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Engineering manpower planning in an airline
56
Long Range Planning Vol. 10
August 1977
Engineering Manpower Planning in an Airline S. SubramaniawP
Next to the crew on the flight deck of an aircrafi, the engineers and technicians form the core of the m8npower requirement of an airline. The aviation industry is 8 specialised one. There ate mendatory requirements regsrding the airworthiness of an aircraft 8nd certification of engineers and technicians working on or inspecting an aircreft. The requilements of Engineers 8nd Techniciens cannot be directly met from the products availeble from Engineering Colleges and Technical Institutes. Furthermore, 34 yeers of experience in aviation industry is 8 prerequisite laid down by Civil Aviation Departments for obtaining their licence or approve/ to work 8s Engineers and Inspectors in Inspection Organisations. Hence planning of Engineering manpower requirement welt in advance is a must for an Airline. The objective of this paper is to discuss the long term planning for engineering manpower Iesource, in an airline.
vision should be about double the estimated traffic. An year-by-year estimates for traffic and capacity needs to be planned as shown in Table 1.
Based on worldwide traffic potential on different routes, its growth in the next 10 years and an airlines desired share in the world market, long term plans for a period of 8-10 years are prepared say for 1970-1980. During this period if an airline has estimated an average traf& growth of 15 per cent per annum, and anticipates a load factor of around 50 per cent, the capacity pro-
Fleet Planning Taking into consideration routewise traflic capacity provision, the frequency of fights on different routes is arrived at from which the flying task is established. The flying task required for aaining purposes is also added to this, so that total flying task is determined. Based on such a total flying task, the fleet size and its composition is worked out. Such other factors as the possibility of enhancing existing fleet size, introduction of new generation of aircraft to keep up-to-date with advancement in aviation technology and be competitive, etc. are also given due consideration. In view of the enormous capital outlay involved a prerequisite before going in for a different fleet composition is Performance evaluation of variety of new generation of air&. In order to provide for safety and reliability, a maintenance programme, is then drawn out. The minimum ground time required for such a maintenance programme, the daily aircraft utilisation and the route pattern, etc. are the limiting factors for fleet size, The following two tables indicate illustratively the annual flying task and fleet size with different types of aircraft.
‘Dr. Subramaniam is on the staff of the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, India.
Starting with a fleet of 10 Boeing 707 aircraft in 1970 and with the acquisition of latest and larger capacity
Table 1. Estimates of Traffic and Capacity Needs
Mail
Cargo
Total
Load Factor in per cent
::
84 116 130 157 169 188 206 224 238 242
286 341 399 473 514 586 659 713 753 782
53.2 48.7 47.8 48.8 49.0 48.5 48.8 49.6 50.8 51.6
Traffic estimates in RTKMS (Million)
Year
Pax.
Excess Baggage
1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-60
187 210 260 298 324 376 430 466 491 504
2 2 4 3 3 4 5 5 5 6
15 15 18 19 18 18 ::
Capacity provision in ATKMS (in Million) 500 700 800 980 1089 1197 1349 1480 1480 1510
Engineering Table 2a. Flying Task to be performed
Year 1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
38,800 38,400 31,400 31,000 18,430 17,600 17,100 11,510 11,510 11,510
7500 12,800 15,880 15,780 15,880 15,980 15,980 15,980 16,100
7510 14,830 21,350 27,710 29,780 30,080
Planning in an Airline
57
between 1970-1980
Total
Training Flying Hours
Total Flying Task
38,800 45,900 44,200 46,860 41,720 48,310 54,430 55200 57,270 57,690
360 360 360 360 360 360 360 360 360 360
39,160 46,260 44,560 47,240 42,080 48,670 54,790 55,580 57,630 58,050
Revenue Flying Hours DC-10 747 LlOll
707
Manpower
Table 2b. Fleet Size and Composition the Period 1970-1980
for
Fleet Size Year 1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
707 10 10 9 9 5 5 5 3 32
