Citation

Eiff GM, Suckow M. Int. J. Aviat. Psychol. 2008; 18(1): 43-50.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/10508410701749415

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Research has demonstrated that workers in aviation maintenance operations often perceive that safety and operational goals are in conflict. Investigators at Purdue University have worked with numerous aviation companies over the past 11 years to improve safety and control maintenance human errors. During that time, it has become apparent that safety goals, strategies, and programs are differentially supported depending on the operational and economic pressures experienced by an organization. Purdue researchers have often traced operational and performance stressors back to poorly structured operational processes and other factors that result in artificially induced perceptions for the need to sacrifice safety for performance. Several strategies used or developed by Purdue researchers have demonstrated that safety and productivity gains can be simultaneously achieved through the use of process mapping techniques to identify areas in need of improvement. Using these maps as a tool, organizational members have the ability to follow the product through the process and identify safety and productivity challenges. Through iterative use of the technique, dramatic improvements in safety as well as process effectiveness and efficiency have been demonstrated in actual aviation operational settings.