Maintenance engineering
Encyclopedia
Maintenance Engineering is the discipline and profession of applying engineering
concepts to the optimization of equipment, procedures, and departmental budgets to achieve better maintainability
, reliability
, and availability of equipment.
Maintenance, and hence maintenance engineering, is increasing important due to rising amounts of equipment, systems, machineries and infrastructures. Since the Industrial Revolution
devices, equipment, machinery and structures have grown increasingly complex, requiring a host of personnel, vocations and related systems needed to maintain them. Prior to 2006, the United States spent approximately US$300 billion annually on plant maintenance and operations alone.
A person practising Maintenance Engineering is known as a Maintenance Engineer.
, probability
and logistics
, and additionally in the fundamentals of the operation of the equipment and machinery he or she is responsible for.
A Maintenance Engineer shall also possess high interpersonal, communication and management skills.
, Industrial Engineering
, or other Engineering Disciplines.
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
concepts to the optimization of equipment, procedures, and departmental budgets to achieve better maintainability
Maintainability
In engineering, maintainability is the ease with which a product can be maintained in order to:* isolate defects or their cause* correct defects or their cause* meet new requirements* make future maintenance easier, or* cope with a changed environment...
, reliability
Reliability engineering
Reliability engineering is an engineering field, that deals with the study, evaluation, and life-cycle management of reliability: the ability of a system or component to perform its required functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time. It is often measured as a probability of...
, and availability of equipment.
Maintenance, and hence maintenance engineering, is increasing important due to rising amounts of equipment, systems, machineries and infrastructures. Since the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
devices, equipment, machinery and structures have grown increasingly complex, requiring a host of personnel, vocations and related systems needed to maintain them. Prior to 2006, the United States spent approximately US$300 billion annually on plant maintenance and operations alone.
A person practising Maintenance Engineering is known as a Maintenance Engineer.
Maintenance Engineer's Essential Knowledge
A Maintenance Engineer shall possess significant knowledge of statisticsStatistics
Statistics is the study of the collection, organization, analysis, and interpretation of data. It deals with all aspects of this, including the planning of data collection in terms of the design of surveys and experiments....
, probability
Probability
Probability is ordinarily used to describe an attitude of mind towards some proposition of whose truth we arenot certain. The proposition of interest is usually of the form "Will a specific event occur?" The attitude of mind is of the form "How certain are we that the event will occur?" The...
and logistics
Logistics
Logistics is the management of the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of destination in order to meet the requirements of customers or corporations. Logistics involves the integration of information, transportation, inventory, warehousing, material handling, and packaging, and...
, and additionally in the fundamentals of the operation of the equipment and machinery he or she is responsible for.
A Maintenance Engineer shall also possess high interpersonal, communication and management skills.
Typical Maintenance Engineering Responsibilities
Typical responsibilities include:- Assure optimization of the Maintenance Organization structure
- Analysis of repetitive equipment failures
- Estimation of maintenance costs and evaluation of alternatives
- Forecasting of spare parts
- Assessing the needs for equipment replacements and establish replacement programs when due
- Application of schedulingScheduling (production processes)Scheduling is an important tool for manufacturing and engineering, where it can have a major impact on the productivity of a process. In manufacturing, the purpose of scheduling is to minimize the production time and costs, by telling a production facility when to make, with which staff, and on...
and project managementProject managementProject management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing, and managing resources to achieve specific goals. A project is a temporary endeavor with a defined beginning and end , undertaken to meet unique goals and objectives, typically to bring about beneficial change or added value...
principles to replacement programs - Assessing required maintenance tools and skills required for efficient maintenance of equipment
- Assessing required skills required for maintenance personnel
- Reviewing personnel transfers to and from maintenance organizations
- Assessing and reporting safety hazards associated with maintenance of equipment
Maintenance Engineering Education
There is Bachelor Degree program for Maintenance Engineering,at the German Jordanian University in Amman. However, Maintenance Engineers usually hold a degree in Mechanical EngineeringMechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
, Industrial Engineering
Industrial engineering
Industrial engineering is a branch of engineering dealing with the optimization of complex processes or systems. It is concerned with the development, improvement, implementation and evaluation of integrated systems of people, money, knowledge, information, equipment, energy, materials, analysis...
, or other Engineering Disciplines.
See also
- Aircraft Maintenance EngineerAircraft Maintenance EngineerAn Aircraft maintenance engineer is a licenced person who carries out aircraft maintenance. This same title is used in a number of different counteries, including:*Aircraft maintenance engineer *Aircraft maintenance engineer...
ing - Auto mechanicAuto mechanicAn auto mechanic is a mechanic with a variety of car makes or either in a specific area or in a specific make of car. In repairing cars, their main role is to diagnose the problem accurately and quickly...
- Civil engineerCivil engineerA civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
- Computer repair technicianComputer repair technicianA computer repair technician is a person who repairs and maintains computers and servers. The technician's responsibilities may extend to include building or configuring new hardware, installing and updating software packages, and creating and maintaining computer networks. Computer repair...
- ElectricianElectricianAn electrician is a tradesman specializing in electrical wiring of buildings, stationary machines and related equipment. Electricians may be employed in the installation of new electrical components or the maintenance and repair of existing electrical infrastructure. Electricians may also...
- Electrical TechnologistElectrical TechnologistElectrical Technologists are people that apply electrical theory on the job. Their knowledge and skill lies between that of electrical engineers and general electrical trades persons. They train in three year diploma programs at colleges or universities. Specializations within the field include...
- Marine fuel managementMarine fuel managementMarine fuel management is a multi-level approach to measuring, monitoring, and reporting fuel usage on a boat or ship, with the goals of reducing fuel usage, increasing operational efficiency, and improving fleet management oversight...
- MechanicMechanicA mechanic is a craftsman or technician who uses tools to build or repair machinery.Many mechanics are specialized in a particular field such as auto mechanics, bicycle mechanics, motorcycle mechanics, boiler mechanics, general mechanics, industrial maintenance mechanics , air conditioning and...
- MillwrightMillwrightA millwright is a craftsman or tradesman engaged with the construction and maintenance of machinery.Early millwrights were specialist carpenters who erected machines used in agriculture, food processing and processing lumber and paper...
(machinery maintenance) - Maintenance, repair and operationsMaintenance, Repair and OperationsMaintenance, repair, and operations or maintenance, repair, and overhaul involves fixing any sort of mechanical or electrical device should it become out of order or broken...
(MRO) - Reliability centered maintenanceReliability Centered MaintenanceReliability Centered Maintenance, often known as RCM, is a process to ensure that assets continue to do what their users require in their present operating context....
(RCM) - Reliability engineeringReliability engineeringReliability engineering is an engineering field, that deals with the study, evaluation, and life-cycle management of reliability: the ability of a system or component to perform its required functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time. It is often measured as a probability of...
- Preventive maintenancePreventive maintenancePreventive maintenance has the following meanings:#The care and servicing by personnel for the purpose of maintaining equipment and facilities in satisfactory operating condition by providing for systematic inspection, detection, and correction of incipient failures either before they occur or...
- Product lifecycle managementProduct lifecycle managementIn industry, product lifecycle management is the process of managing the entire lifecycle of a product from its conception, through design and manufacture, to service and disposal...
- Stationary engineerStationary engineerA stationary engineer, also called operating engineer or power engineer, is a tradesman who operates heavy machinery and equipment that provide heat, light, climate control and power. Stationary engineer are trained in many areas, including mechanical, thermal, chemical, electrical, metallurgical,...