aircraft, i.e. Boeing 747 and DC-10/L.-1011, etc. from 1973 renders some of the aircraft from earlier generation, i.e. Boeing 707 progressively surplus to the requirements of the airline. Engineering Manpower Planning The process of manpower planning begins once the fleet size, its composition (type of aircraft) and the flying task is determined. The total manpower for Engineering Department can be broadly divided into (a) Direct labour and (b) indirect labour. The direct Table 3. Estimated Work
DC-10 L-1011
747
Total 10 12 12 13 11 13 15
1
; 3 4 4 4
1 4
4 4 5
8 8 9
:: 16
labour force comprises of Technicians, while indirect labour includes management personnel, shop floor supervisors, Engineers/Inspectors, clerical staff cleaners and peons, etc. Personnel from other support divisions such as, Production Planning, Material Provisioning, Technical Development, etc. are also included in indirect manpower. To determine direct labour force, yardstick of labour effort (in man-hours) per flying hour is adopted. This yardstick, though an estimated quantity is based on past experience at the initial stage, is subsequently reviewed and updated as more experience
Content for Initial 747 and DC-10/L-1011 Relation to 707 performance 747 Operation
Type of Work
Line Maint. Periodic Maint. Flight Handling Structural Repair Modifications Components Shop Eelect. Shop Inst. Shop Electronics Shop Engine Shop
Work Percentage Content of Workload for 707 in Relation Aircraft to 707 a/c. in M. hr/F. hr per cent 5.00 4.25 0.50 I 4.00 0.80 3.50 2.00 1.75 0.75 4.00
200 125 100 150 100 100 200 100
6.00
10.00 8.50 1.00 5.00 0.80 4.25 2.00 1.75 1.50 4.00
200
12.00
in
DC-l O/L-l 011 Operation Percentage of Workload in Relation to 707 a/c. per cent
Work Content in M. hr/F. hr
170
9.00 8.00 1 .oo
100 100 100 100 125 75
0.80 4.25 2.00 1.75 1.25 3.00
36.00
26.50 Plant and Equipment Maint. work
Work Content in M. hr/F. hr
Operation
32.00 150
9.00
58
Long Range Planning Vol. 10
August 1977
Table 4. Aircraft Maintenance Work 707 Year
Labour effort per F. hr
1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5
Operation Total
747 Operation M. hr
10.28.200 18;85;100 8.33.690 8;26;800 4.88.395 4,67,990 4,53,150 3,05.015 3.05.015 2,10,005
Labour effort per F. hr
Total
zi.5 33 33 33 33 33
During initial operation of any new aircraft, the work content in man-hours per flying hour is on the higher side. As experience is gained this labour effort stabilises at a lower figure. in 1960, when an airline switched over operation from 1049 to Boeing 707 aircraft, labour effort estimated and actually expended was around 32 man-hours per flying hour. This later got stab&d around 26.5 man-hours per flying hour. On similar lines, as the fleet increases and experience is gained the effort for 747 and DC-10/L-1011 operation is expected
Total
M. hr
-
2.40.320 4;59;730 6.29.825 7.75.880 8.33.840 9,10,040
32 31 29.5 28 28 28
Grand Total 10.28.200 11;55;100 12,83,690 13,91,280 12.73.125 14;48;460 16,03,715 16.01,635 16,59,595 17,14,685
to stab&se around 33 man-hours per flying hour in case of 747 aircraft and 28 man-hours per flying hour for DC-10/L-1011 aircraft. Based on such a labour effort and the flying task, the total work content in man-hours is worked out year by year below as an iilustrative example. The labour effort required for plant and equipment maintenance work which fairly remains constant in an airline has been worked out year by year as indicated in Table 5 below:
Once the direct labour force is worked out, indirect manpower is taken as a percentage of direct labour. A normal ratio is 1: 1.20, i.e. indirect labour is 120 per cent of direct labour. This percentage can come down from 120 per cent to 90 per cent as a result of mechanisationi
Table 5. Plant and Equipment 707 Operation
747 Operation
6.5 M. hr/F. hr
12 M. hr/F. hr
2,52,200 2.17.100 2,04,490 2,02,800 1 ,19,795 1 ,i 4,790 1,11.150 74.615 74,815 62,615
-
011 Operation
Besides maintenance work on aircraft and plant/equipment, one has to plan manpower requirement for outside party work, flight handling commitments to other operators, contractual work Gem other Airlines and capital type of modifications incorporated on aircraft and fabrication of equipment, etc. All this work has no direct relationship or bearing with flying task per se. The manpower provision for this work is, therefore, done on the basis of commitment and estimated work content that one expects to handle. The total work content for Technician’s cadre thus worked out is illustrated in Table 6.
