To find out the “Why,” attend the free four-hour “SMS in Maintenance Workshop with IA Credit” at HELI-EXPO 2012 on Tues., Feb. 14 from 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. at the Dallas Convention Center.

Since the concept of SMS in aviation was introduced almost a decade ago, much effort has been put into supporting the program for flight operations – with great success.

Although many organizations have an SMS in place, some have not expanded the program into their maintenance departments. Often, technicians may not be aware that their department has an SMS, and alternatively, many flight departments are under the misconception that their maintenance teams have quality assurance programs which serve as their SMS program.

The purpose of quality assurance is to ensure that the maintenance department is meeting the regulatory requirements: proper part certification, current documents and manuals, repairs being accomplished to proper data, scheduled inspections and airworthiness directives are being complied with on schedule, and even ensuring that the SMS program is functioning properly.

The purpose of an SMS program is to create a “company wide” safety culture, where all employees are engaged in looking at their daily tasks and developing ideas on how to complete each task, mission and process more safely and possibly even more productively. “We are good but how can we be better?”

Organizations that have implemented SMS with great results find that:
* less equipment is being damaged
* warranty claims have decreased
* productivity has gone up along with billable hours
* test cell turn-backs have decreased
* processes have been improved
* communication throughout the whole organization has improved

SMS could stand for Safety Made Simple, but the mechanics of it are quite complex, and if not introduced properly can create a lot of headaches down the road. Take the time to become informed.

Instructor – Richard Komarniski, President of Grey Owl Aviation Consultants Inc.

To register for the event and for more information click here.