Frontlog scheduling in aircraft line maintenance: From explorative solution design to theoretical insight into buffer management

Abstract

Based on a multi‐year research engagement with practice, we present a novel solution design for frontlog scheduling in aircraft line maintenance and offer theoretical insights into buffer management in operations. The field problem of the case airline was to improve departure reliability for long‐haul aircraft without increasing maintenance resources, and without using backup aircraft. Frontlog scheduling is the purposeful introduction of over‐maintenance as a buffer of maintenance tasks that can be opportunistically postponed. A detailed simulation of the solution introduced in the airline's operations indicates a performance frontier shift, concurrently improving departure reliability, and reducing maintenance cost. We position the novel practice in operations and maintenance management literature, arguing that the frontlog creates a new type of time buffer, available in contexts where capacity serves predictable as well as unpredictable demand. Further theoretical elaboration leads us to reconceptualize buffer management along time and capacity dimensions, reducing inventory to a special case of time buffering.

Hybrid digital manufacturing: Capturing the value of digitalization

“…In this study, we have used a leading‐edge example for revisiting OM theory, in a similar manner to Öhman et al (2021). In contrast to Öhman et al (2021), the novel solution has been implemented in practice, enabling theory development based on engaged scholarship.…”

“…In this study, we have used a leading‐edge example for revisiting OM theory, in a similar manner to Öhman et al (2021). In contrast to Öhman et al (2021), the novel solution has been implemented in practice, enabling theory development based on engaged scholarship. Our main contribution is conceptualizing the novel hybrid digital manufacturing strategy for realizing the vision of Industry 4.0.…”

Switchover to industrial additive manufacturing: dynamic decision-making for problematic spare parts

“…Extant literature has also identified the concept of dynamic response that considers changes in supplier operations, buyer demand, and production policies owing to market dynamics as a function of periodic time to satisfy the forecasted demand (Ahmad and Mondal, 2016, 2019; Koul and Verma, 2011; Öhman et al. , 2021; Ware et al.…”

“…Extant literature has also identified the concept of dynamic response that considers changes in supplier operations, buyer demand, and production policies owing to market dynamics as a function of periodic time to satisfy the forecasted demand Mondal, 2016, 2019;Koul and Verma, 2011;€ Ohman et al, 2021;Ware et al, 2014). However, we argue that under the conditions of conventional manufacturing, this concept still imposes a very high degree of transaction costs (Clemons et al, 1993;Grover and Malhotra, 2003;Williamson, 1991Williamson, , 2008 for changing the supplier once a supplier has been selected and a supply chain has been designed for a specific part type.…”

Adoption patterns and performance implications of Smart Maintenance

“…Contemporary research streams on maintenance in digitalized manufacturing are both focused on technology development (tools, methods, and techniques to solve maintenance problems) (Florian et al, 2021;Liang et al, 2020;Silvestri et al, 2020;Zonta et al, 2020) and theory development (how and why maintenance works the way it does) (Bokrantz et al, 2020b;Tortorella et al, 2021;Öhman et al, 2021). An emerging proposition that unites these streams is that in operating environments infused by digital technologies, modernizing the maintenance operations through some combination of technology, people, and organization will have positive implications on performance (Roda and Macchi, 2021).…”