By Ross Moody, IPWEA Executive Officer
A few weeks back, there was some discussion on the Fleet Community of Practice discussion forum about how to determine the appropriate level of mechanical staff required in a mechanical workshop. The most logical guide may seem to be a formula based on the number of vehicles maintained, however, it is not that straight forward and there are numerous factors that need to be taken into account.
The most obvious factor is probably the age of the fleet. If the organisation is changing the fleet at optimum replacement timing, then clearly they will be suffering less breakdowns and needing less mechanic hours than an organisation that is holding its fleet too long.
Technology is another factor. An organisation that is fully equipped with the latest in engine diagnostic equipment, for example, will be taking far less time to diagnose and fix a problem than an organisation that is ill-equipped.
Equipment usage (high or low utilisation), location (urban or remote) and local conditions (climate/terrain) will play a role in determining staffing levels, as will the availability and location of contractors for servicing/repairs and the extent of outsourcing of specialised works.
Calculating labour hours for scheduled services is the easy part, as manufacturers provide a standard check list to which any local requirements can be added. The hard part is the allowance for unscheduled maintenance and repairs, and this is where the age of the fleet and local conditions will become more of an issue.
Section 11.7 of the IPWEA best-practice Plant & Vehicle Management Manual (Ed. 3, 2012) provides a step-by-step methodology for calculating workshop labour requirements using first principles.
Step-by-step
- Calculate the average annual utilisation of each item. This is needed to enable an estimate for the number of services recommended by the manufacturer.
- Discuss and agree on labour flat rates for safety checks, minor and major services with mechanical maintenance staff, based on the task recommended by the manufacturer.
- Obtain the manufacturer’s recommended service intervals.
- Safety checks will be undertaken a minimum of every six months to meet local conditions or OH&S requirements.
- Obtain the number of services (minor and major) by dividing utilisation by the service interval or recommended minimum time. Round the number of services down to nearest whole number.
- When we undertake a major service, we undertake a minor service and safety check at the same time.
- When we undertake a minor service, we undertake a safety check at the same time.
- Calculate total labour hours for scheduled maintenance.
- Allocate a percentage allowance for repairs. The allowance will be higher for higher wear-and-tear items such as a street sweeper, as opposed to lower-wear items such as a motor car. Apply allowance based on age of the fleet, local conditions, experience and in liaison with mechanical maintenance staff.
- Allow a percentage of labour hours for administrative tasks such as completing job cards, fleet management system entries, parts ordering and other non mechanical tasks.
- Calculate total hours and divide by 1400 annual hours available/mechanic to obtain the number of full time employees required to complete the work.
The P&VM Manual also provides a worked example in the Appendices.
We can follow the manufacturer’s guidelines and do the calculations for mechanical workshop labour requirements, but without considering the local situation and taking into account the factors mentioned, the outcome may be way off the mark.