Analyzing Causes of Vehicles Requiring Repair

F. M. Dar, I. Manarvi, Department of Engineering Management, Center for Advance Studies in Engineering, Pakistan
AbstractThe issue of research required in the field of increase in number of vehicles requiring repair is generally not looked into. At present, Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (EME) is taking care of repair of equipment of all types used in Pakistan Army. Due to the recent operations, equipment taken to field EME workshops has increased manifolds, vehicles being the major concern. Moreover, new equipment and vehicles are being inducted in army which are causing repeated problems. For these reasons, analysis of increase in recurring faults in vehicles, is presented in this paper. The field EME workshop, whose analysis is being carried out, is supporting a brigade with 869 A (tracked vehicles), B (wheeled vehicles) and C (heavy equipment) vehicles. So, the research is basically consisted of two portions: one is the analysis of the repair activity using fault trend charts, quality of spares and machine work and surveys carried out for the assessment of skill level of drivers as well as vehicle mechanics (VM), other being finding probable solutions to the problem. Keywords: Prosthetic upper limb, Body-powe N

II.FATORS AFFECTING THE PROBLEM A. Fault Trend Analysis Charts The most vital factor affecting the problem is number of vehicles broke during the last year divided into different categories with respect to make & type of vehicles. The total number of vehicles reported from August 2010 July 2011 for various faults was 354 (See Table I), Trk 1 Ton Hyundai being the highest reporter with 98 faults. Trk 1 Ton TA Hilux and Trk 5 Ton and Above reported the least with 13 faults during the last year.
TABLE I NUMBER OF VEHICLES REPORTED FROM AUGUST 2010 JULY 2011 Faults Ser Vehicles wrt Make & Type Repoted 1 Motor Cycle All Type 29 2 Toyota Jeep All Type 65 3 Jeep Defender 19 4 Toyota P/Up RPMR 42 5 Trk 1 Ton Hyundai 98 6 Trk 1 Ton Mitsubishi 21 7 Trk 1 Ton TA Hilux 13 8 Trk 2.5 Ton Isuzu All Type 39 9 Trk 2.5 Ton Hino All Type 14 10 Trk 5 Ton and Above 13 Total 353

military vehicle generally includes all land combat and transportation vehicles, which are designed for or are in significant use by military forces throughout the world. Vehicles that are armored or intended for combat are often referred to as armoured fighting vehicles. Repair of these vehicles is the responsibility of Corps of EME. Pakistan Army is employing huge number of vehicles for administrative and operational purposes. There are about 200 vehicles of different make and type. Repair and maintenance is a big challenge faced by EME. Army is still employing large number of conventional vehicles which is mostly mechanical based and involves minimal electronics. Recently, new sensor based vehicles with EFI system have been introduced in the army. These vehicles have their advantages such as better fuel consumption and more environmental friendly but they require a lot of care and maintenance along with a good quality fuel (diesel or petrol). Unfortunately, due to negligence and ignorance of user unit and poor quality fuel, these vehicles are creating lot of problems. Moreover, due to recent operations on the western front, vehicles used in these operations must not break down and need timely repairs if required so as not to affect the operation.
This research was done at Department of Engineering Management, Center for Advance Studies in Engineering). F. M. Dar (phone: +92-346-5375515; e-mail: fahaddar@gmail.com). I. Manarvi (phone: +92-336-5025073; e-mail: irfanmanarvi@yahoo.com).

I. INTRODUCTION

Faults can further be categorized according to different systems of the vehicle. The most recurring fault in Motor Cycle All Types is Engine Starting Trouble (See Fig. 1).

Fig. 1. Fault Trend Chart of Motor Cycle. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

The most recurring fault in Toyota Jeep All Types is Suspension System (See Fig. 2).

Fig. 2. Fault Trend Chart of Toyota Jeep. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

Fig. 4. Fault Trend Chart of Toyota P/Up RPMR. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

The most recurring fault in Jeep Defender is Brake System (See Fig. 3).