When the operation of an aircraft is well stabilised, its work content, i.e. labour effort per flying hour becomes more or less constant. The work content of new aircraft, i.e. 747 air& and DC-10/L-1011 is estimated in relation to performance with 707 aircraft. Given below is the detailed illustrative working of such estimates.
1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1976-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
M. hr
O/L-l
Labour effort per F. hr
2,70,000 4,50,000 5,64,480 5.44.410 5,20;740 5.20.740 5.201740 520,740 5,94,640
36 36
is gained on the new equipment. To do this a systematic data compilation system is needed. With the help of a suitable ‘Numerical Digit Work Order Code’ it is ensured that the labour and material expenditure is booked on appropriate cost areas such as aircraft, engines and its accessories, etc. by cost centres, i.e. various Shops. This information is compiled month by month and made use of for review and control purposes. The indirect labour is taken as a percentage of direct labour for planning purposes. While determining this percentage, the organisation structure, existing ratio, etc. is taken into consideration.
Year Effort per F. hr
DC-l
Maintenance Work DC-lo/l-loll Operation 9 M. hr/F.
-
-
90,000 1.50.000 1.88.160 1.89.360 1,89,360 1.89.360 1.89,360 1,89,360 2,01,260
67,590 1.33,470 1,92,150 2.49,390 2,68,020 2.98,070
Total effort hr 2.52.200 3.07.100 3.54.490 3.90.960 3,76.745 4.37.620 4.92.660 5,13,565 5.32.195 5.61.946
Engineering
Manpower Planning in an Airline
59
Table 6. Work Content for Technical Cadre Work content in M. hr for
Year 1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
Plant. Et Equip. Maint.
Aircraft Maint. 10.28.200 11,55,100 12.83.690 13,91,280 12,73.125 14.48.460 16,03,715 16,01,635 16,59,595 17,14,685
2,52,200 3.07.100 3.54,490 3,90,960 3,76,745 4.37.620 4,92,660 5,13,565 5,32.195 5,61,945
Cap. Mod. Fab.
Recharge jobs
25,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 25,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 21,000
2,50,000 2,60,000 2,70,000 2.75.000 2,75,000 2,75,000 2,75,000 2,75,000 2,75,000 2,85,000
Total labour effort 15,55,400 17,42,200 19,28,180 20,77,240 19,49,870 21,81,080 23,91,375 24,10,200 24.86.790 25.82.630
No. of Tech.
out Stn. Staff
Grand total
975 1090 1205 1300 1220 1365 1495 1510 1555 1585
80 90 100 100 100 100 110 120 120 120
1055 1180 1305 1400 1320 1465 1605 1630 1675 1705
Notes: (a) The sudden drop of direct labour during 1974-75 is the result of phasing out five 707 aircraft from the service and introducing DC-lo/L-l 011 operation. This excess manpower will have been used for other operations or for training purposes on different aircrafts. (b) Once the total work content is known, for calculating the number of Technicians, we take productive manhours available per staff per year. While working out the Productive time, various types of leave, training and lost time, etc. are taken into consideration. This is likely to vary from airline to airline and country to country.
