Articles

The effectiveness of an airline’s safety management system (SMS) is often measured by the number of reports it receives, therefore, providing an environment and technology that encourages voluntary reporting is a critical dynamic in a fully functioning SMS. The problem some airlines face is how to develop such an approach when voluntary reporting has traditionally been low. Although a difficult thing to achieve, it is possible with appropriate management commitment and communication and it is acknowledged that the safest airlines in the world have a higher than average level of voluntary reports. One thing in common to all of these airlines is that safety is taken seriously at an enterprise-wide level.

The selection criteria for an aviation document management system (DMS) can be many and varied but there are a number of key elements that must be taken into consideration when looking to improve an airline’s processes in this important area.

Once a complete set of manuals has been approved and distributed, airlines need to ensure that they remain current, comply with regulations and there is oversight on changes required. In addition, consistency is a key aspect of the process as this ensures both ease of viewing but, of importance, ease of change. An aviation document management process never stops and indeed cannot afford to remain static such is the fast-moving nature of an airline organisation.

Airline organisations, no matter how small or large. hold a great variety of complex, structured documents and data, which can make the task of managing them difficult and often overwhelming. However, when it comes to the auditing process, an airline must be able to provide to Regulators a true record of changes made to specific OEM and operational manuals. These recorded activities must be relevant to the airline’s respective quality management system and are normally linked to that airline’s quality objectives.

Document management is arguably one of the most vital tasks to undertake within an airline’s organisation and it’s no secret that the amount that needs to be managed can become overwhelming. But the fact remains: it is a crucial part of meeting compliance, safety and audit requirements on a regular basis.

You'll have heard these a thousand times: “You only get what you pay for,” “you don’t get anything for nothing” and my personal favourite – “buy cheap, buy twice”. These are all clichés as old as the hills but as true today as ever.