Reliability analysis and maintenance program for airline seats

Abstract

All modern commercial aircraft are designed with a high degree of redundancy and with an emphasis on reliability and maintainability, having undergone a detailed MSG-3 (Maintenance Steering Group) type analysis and are delivered by the manufacturer with an evolving package of ongoing maintenance requirements to keep the aircraft serviceable and airworthy. Even though the airframe and engines are amongst the assets that have an extremely high amount of reliability analysis carried out and maintenance systems put in place; the interior of the aircraft, that is the cabin product is one that rarely gets any reliability analysis or maintenance schedule specified by the cabin manufacturers. The aircraft manufacturers do not get involved because often the cabin furnishings are chosen and customized by the airlines and there cabin products are known as Buyer Furnished Equipment (BFE). One of the common beliefs is that it does not matter if the cabin product is unserviceable as long as the aircraft is well maintained, however the customer (passenger) interacts with the cabin, in particular their seat and if they do not feel that the interior is being maintained and cleaned, they often thing that this airline maintains their aircraft similarly. If a proper MSG-3 or any RCM (Reliability Centered Maintenance) type analysis on the product had been carried out at either the design phase or at entry-into-service and a suitable maintenance system implemented, which continued to evolve, there would be no requirement for the labor-intensive defect reviews discussed here.