The most recurring fault in Trk 1 Ton Hyundai is Electrical System (See Fig. 5).

Fig. 3. Fault Trend Chart of Jeep Defender. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

Fig. 5. Fault Trend Chart of Trk 1 Ton Hyundai. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

The most recurring fault in Toyota P/Up RPMR is Electeical System followed closely by Engine Starting Trouble (See Fig. 4).

The most recurring fault in Trk 1 Ton Mitsubishi is Fuel System (See Fig. 6).

Fig. 6. Fault Trend Chart of Trk 1 Ton Mitsubishi. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

Fig. 8. Fault Trend Chart of Trk 2.5 Ton Isuzu. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

The most recurring fault in Trk 1 Ton TA Hilux is Engine Starting Trouble (See Fig. 7).

The most recurring fault in Trk 2.5 Ton Hino All Types is Engine Starting Trouble, Brake System and Clutch System (See Fig. 9).

Fig. 7. Fault Trend Chart of Trk 1 Ton TA Hilux. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

Fig. 9. Fault Trend Chart of Trk 2.5 Ton Hino. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

The most recurring fault in Trk 5 Ton and Above is Engine Starting Trouble (See Fig. 10). The most recurring fault in Trk 2.5 Ton Isuzu All Types is Brake System followed by Clutch and Electrical System (See Fig. 8).

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Fig. 10. Fault Trend Chart of Trk 5 Ton and Above. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

Motor Cycle All Type Toyota Jeep All Type Jeep Defender Toyota P/Up RPMR Trk 1 Ton Hyundai Trk 1 Ton Mitsubishi Trk 1 Ton TA Hilux Trk 2.5 Ton Isuzu All Type Trk 2.5 Ton Hino All Type Trk 5 Ton and Above

1 1 2 3 1 2 -

Engines of Trk 1ton Hyundai are overhauled the most. Overhauling of 3 engines of the above mentioned vehicle is carried out (See Fig. 12).

This shows Engine Starting Trouble and Electrical System is the major fault observed in all types of vehicles with 75 and 73 cases respectively (See Fig. 11).

Fig. 12. Engine Overhaul. Note: Number of engines overhauled from august 2010 july 2011 is shown in Table II.

Fig. 11. Fault Trend Chart of Motor Cycle. Note: Number of vehicles reported is shown in Table I.

1) Machining Work There are two Machining Work companies nominated by the formation. Engines for machining work are taken to both the companies. Some of those engines returned with problems due to improper machining work (See Table III) (See Fig. 13).
TABLE III MACHINING WORK ON ENGINES OVERHAULED FROM AUGUST 2010 JULY 2011 Outsource Machining Engines SNo d work on Returned with % . Company Engines Problems 14.29 Safe Way 1 7 1 Engg % 2 Awan Autos Total 3 10 2 3

B. Engine Overhaul An engine overhaul is basically renovation of faulty engines done on completion of rated period or running. In this process, all the critical components of the engine are replaced by new parts and then various steps and quality checks are carried out. There were total 10 engines which were overhauled (See Table II). Overhauling usually involves procurement of spares, machining work from outsourced companies and final assembly and testing by the units Vehicle Mechanics (VMs).
TABLE II ENGINES OVERHAULED FROM AUGUST 2010 JULY 2011

66.67 % 30.0 0%

S No.

Vehicles

Engine Overhau ls

where 1 is the worst rating and 5 is the best (See Table V & VI) (See Fig. 15 & 16).
TABLE V DRIVERS SKILLS Vehicles of Different Make & Type Motor Cycle All Type Toyota Jeep All Type Jeep Defender Toyota P/Up RPMR Trk 1 Ton Hyundai Trk 1 Ton Mitsubishi
Fig. 13. Machining work on engines overhauled from August 2010 July 2011. Note: Data is also shown in Table III.

