Engineering Procedure Design EPD 0020 INVENTORY MANAGEMENT ENGINEERING RESPONSIBILITIES Owner: Approved by: Manager, Engineering Standards and Configurations Jagath Peiris Manager Engineering Standards and Configurations Authorised by: Version 3.0 Issued September 2010 Jim Modrouvanos General Manager Chief Engineers Disclaimer This document was prepared for use on the RailCorp Network only. RailCorp makes no warranties, express or implied, that compliance with the contents of this document shall be sufficient to ensure safe systems or work or operation. It is the document user s sole responsibility to ensure that the copy of the document it is viewing is the current version of the document as in use by RailCorp. RailCorp accepts no liability whatsoever in relation to the use of this document by any party, and RailCorp excludes any liability which arises in any manner by the use of this document. Copyright The information in this document is protected by Copyright and no part of this document may be reproduced, altered, stored or transmitted by any person without the prior consent of RailCorp. Engineering Procedure UNCONTROLLED WHEN PRINTED Page 1 of 8
Document control Version Date Summary of change 1.0 First issue 1.1 Section numbering updated and Document Control Page added. 1.2 Replace reference from RIC to RailCorp 1.3 Standardising Format 2.0 May 2010 Application of new Engineering Procedure format as specified in TMA 400 3.0 September 2010 References updated and terminology and editorial changes made. Contents 1 Introduction...3 2 Scope...3 3 Definitions and terms...3 4 Requirements...3 4.1 Engineering design information for inventory management...3 4.2 Spares assessing...4 4.3 Purchasing/procurement...5 4.3.1 Product specifications...5 4.3.2 Additional procurement requirements...6 4.3.3 Conformance inspections...6 4.3.4 Non-conformances...7 4.4 Packaging, handling, storage and transportation...7 4.5 Rotable items...7 5 Responsibilities...8 5.1 Design engineers...8 5.2 Inventory staff...8 RailCorp Page 2 of 8
1 Introduction At the highest level, the inventory management process can be described as covering all activity necessary to provide the right material, in the right quantity and at the right time to support construction and maintenance activity. Supply of the right material, i.e. of the correct standard, configuration and quality, to support construction and maintenance tasks is critical for preservation of the safety and integrity of RailCorp assets. The ability of the inventory system to supply the right material depends on full definition and description of requirements for the items. These requirements are provided by the design engineer. In this procedure, assets refers to engineering assets such as rolling stock and infrastructure. 2 Scope This procedure sets out key requirements and responsibilities for engineering design support of inventory management functions including the provision of engineering data. This procedure should be read in conjunction with EPD 0018 Integrated support requirements which provides a summary of requirements for integrated support analysis in conjunction with engineering design tasks. 3 Definitions and terms Terms used in this procedure are in accordance with the glossary included in EPD 0001 Design management process. Terms having specific importance within this procedure are reproduced below. consumable items comprise materials and standard hardware items that are used in support of maintenance, servicing or repair tasks. Typically this includes oils, grease and lubricants, but may also include standard hardware such as nuts, bolts, washers, screws and minor electrical parts. repair parts are spares that are used to repair or overhaul equipment, either in the field or in the workshop, in the case of a breakdown. Repair parts are typically unique to the item that they support, but may include common, non-rotable items that are widely used within the infrastructure. rotable item is one that is capable of being repaired or overhauled in a workshop environment, to return the item to a condition that is equivalent to new. 4 Requirements 4.1 Engineering design information for inventory management Several inventory management functions within RailCorp depend directly on information that are derived from engineering design and related records. These include: Spares assessing which covers the process of determining the range, quantities and specifications for rotable items, repair parts and consumables needed to support maintenance of assets to the defined standard and at the level of availability needed to meet service delivery commitments. RailCorp Page 3 of 8
Purchasing/procurement which covers the acquisition of rotables, repair parts, consumables and other equipment to meet the requirements of engineering changes or to replace usage during maintenance. Purchasing action is also required in support of new construction projects. Packaging, handling, storage and transportation (PHS&T) which includes all warehousing and distribution functions for rotables, consumables and repair parts, including the implementation of specific requirements such as special packaging or storage and management of shelf life limitations at the wholesale or warehouse level. Repair of rotables. This process covers the restoration of designated rotable items to a serviceable condition, and includes estimating repair workload requirements, budgeting, managing inputs/outputs to repair facilities and integration of the rotables maintenance program with the assessment of repair parts where this is a direct RailCorp responsibility. Figure 1 shows key outputs from engineering records to individual inventory processes. The following Sections provide more detailed information about the requirements and relationships within each process. Figure 1 Engineering inputs to inventory management 4.2 Spares assessing The spares assessing process provides the means for new or altered spares support requirements to be recognised within the inventory system, as well as the means of estimating the quantities of rotable items, repair parts and consumables that should be RailCorp Page 4 of 8
