration Management for all Technical and Regulatory Records/ Documents

High High High High

Reliability Analysis High High High Low

Access to Online Maintenance Data, Procedures and Manuals

High High High Medium

Logging Maintenance and Repair Data High High High Low

Inspection Logs High High High Low

Electronic Flight Bag/Electronic Technical Log High Medium Low Low

Status Reporting High High Medium Low

Logging Attendance and Labor Data High High Low Low

Material/Part Management High High High High

Customer Relationship High High High Medium

Note: High/Medium/low indicate degree of manual effort intensiveness and time criticality of activity completion


As mentioned earlier, mobility-enablement of the above processes can significantly improve productivity, work efficiency and customer service, and potentially save up to 25 percent of effort and time. By facilitating online information access, integrated data management and automation, mobility-enablement helps MRO organizations achieve high process efficiency characterized by:

• Automated work order processing, order authorization/tracking, invoicing, maintenance planning, resource allocation and reliability analysis

• Access to online maintenance data and manuals and the ability to log in maintenance, repair and inspection data

• Dynamic work allocation, automation of EFB/ETL and status reporting

• Real-time management of warehouse operations including procurement, inventory management and shipping

• Access to customer data including status updates, warranty details, history and pricing terms.

The impact of the resulting improvement in process efficiency will be felt across the organization in terms of achievement of Key Performance Indicators such as:

• Higher customer satisfaction resulting from, among other things, improved fleet availability

• Shorter cycles, which deliver benefits such as cost saving for the service provider and reduced Aircraft on Ground time for their aviation clients

• Lower cost of service as a result of better resource utilization and enhanced productivity

• Assured compliance with safety and regulatory standards

• Improved morale of a workforce that is motivated to work with technology that improves their working conditions and personal productivity


Key considerations in mobility adoptionAs more and more MRO service providers recognize the benefits of process applications that are mobility-enabled, independent software vendors will come under pressure to deliver according to revised expectations. At present, the MRO landscape is dotted with a clutch of software vendors offering select solutions tailored to different processes ranging from work order management to maintenance planning to status reporting. These vendors strive to serve the needs of clients that are either large independent networks or OEM suppliers, who will, sooner or later, make a demand for better performing solutions. As independent software vendors move towards mobility adoption in order to satisfy their clients’ expectations, the following considerations would be uppermost in their minds:

Device diversity Will their mobility-enabled offering be compatible with a range of devices including consumer, enterprise and industrial handsets? Can it be delivered over different channels of access such as the mobile phone, tablet PC, PDA and Internet?

Usability Will the mobile-enabled solution be “intelligent” enough to recognize the specific context of every operation, and therefore deliver the optimal user experience in that context?

Cost What are the costs associated with mobility-enablement of their software applications, and their on-going maintenance?

Performance What performance standards will it achieve? How manageable is it, particularly under remote conditions? Will information be secure?


ISVs must be ready to support MRO firms in their progress towards

“process automation maturity”Historically, as MRO firms evolved in terms of process automation, they progressively gained bigger business benefits. The Paper Based system gave way to Semi Automation, which evolved into the current Desktop Based Environment. As MRO service providers take the next step towards Partial and subsequently, Full Mobility, their software partners must be ready with solutions that can meet their expectations.

>>>>>>>>>>> Extent of Process Automation

>>>>

>>>

Ext

ent o

f Pro

cess

Aut

omat

ion

Paper Based • Inaccuracy of Information • Inconsistency in user inputs

Desktop Based• Direct entry reduces error and enforces

consistency • Improves work flow efficiency • Field staff still use manual data capture

Fully Mobile • Enterprise mobility strategy in place • Standardization of mobile technology

across applications • Web and mobile strategy integrated

Semi Automated

• Data capture on paper and manual entry

• Better management but prone to error in transcription

• Functions and workflows typically disintegrated

Partially Mobile

• Field force adopts mobile for data capture

• Use of SMS alerts for customers as well as field force linked to workflows

• Business unit level adoption of mobile technology


Desirable attributes of a mobility solutionTherefore, before arriving at a choice of mobility-platform technology partner, independent software vendors must evaluate them comprehensively from the following viewpoints:

Device Diversity The mobility platform must not only be versatile enough to support various device categories and multiple web browsers running on different development platforms, but also have the flexibility to extend support to an ever expanding range of devices in future.