Driver Above 3 yrs of Service

Driver having 3 yr service or less

2) Spares The biggest problem resulting in \engine overhauls is the quality of spares used. The 3 vendors providing spares are operating with Commanding Officers and GHQs approval. Record of quality of spares is maintained using Vendor Assessment Forms (See Table IV) (See Fig 14).
TABLE IV SPARES PROCURED FROM AUGUST 2010 JULY 2011 Vendors Mehran Autos Malik Autos Ghosia Autos Total Spares Procured 520 107 298 925 Spares of Good Quality 484 73 233 790 Spares of Low Quality 36 34 65 135 %age of Low Quality Spares 6.92% 31.78% 21.81% 14.59%

Trk 1 Ton TA Hilux Trk 2.5 Ton Isuzu All Type Trk 2.5 Ton Hino All Type Trk 5 Ton and Above Average Skill Level

4.3 4.1 3.8 3.2 2.9 2.6 3 2.3 2.7 2.1 3.1

3.3 2.2 1.9 1.3 1.4 1.2 1.8 1.1 1.2 1 1.64

Fig. 15. Drivers Skills. Note: Data is also shown in Table V.

Fig. 14. Spares procured from August 2010 July 2011. Note: Data is also shown in Table IV.

C. Skills Skill level of drivers as well as mechanics is of prime importance and is one the major factors. A data has been compiled using Questionnaires and Feedback Performa

TABLE VI VMS SKILLS Vehicles of Different Make & Type Motor Cycle All Type Toyota Jeep All Type Jeep Defender Toyota P/Up RPMR Trk 1 Ton Hyundai Trk 1 Ton Mitsubishi Trk 1 Ton TA Hilux Trk 2.5 Ton Isuzu All Type Trk 2.5 Ton Hino All Type Trk 5 Ton and Above Average Skill Level VMs above 3 yrs of Service VMs having 3 yr service or less

4.8 4.6 4.2 4.6 3.4 2.7 3.7 4.1 4.2 3.1 3.94

3.8 3.6 3.8 3.2 2.9 2.1 2.6 2.8 2.9 2.2 2.99
Fig. 17. Total Faults Reported by each Vehicle. Note: Data is also shown in Table I.

B. Machining Work Total 7 engines were taken to Safe Way Engineering out of which 1 returned and 2 returned out of 3 engines on which Awan Autos has worked (See Fig. 13). Out of two machinists employed last year, Safe-Way Engineering performed better with only 14.29% engines with problems as compared to Awan Autos 66.67% (See Table III). If only the former was used, only 1.4 engines (14% of 10 engines) would have problems. C. Spares As the price difference between high and low quality spares is not much as compared to the incremental costs of damaging something else as well as replacing the faulty part, the factor of price is kept as constant. Of the 3 vendors compared, Mehran Autos provided the highest quality spares with only 6.92% low quality spares.

Fig. 16. VMs Skills. Note: Data is also shown in Table VI.

III. ANALYSIS A. Fault Trend Analysis Charts The fault analysis shows the complete snapshot of the repair activity. It indicates that Trk 1 Ton Hyundai breaks down the most (See Fig. 17). The reason could be it is usually used on administrative duties. It mostly comes on fault in Electrical System. VMs must take special care of this aspect. Moreover, instructions must be given to the drivers of user units for periodic maintenance of the system. By controlling the faults occurred in Hyundai, repair load will drastically be reduced. The other major conclusion is Engine Starting Trouble is causing a lot of problem. This needs to be addressed by carrying out On-Job-Trainings (OJTs) of the VMs.

D. Skills Average skill level of driver above 3 yrs of Service is 3.1 as compared to 1.64 of drivers of 3 yrs of service or less. This means drivers with less service must not be given permission to drive especially heavy vehicles. Similarly, average skill level of VM above 3 yrs of Service is 3.94 as compared to 2.99 of VMs of 3 yrs of service or less. This means VMs with less service must not be given critical repairs especially those which are heavily used (Hyundai) and have complex systems (Mitsubishi). IV. RECOMMENDATIONS A. Project Description 1) Electronics The electronics include

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