maintained in the inventory. Spares assessing represents the first step toward purchasing spares to be held in support of maintenance tasks and other commitments. The following engineering information shall be provided to allow the spares assessing process to proceed: The RailCorp specification and/or the equivalent identification such as manufacturer s part number or model number of all items introduced by a new project or design change to existing assets. This should be documented in the parts lists forming part of the specifications and drawings for the new equipment or installation. Identification such as manufacturer s part number or model number of all items superseded or replaced by a new project or design change to existing assets. Maintenance policy for the item, by reference to the technical maintenance plan (TMP) or planned servicing schedule. This should include details of any planned overhaul action for the item including facility details or alternatively a maximum or discard life where one is applicable. Predicted failure rate information or, where available, actual failure data for equivalent items already in use within RailCorp. This shall be updated by actual failure data for follow up spares assessments which is essential to provide a basis for prediction of usage in support of unscheduled maintenance action. The quantity of items that will be installed as a result of the new works or design change. In some cases this represents an addition to an existing population of equivalent items. Any unique PHS&T requirements for the new items such as shelf life or hazardous material classification. EPD 0018 establishes a requirement for spares assessments to be completed or reviewed for all configuration changes, i.e. as part of all new design tasks or engineering changes. Confirmation that this action has been completed forms part of the design approval and verification process set out in EPD 0010 Design approval and acceptance and EPD 0011 Design verification. Initial spares assessments carried out in conjunction with configuration changes shall be completed by design engineers in consultation if required with inventory staff. The initial spares assessment shall either establish the need for new items to be added to the inventory or serve as a trigger to review superseded items for disposal. The initial assessment should provide a baseline for follow up assessments to be completed by inventory staff. 4.3 Purchasing/procurement 4.3.1 Product specifications Purchasing/procurement is a core inventory management function and is normally managed by inventory staff. Design engineers shall provide a detailed specification for the item or material to be purchased. This specification may be in the form of: a formal RailCorp specification and/or drawing details of one or more major items by manufacturer and item part number that have been type approved for the specific application details of repair parts and consumables by item part number, specification or national standard to permit procurement of items meeting the correct requirements. RailCorp Page 5 of 8
This information shall be established as part of the initial spares assessment for new projects. This information may not be available in inventory records for existing equipment. Definition of requirements by a manufacturer s part/model number should provide a unique technical specification for the item. However, it should be noted that this is not the case with supplier details since items to the same specification may be available from several suppliers. Selection of a supplier is normally part of the purchasing function and should not be included in the technical definition of the item unless special circumstances apply. EPD 0004 Engineering specifications sets out general requirements for engineering specifications including checklists for the type of information that should normally be included. For purchasing and procurement purposes, detailed specifications defining the requirements for specific products shall be provided. In addition to a clear statement of technical and performance characteristics, product specifications or drawings shall include the following requirements that are of particular importance for the purchasing process: test requirements and parameters including documentation of test results inspection requirements packaging requirements documentation required with the item to provide evidence of conformance and inspection status. 4.3.2 Additional procurement requirements EPD 0004 notes that product specifications should be confined to technical issues and should not normally include contractual aspects such as warranty, insurance, payment or statement of work requirements to be met in performance of the contract. Design engineers shall advise inventory staff of any specific additional requirements that should be included in a procurement request for individual items or types of items. This may include requirements for additional services such as operating and maintenance manuals and provision of training for new items entering the inventory or requests for information in support of a quotation such as data to support life cycle cost analysis. This information should normally be added by purchasing staff at the time of procurement to ensure that the requirements are in line with current purchasing policies and that they are in line with the purpose of the current contract. For example, it may not be necessary to procure additional technical manuals as part of a purchase request for replacement items. 4.3.3 Conformance inspections Verification of conformity should normally be included in quality assurance checks or receipt inspections carried out by inventory staff in accordance with specified requirements for the item, particularly where an item is being purchased as part of routine re-procurement action. In some circumstances, an acceptance inspection by design engineers is always required. In other situations, design engineers should only be involved if a problem or irregularity is detected. Action by design engineers in these situations may include approval to use an item that does not conform to specification on either a limited or an unrestricted basis dependant on the nature of the non-conformance. RailCorp Page 6 of 8