Seamless A mobility solution based on open architecture will enable updates to the MRO process software at device level and facilitate the integration of other messaging channels.

Optimization Software vendors must be assured that their choice of mobility solution is optimized for various considerations including connectivity, user preferences and ambient conditions.

Manageability A solution that follows XML-based standards improves manageability at both the service provider and administrator ends.

Security The mobility solution must provide fail-proof end-to-end data security - at device, OTA and server level.

Connectivity The use of a single platform offers the convenience of uninterrupted support on online, offline and occasionally connected modes.

Cost Commercial terms must be scrutinized to ensure that the vendor provides maximum value at a reasonable cost of development and implementation; time-to-market is an equally important consideration.

Integration Finally, while the solution must be able to integrate all types of applications ranging from legacy to service-enabled, it must do so in a completely non-intrusive manner.

Unlocking the opportunity of mobility-enablementMobility-enablement presents a compelling business proposition to independent software vendors of aviation Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul process applications. By offering a solution that enables greater automation of the highly labor-dependent MRO processes, software vendors can help their clients realize unprecedented cost efficiency, productivity and customer satisfaction. The downturn in the aviation industry implies an uncertain outlook for the MRO business in the near term. However one thing is certain - MRO organizations will have to deal with capacity issues and skill shortage once markets stage a recovery. Forward thinking companies that invest in the automation of their business processes will be better positioned to meet these challenges.

Vendors of software solutions that are not yet mobility-enabled must act quickly to address this issue. Before they select a technology partner to help them fulfill this objective, independent software vendors must ensure that the mobility platform matches their expectations of diversity-compatibility, easy usability, reasonable cost and consistent performance. By doing so, they stand to reap the gains arising from greater opportunity.

R E F E R E N C E S• PricewaterhouseCoopers-CII report on “Changing Dynamics - Indian Aerospace Industry”

• White Paper from Siemens- “Knowledge-centric MRO transformation”

• A report from VZM Management Services -”Commercial Aviation & Maintenance Market Outlook 2009”

• A paper “Computers on the Shop Floor” By James Careless

• A white paper “Closing the Information Gap in Maintenance& Repair Operations: The High Impact Benefits Behind Complete Work Packages” By Cheryl Jones-Richter Marketing Strategy Manager, Xerox Global Services June 2004

About the AuthorsPuneet Gupta Principal Researcher - SETLabs, Infosys Ltd.

Puneet heads the mobility platforms and solutions initiative at Infosys. He and his team focus on building next generation middleware that allow organizations to focus on leveraging the mobile channel without being bogged down with the technology and infrastructural complexities.

Sandeep K. Dewangan Senior Researcher - SETLabs, Infosys Ltd.

Sandeep heads Integrated Research & Innovation Centre for Manufacturing Industry at SETLabs. He & his team focus on identification & development of innovative solutions for specific industry problems by leveraging emerging information & communications technologies.

Sunil Gade Research Analyst - SETLabs, Infosys Ltd.

Sunil is a part of Integrated Research & Innovation Centre for Manufacturing Industry at SETLabs. He focuses on identification & development of innovative solutions for specific industry problems by leveraging emerging information & communications technologies.

ABBREVIATION: MRO – Maintenance Repair and Overhaul

ISV – Independent Software Vendor EFB – Electronic Flight Bag

ETL – Electronic Technical Log OEM – Original Equipment Manufacturer

SETLabs – Software Engineering and Technology Labs

OTA – Over-The-Air