Anyone who has worked in manufacturing or maintenance knows how easy it is to lose tools, but a small U.K. company may have found a fool-proof solution. Instead of trying to track the tools, Coplan Ltd., based in Milton-Keynes, has turned logic on its head and opted to monitor the tool box.
In the past, controls have been visual, usually comprising “shadow boards” where each tool is placed over its brightly painted outline. While this makes unfilled spaces easy to see, such boards can’t say who took the missing tools or highlight where they might be.
Tools inadvertently left in engines and airframes following maintenance or manufacture are a significant contributor to foreign object damage (FOD). National Aerospace FOD Prevention Inc. estimated FOD costs aerospace manufacturers and aircraft operators $4 billion annually.
To address this problem, various tracking solutions have included sticking radio ID markers or electronic chips to each hand-tool which, in practice, can be knocked off or damaged by use.
“The cost and complexity of modern aircraft and engines means that people working on them cannot afford to do so with overflowing tool boxes,” said Coplan’s Managing Director Roy King. “It’s too easy for tools to get knocked into the wrong places or inadvertently left behind — and the consequences of doing so can be hazardous. They have to be properly contained and controlled.”
Coplan’s answer is to monitor the cavities containing the tools. As a specialist manufacturer of foam inserts for tool boxes, placing sensors in each cavity is an evolutionary step. And, by linking them to a standard desktop PC running the system software, the entire contents of a large, multi-drawer toolbox can be closely monitored in real-time — either on-site or remotely. According to King, any number of tool-boxes can be networked together and centrally controlled by this system.
The new system, patented as intelligent tool control (ITC), is aimed at static workshop tool-sets, which usually are accessed by a swipe-card or personal identity number (PIN). Given this access, it will not only know the user’s identity but also their time of access, which tools they took, when they were returned, and when the box was closed. Also, because time is constantly recorded, the on-screen status is in real-time.
Data is displayed on a standard Excel spreadsheet, allowing users to choose the parameters they need. For example, tools can be “lifed” for calibration or replacement with set time-alerts, or alarms sounded if access is unauthorized. The system also has the potential to allocate specified toolsets to job-cards or even to named individuals, so that no one can take tools they’re not authorized to use.
Alternatively, it could use touch-screens featuring job-numbers. Touching the numbered button produces a picture of the tool set, with access limited only to those items.
ITC will be marketed as a “closed loop” package comprising customized software and system-equipped tool boxes or cabinets with the customer’s tool set. Additional push-on sensor-heads to replace any damaged ones also can be provided.
Less sexy, but equally practical, is a tool-box insert featuring a new type of foam, called MP45, developed by U.K.-based Zote Foams. Like most inserts, it’s made in two colored layers, usually a dark topping over a bright color, so that empty tool cavities are instantly obvious. In this case, the top layer is MP45 and the colored foam layer, LD45. But unlike other foams, King claims this combination is totally unaffected by corrosive liquids, such as hydraulic fluid, and can be quickly pressure-washed without absorbing water.
Another innovation is a super-light tool bag for traveling engineers which, including foam inserts, has an unloaded weight of just 4 kilograms. Assuming a passenger baggage allowance of 22 kilograms per person, this bag allows up to 18 kilos of tools, which is a 28% improvement over today’s versions.
by Bill Burchell
Coplan Ltd., Michigan
Dr., Tongwell, Milton-Keynes,
MK15 8HQ, United Kingdom
This article is posted with permission
from Overhaul & Maintenance magazine.