automation. The total indirect labour force (year-wise) is tabulated below. The indirect labour thus determined is further divided into various categories of staff. As far as Engineers/Inspectors and shop-floor supervisors are concerned, we have definite percentage in relation to number of Technicians based on volume of quality control work and sectional split-up of an organization. Other staff, i.e. management personnel, clerical and cleaners/peons is determined on the basis of general work content, type of organisation, etc. The breakdown of indirect indicated below :-
labour
by category
is
Due to rapid technological growth in aviation engineering in general and electronics and controls field in particular and with its wider application day-by-day, future requirement of Engineers will have to be largely met from Engineering CollegesjInstitutes. Fresh Engineering Graduates in Mechanical/Electrical/Electronic Engineering are recruited and general familiarization training on aircraft engineering and practices is imparted to them for a period of two years. Thereafter most of the Engineers join various Maintenance and Overhaul Shops and spend one or two years to ac uire sufficient experience to obtain licence or approval f rom Civil Aviation Authorities. Once this licence or
Table 7. Indirect Manpower Category of staff Direct labour Percentage Indirect labour Management Engineers/Inspectors Shop Supervisors Clerical/Mist. Staff Cleaners/Peons
70-71
71-72
72-73
73-74
74-75
Requirements 75-76
76-77
77-78
78-79
79-80
1055 120 1270 45 350 130 270 475
1180 110 1300 45 390 140 260 465
1305 105 1370 50 430 145 260 485
1400 102.5 1435 55 460 150 260 515
1320 100 1320 55 435 150 250 430
1465 97.5 1430 60 485 155 250 485
1605 92.5 1485 60 530 160 250 485
1630 92.5 1505 60 540 165 250 490
1675 90 1510 60 550 170 240 490
1705 90 1530 60 560 175 240 495
1270
1300
1370
1435
1320
1430
1485
1505
1510
1550
Engineers : 33 per cent of Technician’s strength. Shop Supervisors : 1 O-l 2.5 per cent of Technicians strength.
We have thus worked out our total manpower requirement for the contemplated task up to 1980. The additional manpower required over the present strength is indicated in Table 8. Taking into consideration the retirement of staff, upgrading/promotion, likely transfer to other departments and resignations, etc., the total requirements in each category of staff if formulated and thereafter selection, recruitment, etc. follows. As an example, for this year, these details for Engineers’ cadre are worked out in Table 9.
approval is obtained, an Engineer becomes fully qualified Aircraft Maintenance Engineer and utilised accordingly. This process takes approximately 34 years’ time. Few Aircraft Maintenance Engineers having licence on smaller aircraft are also recruited and given requisite training to obtain endorsement on their licence for the current aircraft on the fleet. A few candidates could also be selected from within the organisation and trained for a period of six months to two years depending on area of work. After obtaining approval from Civil Aviation Authority, these staff are used as Inspectors for quality control work. Taking into
60
Long Range Planning Vol. 10
August 1977 Table 8. Additional staff for
Cadre
Staff Strength for 70-71
Management Engineers/Inspectors Shop Supervisors Technicians Clerical/Mist. Staff Cleaners/ Peons
71-72
3:: 130 1055 270 475
72-73
G-3 10 -10 125 -10
73-74
74-75
75-76
76-77
5
77-78
78-79
79-80
5 40 5
30 5
-25 -
5 50 5
5 45 5
10
10 5
10 5
125 20
95 30
-80 -10 -85
145 55
140 -
2:5
-1045 10
‘5 5
Table 9. Description
71-72
72-73
73-74
Additional requirements as per para 11 Retirement Transfers/Promotions Resignation
40 3 1
40 4 7 2
30 5 7 2
-25
Total requirements
52
53
44
-12
consideration time involved for training, advance recruitment is initiated, and planned training mounted.
Conclusion It would be appreciated now that manpower
planning
74-75
4 7 2
75-76
76-77
77-78
78-79
79-80
50 8 3
45 14 7 2
10 10 7 2
10 15 27
10 15 10 2
67
68
29
34
37
is critical in the high technology aviation industry. Similar types of exercises are carried out for planning the flight crew as well as the commercial and ground handling personnel. The lead time required for manpowerplanning is very much a f&don of the technology, the product, the market and manpower requirements.
