Managing Maintenance Errors: A Practical Guide

Citation

Raouf, A. (2005), "Managing Maintenance Errors: A Practical Guide", Journal of Quality in Maintenance Engineering, Vol. 11 No. 4, pp. 388-389. https://doi.org/10.1108/13552510510627007

Authors have assumed and correctly so, that risk of maintenance errors cannot be eliminated altogether. To minimize the effect of maintenance related errors, authors have presented an error management methodology. Possible reasons for the occurrence of maintenance errors are identified along with suggested ways of controlling maintenance errors related effects. The book is written in a highly readable style and is an excellent practioner's guide it has 12 chapters.

Chapter 1 deals with human performance problems in maintenance and describes the different type of errors. The human risk is the title of Chapter 2. It treats systems with human elements, human related disturbances, defense against foreseeable disturbances and make the point that instead of changing “human conditions” efforts should be made to change the conditions under which humans work.

In Chapter 3 the fundamentals of human performance are presented. Three performance levels are identified: the skill‐, risk‐, and knowledge‐based. Levels of fatigue and energy, arousal and their relationship with performance quality and decision‐making biases are briefly described.

Varieties of errors is the topic of Chapter 4. Basic type of errors, mistakes and violations are discussed. It has been shown that these do not occur in isolation.

Chapter 5 identifies the local error‐provoking factors and those that are known to increase the frequency of maintenance errors. Organizational factors that provoke errors are identified as well.

System failure and a model of organizational accidents based on three different system failures are described in Chapter 6. The model presents a cascade of contributing influences from organizational factors, to the error provoking conditions in the work place, to the commission of errors and violations and finally to the occurrence of accident (one case is drawn from aviation industry and the second from railroad system while the third one is from offshore platform). Although the cases presented do not represent the entire spectrum of industry yet analogies between the presented cases and other type of industry can be drawn and the model can be useful.

Principles of error management are described in Chapter 7. The management of errors and its three components: error reduction, error containment, and managing these activities along with a summary of error management are presented as well.

Chapter 8 examines some practical error management techniques directed at the level of the industrial maintenance workers and the entire maintenance team. Crew resource management training is discussed.

Workplace and task measures are the topic of Chapter 9. It focuses on key aspects of maintenance task and environment, which has a significant impact on error generation. It cites omissions as the most common form of maintenance errors and outlines an approach that can be used to identify omission prone task steps.

Chapter 10 is devoted to organizational measures. The need for having a comprehensive safety information system having reactive output measures and proactive process measures has been demonstrated. Maintenance error decision aid and managing engineering safety health are presented as maintenance‐focused category of proactive process measure with a view to assist identification of system weaknesses.

Safety culture and its principle characteristics are presented in Chapter 11. Some of the psychological and organizational barriers effecting reporting culture and steps necessary to reverse these are described. It presents an outline of safety culture and suggests steps necessary for a stepwise progression in achieving a generative culture.

Chapter 12 deals with management of error management. Differences and similarities between quality and safety management system and error management are presented. It provides an understanding of varieties of human error and the workplace and system factors that provoke unsafe acts. It is suggested that error management, to be effective, needs appropriate mindset. It examines the properties of organizational resilience. Checklists designed to assist an organization's robustness to human factors, problems and safety hazards are included in this chapter. It is suggested that error management program should be CEO's pet project and effective progress in error management should be taken as a matter of evolution than revolution.

This book has been written by well‐respected authors in the field having vast experiences. I find this book to be valuable for maintenance professionals and engineers. It may be of value to safety staff and safety officers as well. It is a delight to read this book!