Maintenance Errors

Human factors are by far the largest cause of failures and incidents in maintenance. This goes not only for branches like aviation, but also for chemicals, oil & gas, energy and transportation. Investigation shows that approximately 12% of all aviation accidents are caused by a maintenance factor. At coal-fired power stations, 56% of forced outages happen within a week after a planned or maintenance shutdown. A power distribution company reported that on average between 50 and 60% of all failures are related to a maintenance error.

In the past we faced serious and tragic accidents in verious branches. Maintenance errors at least contributed to all of the above mentioned major accidents. Because  we are heavily dependent on complex modern technologies with high speed and large power and volumes, maintenance errors can have serious consequences in terms of safety, environmental issues, downtime and costs. Considering the numbers and consequences, maintenance errors should be treated as a business risk. We cannot eliminate the risk of maintenance error completely, but we can manage it more effectively.

This PetroKnowledge training course introduces participants to the skills and knowledge area of maintenance errors. It demonstrates why people make mistakes, not only in executing a maintenance job, but also in planning & preparing the job, in writing the maintenance manual and in engineering the asset. It shows how we could learn of maintenance errors, by analysing technical failures and incidents in a structured way. And the course demonstrates how we could manage maintenance error by managing the person, the task and the team; the workplace and the organization; and by creating a safety culture.

This training course will highlight:

• The human error in maintenance phenomenom and why it is important
• The fundamentals of human performance – psychology  meets engineering & maintenance
• Different types of human error
• Contributing circumstances
• Basic methodologies to analyse technical failures and incidents
• Principles of Maintenance Error Management: person – task – team – workplace – organization and how to implement it
• Creating a safety culture

At the end of this training course, delegates will be able to:

• Understand how significant the human factor in maintenance is
• Explain what human factors could cause maintenance errors
• Apply a structured approach to find the root cause of technical failures and incidents
• Understand the basic principles of Maintenance Error Management
• Explain how managing maintenance errors interacts with implementing a safety culture and how it supports each other
• Develop an action plan to manage maintenance errors in your own area of responsibility

This PetroKnowledge training course is suitable to a wide range of professionals, but will greatly benefit:

• All professionals involved in Maintenance, Engineering, Production and Safety
• Anyone who wishes to update themselves on the human factor in maintenance and learn how to implement maintenance error management for the benefit of their organizations

The training course will be conducted along interactive workshop principles. There will be a variance of lectures and practical exercises. Experiences from different areas will be discussed. There will be many opportunities for discussion and sharing experiences.