Long Range Planning Vol. 10
August 1977
Engineering Manpower Planning in an Airline S. SubramaniawP
Next to the crew on the flight deck of an aircrafi, the engineers and technicians form the core of the m8npower requirement of an airline. The aviation industry is 8 specialised one. There ate mendatory requirements regsrding the airworthiness of an aircraft 8nd certification of engineers and technicians working on or inspecting an aircreft. The requilements of Engineers 8nd Techniciens cannot be directly met from the products availeble from Engineering Colleges and Technical Institutes. Furthermore, 34 yeers of experience in aviation industry is 8 prerequisite laid down by Civil Aviation Departments for obtaining their licence or approve/ to work 8s Engineers and Inspectors in Inspection Organisations. Hence planning of Engineering manpower requirement welt in advance is a must for an Airline. The objective of this paper is to discuss the long term planning for engineering manpower Iesource, in an airline.
vision should be about double the estimated traffic. An year-by-year estimates for traffic and capacity needs to be planned as shown in Table 1.
Based on worldwide traffic potential on different routes, its growth in the next 10 years and an airlines desired share in the world market, long term plans for a period of 8-10 years are prepared say for 1970-1980. During this period if an airline has estimated an average traf& growth of 15 per cent per annum, and anticipates a load factor of around 50 per cent, the capacity pro-
Fleet Planning Taking into consideration routewise traflic capacity provision, the frequency of fights on different routes is arrived at from which the flying task is established. The flying task required for aaining purposes is also added to this, so that total flying task is determined. Based on such a total flying task, the fleet size and its composition is worked out. Such other factors as the possibility of enhancing existing fleet size, introduction of new generation of aircraft to keep up-to-date with advancement in aviation technology and be competitive, etc. are also given due consideration. In view of the enormous capital outlay involved a prerequisite before going in for a different fleet composition is Performance evaluation of variety of new generation of air&. In order to provide for safety and reliability, a maintenance programme, is then drawn out. The minimum ground time required for such a maintenance programme, the daily aircraft utilisation and the route pattern, etc. are the limiting factors for fleet size, The following two tables indicate illustratively the annual flying task and fleet size with different types of aircraft.
‘Dr. Subramaniam is on the staff of the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, India.
Starting with a fleet of 10 Boeing 707 aircraft in 1970 and with the acquisition of latest and larger capacity
Table 1. Estimates of Traffic and Capacity Needs
Cargo
Total
Load Factor in per cent
::
84 116 130 157 169 188 206 224 238 242
286 341 399 473 514 586 659 713 753 782
53.2 48.7 47.8 48.8 49.0 48.5 48.8 49.6 50.8 51.6
Traffic estimates in RTKMS (Million)
Year
Pax.
Excess Baggage
1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-60
187 210 260 298 324 376 430 466 491 504
2 2 4 3 3 4 5 5 5 6
15 15 18 19 18 18 ::
Capacity provision in ATKMS (in Million) 500 700 800 980 1089 1197 1349 1480 1480 1510
Engineering Table 2a. Flying Task to be performed
Year 1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
38,800 38,400 31,400 31,000 18,430 17,600 17,100 11,510 11,510 11,510
7500 12,800 15,880 15,780 15,880 15,980 15,980 15,980 16,100
7510 14,830 21,350 27,710 29,780 30,080
Planning in an Airline
57
between 1970-1980
Total
Training Flying Hours
Total Flying Task
38,800 45,900 44,200 46,860 41,720 48,310 54,430 55200 57,270 57,690
360 360 360 360 360 360 360 360 360 360
39,160 46,260 44,560 47,240 42,080 48,670 54,790 55,580 57,630 58,050
Revenue Flying Hours DC-10 747 LlOll
707
Manpower
Table 2b. Fleet Size and Composition the Period 1970-1980
for
Fleet Size Year 1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
707 10 10 9 9 5 5 5 3 32
