Welcome - Why Differential Maintenance |
It is now recognised that only by adopting new maintenance strategies can airports hope to maintain the serviceability levels that comply with the new performance regulations. The closed loop maintenance regime termed Differential Maintenance, which has been developed by TMS Photometrics, in association with the UK CAA and supporting UK aerodromes, now offers all airports a proven approach to meeting this objective.
Differential Maintenance targets work by using the routine collection of accurate in-field measurements (taken with MALMS) to identify when, where and what maintenance action is required. To ensure serviceability levels are consistently maintained, the approach also incorporates monitoring, to assess maintenance effectiveness, and management stages to close the maintenance loop. This approach takes into account all the variable factors that contribute to light fitting performance deterioration, and effectively identifies maintenance priorities. It is also aimed at obtaining the maximum benefit from any maintenance activity, thereby minimising wastage and enabling maintenance expenditure to be optimised while ensuring that the required AGL system serviceability level is maintained.
As a result of adopting Differential Maintenance, Airports can:
Reduce Risk
By establishing a Differential Maintenance strategy airports are adopting recognised 'best practice', which when properly implemented can enable airports to fully comply- and prove compliance - with the recommendations of all regulatory authorities both in terms of maintenance practice, and AGL serviceability levels. Through Differential Maintenance airports cost effectively achieve AGL systems that they can have full confidence in, and should the quality of the lighting system be called into question due to a landing, or taxiing incident, they have the significant advantage of having fully documented evidence of compliance.
Significantly Improve Performance
Extensive in-service studies undertaken on a range of operational aerodromes have proven that the combination of MALMS Technology and a Differential Maintenance strategy can make a significant improvement to AGL serviceability levels, where traditional techniques had failed to do so, and without the commitment of additional maintenance resources. For example at one international airport, where biennial block change had been the policy, within four weeks of implementing Differential Maintenance, the centreline serviceability level had been raised from 50% to 85%. After 6 months it was consistently meeting the 95% serviceability standard established by ICAO. Moreover, this was achieved without any increase in maintenance costs.
Reduce AGL Whole life Costs
By using MALMS and Differential Maintenance to effectively target necessary work, manpower and material resources are not wasted on fittings that are performing acceptably, and standards can be maintained with minimum effort. This can, as has already been proved by the experiences of a number of Airports , lead to a reduction in real term revenue spending. Also, through more effective maintenance the life span of the AGL system can be extended, and this can mean reduced capital outlay.
For more details see full Case Studies
