TABLE OF CONTENTS Processes center on process standard(s). The first RCM-related process standards address FMEA and root cause analysis and have been available for more than 30 years.
MSG-1 and 2 the first integrated RCM technology guidelines were developed in the late 1960s. Their current version and successor, MSG-3 version 2 (1993), is still available through the Airline Transport Association. It is mandatory reading for anyone who desires an in-depth mastery of the current RCM practice.
More recently, SAE JA-1011 has emerged to help qualify RCM-based processes. This suggests an ISO 9000 series RCM process certification for companies that provide maintenance services. The existence of a certification program indicates the compelling nature of RCM methods, as well as the inherent difficulty implementing them. Users and developers of RCM-based maintenance programs can evaluate their programs against these standards and reach their own conclusions. For assistance, key ideas in each standard are summarized below.
The most comprehensive and complete document, the MSG-3(2) Maintenance Program Development Document deserves careful review as the current endorsement of the original works that became RCM. It illustrates the path and complications that arise as considerations for operator monitoring and structural checks get incorporated into the plan. Complexity in the many, highly repetitious flow charts should be studied carefully until the user grasps the concept of hidden failures.
The exact hidden failure terminology "Does the combination of a hidden failure and one additional failure of a system-related or backup function have an adverse effect on...
