PPRuNe Forums - ‘Investigate Tool Control. Why is it important, how is it used in the industry and wh

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‘Investigate Tool Control. Why is it important, how is it used in the industry and wh

1. Are you involved in tool control in any way?
Yes mine and company tooling

2. Do you work in the civil or military industry for aircraft maintenance?
Civil

3. What is your role in this field of work?
Previous heavy Maint, now line

4. Have you ever been involved in missing tool procedures?
Yes

5. How do you account for tool control and who is accountable?
Everyone responsible for own tools

6. What types of method do you guys follow for tool control currently?
Shadow Boxing , electronic Tool Tags for company tools , personal tool register with photos of each layer of your tool box

7. Does your company/work place provide tool control mandatory training
for current employees and/or induction for new employees? (MCQ) Both only induction only mandatory
Only told on Induction about complying to tool control.

8. What are the main points of the policy i.e. who is accountable summery of
handling and protocol for lost tools?
Responsible for own tools , Stores Manager responsible for company tooling

9. Is there any certain requirement your company need to follow as a minimum standard by CAA and/or EASA for tool control procedures?
Yes Easa standards

10. Do you audit compliance for tool control inventories?
Quality managers job

11. How often the tools are inventoried in the workplace?
End of day and jobs

1. Are you involved in tool control in any way?

Have been: Military 31 years, civilian approx 12 years. Been out for a year.

2. Do you work in the civil or military industry for aircraft maintenance?

Military and civil.

3. What is your role in this field of work?

Various: Tool controller, Engineer and Quality Audits.

4. Have you ever been involved in missing tool procedures?

Yes.

5. How do you account for tool control and who is accountable?

Everyone is accountable for the tools they use and use specific tool control procedures to comply with regulations, see 6, 7 & 9.

6. What types of method do you guys follow for tool control currently?

Shadow boards, tool box contents list, physical checks by independent maintenance personnel before shift start, end of shift and shift change i.e nights.

7. Does your company/work place provide tool control mandatory training
for current employees and/or induction for new employees?

Tool control is part of basic training, re-enforced during induction to the work place and continuation training if necessary.

8. What are the main points of the policy i.e. who is accountable summery of
handling and protocol for lost tools?

See response to 6 above

9. Is there any certain requirement your company need to follow as a minimum standard by CAA and/or EASA for tool control procedures?

Company policy, EASA 145.A.40 regulations and for the military; Regulatory Article 4808 and MAP-01, Chapter 6.1.1 (civilian firms contracted by the military have to comply to these as well).

10. Do you audit compliance for tool control inventories?

Yes both the internal company audits, external company audits, regulator audits and if applicable prime contractor audits.

11. How often the tools are inventoried in the workplace?

See response to 6 above

Hello there,
My name is Umar Khalid. I am currently studying my final year in the University of South Wales and I have chosen ‘Investigate Tool Control’ for my dissertation. Therefore, I was wondering if you could provide me with some information for my research by answering the following questions below. You can simple write the number and then answer it e.g. 1. Follow the answer.
Thanks a lot for your time.
My compliments Umar, a worthwhile dissertation project, and well asked questions.

Survey question
1. Are you involved in tool control in any way?
Yes, I am a manager working with special role aircraft

2. Do you work in the civil or military industry for aircraft maintenance?
Civil, special role, not directly with maintenance myself

3. What is your role in this field of work?
see 1

4. Have you ever been involved in missing tool procedures?
Yes, a number of times.

5. How do you account for tool control and who is accountable?
Everybody is accountable. We operate a system of personal tool tags exchanged for tools.

6. What types of method do you guys follow for tool control currently?
See 5.

7. Does your company/work place provide tool control mandatory training
for current employees and/or induction for new employees? (MCQ) Both only induction only mandatory
Yes, for all new employees. It has been confirmed that all existing employees have been trained on "catchup" when procedures have been amended or reviewed.

8. What are the main points of the policy i.e. who is accountable summery of
handling and protocol for lost tools?
Individuals are assigned personal tool tags, which are stored on a board. They are swapped for tools - the board is kept close to the aircraft. So it can always be seen by checking the (shadow / hole) tool boxes if tools are missing, and the tag board who has tools out.

If tools are missing, tool tags are checked. If none are missing, the aircraft is searched and may not fly until the situation is rectified.

9. Is there any certain requirement your company need to follow as a minimum standard by CAA and/or EASA for tool control procedures?
My specific organisation only deals with the special role kit. We are subject to oversight and audit by our flight ops and maintenance contractors, who are in turn accountable to CAA, but under EASA procedures.[b]

10. Do you audit compliance for tool control inventories?
Tools are checked prior to every flight. We don't do other procedural audits.

11. How often the tools are inventoried in the workplace?
Prior to each aircraft departure, as 10.

Feel free to email me directly if you want to discuss further. I can probably get clearance to send you copies of our procedures.

G

Umar:

US/FAA based answers.

Survey question
1. Are you involved in tool control in any way?
Yes, I was both a user and an auditor of tool control.

2. Do you work in the civil or military industry for aircraft maintenance?
Civilian industry; rotorcraft.

3. What is your role in this field of work?
I was a line mechanic, manager, and quality inspector.

4. Have you ever been involved in missing tool procedures?
Yes.

5. How do you account for tool control and who is accountable?
A mechanic selects one of the available tool control methods. Everyone was accountable up to the Director of Maintenance.

6. What types of method do you guys follow for tool control currently?
Due to the variety of operations, the company policy allowed: tool shadowing, photographic records, and itemized listings as methods to control tools.

On top of the individual control, there was a daily audit requirement and signoff by a person other than the tool owner.

There was a separate control program for the company owned tool cribs that used a chit system to account for removal of the tools.

7. Does your company/work place provide tool control mandatory training
for current employees and/or induction for new employees? (MCQ) Both only induction only mandatory
Primarily new employee training, but tool control was a common topic in ongoing safety meetings.

8. What are the main points of the policy i.e. who is accountable summery of
handling and protocol for lost tools?
The mechanic complies with the tool control requirements of his personal tools and tool boxes. A daily visual audit of each mechanic's tools is performed at the beginning and end of the work day and recorded on a log. If the aircraft is operational (flying) the tools are audited prior to each flight (normally a mechanic will have a simple tote tray on the flight line).

If a tool is lost, there is a form to fill out and certain notifications made to supervisors. A search is made of the area. If the tool is not found only the Director of Maintenance, or his designee, can clear the lost tool form. If the aircraft is operational, it is grounded until the Director of Maintenance clears the aircraft for flight.

9. Is there any certain requirement your company need to follow as a minimum standard by CAA and/or EASA for tool control procedures?
The FAA has no requirement that I know of. It was done as a best practices program and customer contractual requirements.

10. Do you audit compliance for tool control inventories?
The mechanic's personal tools were audited daily. The company owned tools were audited daily and quarterly by designated personnel.

11. How often the tools are inventoried in the workplace?
Daily or prior to each flight, if applicable.

Good luck!
W1

Hello everyone, I cant thank you enough for all this information, I very much appreciate you giving me some of your time.
This is very good for my research
Once again thanks a lot.

Umar