Work place factors effect on maintainability in challenging operating conditions

Some industries such as mining industry create complex and challenging work place for maintenance crews. For example in an underground mine, for some machines, heavy maintenance tasks must be performed on site in a limited workspace in a harsh environment, including dust and improper illumination. Such operating conditions can increase the health, safety, and environment (HSE) risk, reduce the availability of the machines and increase the life cycle cost of equipment. A review of current mining equipment design and maintenance procedure confirms that considerable reduction in HSE risk, as well as substantial cost savings, can be achieved by considering human factors. This study discusses the effect of workplace factors on the maintainability of mining equipment. It presents the results from questionnaires on the effect of work place factors on maintainability performance given to maintenance staff at two mines, one in northern Sweden and the other in Iran.