Aircraft Maintenance Engineer: Job Description
Aircraft maintenance engineers are more commonly called aircraft mechanics because they perform scheduled maintenance on propeller planes, airliners, helicopters and other flying machines. They typically work in air fields, hangars and repair stations, and must endure hot and cold temperatures when handling tasks outdoors. They may need to wear protective clothing and gear to manage dangerous chemicals, loud noises and large power tools with safety.
Duties
Aircraft maintenance engineers maintain and repair aircraft frames and mechanical parts, while specialists called avionics technicians handle the electronics. They use instruments to measure wear and test controls, replace defective components with hand tools, inspect their work to be sure it meets established standards and keep records of all actions. Their jobs may be stressful because they have limited time to complete their tasks before the aircraft continues with travel schedules. They can specialize in particular vehicles such as helicopters or jets, or focus on systems such as the engine or hydraulics.
Repairs and Replacement
Maintenance engineers repair any problems that they find after inspection or troubleshooting. They can either fix the faults themselves, or supervise other employees as they do it, since their status sometimes requires that they head a team, especially in companies where a single person cannot handle the amount of work. In case some parts in a system need replacing, it is the work of the maintenance engineer to request the exact spares needed and ensure proper installation. After the new installations, the maintenance engineer conducts a performance test to assess the efficiency of the new parts and system.
System Upgrades and Changes
Maintenance engineers recommend to company management any upgrades and changes that are needed to improve the performance of equipment and systems. Such recommendations are usually based on research and surveys of benchmark systems and technology. Maintenance engineers also outline things that need changing depending on the results of their own inspections carried out on company systems and equipment.
Maintenance Engineer's Essential Knowledge
A Maintenance Engineer should possess significant knowledge of statistics, 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,management skills and ability to make quick decisions.
Typical Maintenance Engineering Responsibilities
- 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 scheduling and project management 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.
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