aircraft, i.e. Boeing 747 and DC-10/L.-1011, etc. from 1973 renders some of the aircraft from earlier generation, i.e. Boeing 707 progressively surplus to the requirements of the airline. Engineering Manpower Planning The process of manpower planning begins once the fleet size, its composition (type of aircraft) and the flying task is determined. The total manpower for Engineering Department can be broadly divided into (a) Direct labour and (b) indirect labour. The direct Table 3. Estimated Work
DC-10 L-1011
747
Total 10 12 12 13 11 13 15
1
; 3 4 4 4
1 4
4 4 5
8 8 9
:: 16
labour force comprises of Technicians, while indirect labour includes management personnel, shop floor supervisors, Engineers/Inspectors, clerical staff cleaners and peons, etc. Personnel from other support divisions such as, Production Planning, Material Provisioning, Technical Development, etc. are also included in indirect manpower. To determine direct labour force, yardstick of labour effort (in man-hours) per flying hour is adopted. This yardstick, though an estimated quantity is based on past experience at the initial stage, is subsequently reviewed and updated as more experience
Content for Initial 747 and DC-10/L-1011 Relation to 707 performance 747 Operation
Type of Work
Line Maint. Periodic Maint. Flight Handling Structural Repair Modifications Components Shop Eelect. Shop Inst. Shop Electronics Shop Engine Shop
Work Percentage Content of Workload for 707 in Relation Aircraft to 707 a/c. in M. hr/F. hr per cent 5.00 4.25 0.50 I 4.00 0.80 3.50 2.00 1.75 0.75 4.00
200 125 100 150 100 100 200 100
6.00
10.00 8.50 1.00 5.00 0.80 4.25 2.00 1.75 1.50 4.00
200
12.00
in
DC-l O/L-l 011 Operation Percentage of Workload in Relation to 707 a/c. per cent
Work Content in M. hr/F. hr
170
9.00 8.00 1 .oo
100 100 100 100 125 75
0.80 4.25 2.00 1.75 1.25 3.00
36.00
26.50 Plant and Equipment Maint. work
Work Content in M. hr/F. hr
Operation
32.00 150
9.00
58
Long Range Planning Vol. 10
August 1977
Table 4. Aircraft Maintenance Work 707 Year
Labour effort per F. hr
1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5 26.5
Operation Total
747 Operation M. hr
10.28.200 18;85;100 8.33.690 8;26;800 4.88.395 4,67,990 4,53,150 3,05.015 3.05.015 2,10,005
Labour effort per F. hr
Total
zi.5 33 33 33 33 33
During initial operation of any new aircraft, the work content in man-hours per flying hour is on the higher side. As experience is gained this labour effort stabilises at a lower figure. in 1960, when an airline switched over operation from 1049 to Boeing 707 aircraft, labour effort estimated and actually expended was around 32 man-hours per flying hour. This later got stab&d around 26.5 man-hours per flying hour. On similar lines, as the fleet increases and experience is gained the effort for 747 and DC-10/L-1011 operation is expected
Total
M. hr
-
2.40.320 4;59;730 6.29.825 7.75.880 8.33.840 9,10,040
32 31 29.5 28 28 28
Grand Total 10.28.200 11;55;100 12,83,690 13,91,280 12.73.125 14;48;460 16,03,715 16.01,635 16,59,595 17,14,685
to stab&se around 33 man-hours per flying hour in case of 747 aircraft and 28 man-hours per flying hour for DC-10/L-1011 aircraft. Based on such a labour effort and the flying task, the total work content in man-hours is worked out year by year below as an iilustrative example. The labour effort required for plant and equipment maintenance work which fairly remains constant in an airline has been worked out year by year as indicated in Table 5 below:
Once the direct labour force is worked out, indirect manpower is taken as a percentage of direct labour. A normal ratio is 1: 1.20, i.e. indirect labour is 120 per cent of direct labour. This percentage can come down from 120 per cent to 90 per cent as a result of mechanisationi
Table 5. Plant and Equipment 707 Operation
747 Operation
6.5 M. hr/F. hr
12 M. hr/F. hr
2,52,200 2.17.100 2,04,490 2,02,800 1 ,19,795 1 ,i 4,790 1,11.150 74.615 74,815 62,615
-
011 Operation
Besides maintenance work on aircraft and plant/equipment, one has to plan manpower requirement for outside party work, flight handling commitments to other operators, contractual work Gem other Airlines and capital type of modifications incorporated on aircraft and fabrication of equipment, etc. All this work has no direct relationship or bearing with flying task per se. The manpower provision for this work is, therefore, done on the basis of commitment and estimated work content that one expects to handle. The total work content for Technician’s cadre thus worked out is illustrated in Table 6.