Engineering support may be necessary in some circumstances such as for major items entering the inventory for the first time or items that are being manufactured to RailCorp drawings and require designated stage inspections. Suitably qualified and experienced engineers shall be assigned to meet such requirements. Delivery documentation including approval of any non-conformances in accordance with Section 4.3.4 should be retained with the item and should accompany the item when it is issued for use. This provides evidence of conformity to maintenance or construction staff at the time of installation. 4.3.4 Non-conformances Product specifications establish the properties of equipment or materials to meet the requirements of the approved configuration of the asset. The requirements of a specification shall not be varied during the purchasing/procurement process without approval by an engineer who holds the appropriate delegation of engineering authority. All non-conformances shall be documented at the time of receipt, unless they cannot be detected until the item is placed into service, and shall be resolved by an engineer who holds the appropriate delegation of engineering authority. Specific instructions shall be maintained covering documentation, evaluation and disposition of non-conformances. All non-conformances shall be reported and the material quarantined, until an engineer holding an appropriate delegation of engineering authority has resolved the nonconformance. 4.4 Packaging, handling, storage and transportation Some PHS&T aspects form part of the product definition and should be included in product specifications prepared by the design engineer. Examples of requirements for inclusion in specifications include: protective treatments or packaging while in storage requirements for environmentally controlled storage periodic inspection while in storage product marking requirements maximum storage life. Other PHS&T aspects may be included in standard purchasing procedures and requirements such as marking of packages for delivery and methods of providing delivery documentation. These should be included in procurement documentation as part of the purchasing function. The inventory management function is also responsible for documenting, implementing and monitoring other PHS&T aspects while spares or materials are held in warehouse locations. These include proper storage and handling of dangerous goods and recording actual shelf life expiry data for relevant products. 4.5 Rotable items Rotable items form a special category within the inventory management process. Items in this category are assumed to be capable of being restored to like new condition when subjected to a defined maintenance process, i.e. major repair or overhaul. An item can normally be repaired or overhauled an unlimited number of times provided that it is able to meet defined performance criteria. Design engineers shall determine and document requirements for major repair and/or overhaul of rotable items. This is normally derived from manufacturer s data that has RailCorp Page 7 of 8
been authorised for use within RailCorp. The documented requirements shall include detailed procedures for disassembly, criteria for determining serviceability of individual components, repair limits, assembly and test procedures and parameters. Design engineers shall provide details of repair and overhaul requirements in an appropriate manual and shall reference the approved manual in the applicable TMP. Repair and overhaul manuals establish performance requirements and standards or specifications to be met by all items completing the repair and/or overhaul process. Failure to meet the standard of performance defined in the manual will render an item unsuitable for use. Each case where an item fails to meet defined performance requirements following repair or overhaul shall be dealt with in accordance with non-conformance procedures. Approval to use an item that does not meet the specified criteria shall only be provided by an engineer holding the appropriate delegation of engineering authority. Inventory staff responsible for managing the rotables repair process through designated workshops have a responsibility to ensure that all work is performed in accordance with the requirements of the applicable manual. Any proposed changes to the manual shall be referred to the appropriate engineering discipline head for approval. 5 Responsibilities 5.1 Design engineers Design engineers are responsible for: preparing specifications for rotables, parts, materials and consumables within configuration documents for all assets ensuring that spares assessments are completed in conjunction with new design tasks or configuration changes including the provision of engineering data necessary to carry out the assessment process ensuring that scheduled maintenance requirements are determined or reviewed in conjunction with new design tasks or configuration changes ensuring that maintenance manuals are prepared or reviewed in conjunction with new design tasks or configuration changes providing support for special stage inspections of manufactured product where necessary reviewing non-conformances in accordance with the relevant instructions and within the limitations of engineering authority delegations ensuring that all necessary support aspects have been considered in the design verification and approval process. 5.2 Inventory staff Inventory staff have a responsibility within inventory management procedures to: ensure that all items purchased conform to specifications and requirements defined in engineering documentation ensure that rotable items are repaired or overhauled in accordance with the requirements of the relevant maintenance manual ensure that all material received into the inventory system is checked for nonconformances to specification and/or documentation or packaging requirements report and quarantine all non-conformances until an engineer holding an appropriate delegation of engineering authority has resolved the non-conformance obtain technical data to support spares assessing or purchasing processes where there is any doubt about the correct specification for the item. RailCorp Page 8 of 8