When the operation of an aircraft is well stabilised, its work content, i.e. labour effort per flying hour becomes more or less constant. The work content of new aircraft, i.e. 747 air& and DC-10/L-1011 is estimated in relation to performance with 707 aircraft. Given below is the detailed illustrative working of such estimates.
1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1976-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
M. hr
O/L-l
Labour effort per F. hr
2,70,000 4,50,000 5,64,480 5.44.410 5,20;740 5.20.740 5.201740 520,740 5,94,640
36 36
is gained on the new equipment. To do this a systematic data compilation system is needed. With the help of a suitable ‘Numerical Digit Work Order Code’ it is ensured that the labour and material expenditure is booked on appropriate cost areas such as aircraft, engines and its accessories, etc. by cost centres, i.e. various Shops. This information is compiled month by month and made use of for review and control purposes. The indirect labour is taken as a percentage of direct labour for planning purposes. While determining this percentage, the organisation structure, existing ratio, etc. is taken into consideration.
Year Effort per F. hr
DC-l
Maintenance Work DC-lo/l-loll Operation 9 M. hr/F.
-
-
90,000 1.50.000 1.88.160 1.89.360 1,89,360 1.89.360 1.89,360 1,89,360 2,01,260
67,590 1.33,470 1,92,150 2.49,390 2,68,020 2.98,070
Total effort hr 2.52.200 3.07.100 3.54.490 3.90.960 3,76.745 4.37.620 4.92.660 5,13,565 5.32.195 5.61.946
Engineering
Manpower Planning in an Airline
59
Table 6. Work Content for Technical Cadre Work content in M. hr for
Year 1970-71 1971-72 1972-73 1973-74 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80
Plant. Et Equip. Maint.
Aircraft Maint. 10.28.200 11,55,100 12.83.690 13,91,280 12,73.125 14.48.460 16,03,715 16,01,635 16,59,595 17,14,685
2,52,200 3.07.100 3.54,490 3,90,960 3,76,745 4.37.620 4,92,660 5,13,565 5,32.195 5,61,945
Cap. Mod. Fab.
Recharge jobs
25,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 25,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 21,000
2,50,000 2,60,000 2,70,000 2.75.000 2,75,000 2,75,000 2,75,000 2,75,000 2,75,000 2,85,000
Total labour effort 15,55,400 17,42,200 19,28,180 20,77,240 19,49,870 21,81,080 23,91,375 24,10,200 24.86.790 25.82.630
No. of Tech.
out Stn. Staff
Grand total
975 1090 1205 1300 1220 1365 1495 1510 1555 1585
80 90 100 100 100 100 110 120 120 120
1055 1180 1305 1400 1320 1465 1605 1630 1675 1705
Notes: (a) The sudden drop of direct labour during 1974-75 is the result of phasing out five 707 aircraft from the service and introducing DC-lo/L-l 011 operation. This excess manpower will have been used for other operations or for training purposes on different aircrafts. (b) Once the total work content is known, for calculating the number of Technicians, we take productive manhours available per staff per year. While working out the Productive time, various types of leave, training and lost time, etc. are taken into consideration. This is likely to vary from airline to airline and country to country.
automation. The total indirect labour force (year-wise) is tabulated below. The indirect labour thus determined is further divided into various categories of staff. As far as Engineers/Inspectors and shop-floor supervisors are concerned, we have definite percentage in relation to number of Technicians based on volume of quality control work and sectional split-up of an organization. Other staff, i.e. management personnel, clerical and cleaners/peons is determined on the basis of general work content, type of organisation, etc. The breakdown of indirect indicated below :-
labour
by category
is
Due to rapid technological growth in aviation engineering in general and electronics and controls field in particular and with its wider application day-by-day, future requirement of Engineers will have to be largely met from Engineering CollegesjInstitutes. Fresh Engineering Graduates in Mechanical/Electrical/Electronic Engineering are recruited and general familiarization training on aircraft engineering and practices is imparted to them for a period of two years. Thereafter most of the Engineers join various Maintenance and Overhaul Shops and spend one or two years to ac uire sufficient experience to obtain licence or approval f rom Civil Aviation Authorities. Once this licence or
Table 7. Indirect Manpower Category of staff Direct labour Percentage Indirect labour Management Engineers/Inspectors Shop Supervisors Clerical/Mist. Staff Cleaners/Peons
70-71
71-72
72-73
73-74
74-75
Requirements 75-76
76-77
77-78
78-79
79-80
1055 120 1270 45 350 130 270 475
1180 110 1300 45 390 140 260 465
1305 105 1370 50 430 145 260 485
1400 102.5 1435 55 460 150 260 515
1320 100 1320 55 435 150 250 430
1465 97.5 1430 60 485 155 250 485
1605 92.5 1485 60 530 160 250 485
1630 92.5 1505 60 540 165 250 490
1675 90 1510 60 550 170 240 490
1705 90 1530 60 560 175 240 495
1270
1300
1370
1435
1320
1430
1485
1505
1510
1550
Engineers : 33 per cent of Technician’s strength. Shop Supervisors : 1 O-l 2.5 per cent of Technicians strength.
We have thus worked out our total manpower requirement for the contemplated task up to 1980. The additional manpower required over the present strength is indicated in Table 8. Taking into consideration the retirement of staff, upgrading/promotion, likely transfer to other departments and resignations, etc., the total requirements in each category of staff if formulated and thereafter selection, recruitment, etc. follows. As an example, for this year, these details for Engineers’ cadre are worked out in Table 9.
approval is obtained, an Engineer becomes fully qualified Aircraft Maintenance Engineer and utilised accordingly. This process takes approximately 34 years’ time. Few Aircraft Maintenance Engineers having licence on smaller aircraft are also recruited and given requisite training to obtain endorsement on their licence for the current aircraft on the fleet. A few candidates could also be selected from within the organisation and trained for a period of six months to two years depending on area of work. After obtaining approval from Civil Aviation Authority, these staff are used as Inspectors for quality control work. Taking into
60
Long Range Planning Vol. 10
August 1977 Table 8. Additional staff for
Cadre
Staff Strength for 70-71
Management Engineers/Inspectors Shop Supervisors Technicians Clerical/Mist. Staff Cleaners/ Peons
71-72
3:: 130 1055 270 475
72-73
G-3 10 -10 125 -10
73-74
74-75
75-76
76-77
5
77-78
78-79
79-80
5 40 5
30 5
-25 -
5 50 5
5 45 5
10
10 5
10 5
125 20
95 30
-80 -10 -85
145 55
140 -
2:5
-1045 10
‘5 5
Table 9. Description
71-72
72-73
73-74
Additional requirements as per para 11 Retirement Transfers/Promotions Resignation
40 3 1
40 4 7 2
30 5 7 2
-25
Total requirements
52
53
44
-12
consideration time involved for training, advance recruitment is initiated, and planned training mounted.
Conclusion It would be appreciated now that manpower
planning
74-75
4 7 2
75-76
76-77
77-78
78-79
79-80
50 8 3
45 14 7 2
10 10 7 2
10 15 27
10 15 10 2
67
68
29
34
37
is critical in the high technology aviation industry. Similar types of exercises are carried out for planning the flight crew as well as the commercial and ground handling personnel. The lead time required for manpowerplanning is very much a f&don of the technology, the product, the market and manpower requirements.