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The purpose of this paper is to present a new star in the continuous improvement research, the hybrid structural interaction matrix (HSIM). The work compares the results of this decision science methodology with that of analytical hierarchy process (AHP) with a case drawn from a published work in the maintenance performance literature. It further identifies certain areas of improvements for enrichment of this body of knowledge.

The methodology presented in the work is termed the hybrid international matrix with potentials for prioritizing simple and complex numbers of maintenance activities or items.

The results obtained indicate the feasibility of prioritizing items in maintenance with some improved results in the quality of decision made based on the prioritization.

The limitation of the study lies in the fact that a computerized system is needed when the items to be prioritized are many.

Practically, it is noted that the quality of decisions made based on the methodology is enhanced. Thus, managers in practice would better achieve higher level of reliance than in the use of previous models that are similar.

The paper is new. It presents a novel contribution, which is capable of being extended for the benefit of researchers or maintenance. The work presents some research opportunities with potentials of elevating maintenance productivity theory and practice into the ranks of major concepts in maintenance performance evaluation.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate into the improvement strategies for lead time reduction of military aircraft major overhaul (enhance the overhaul task from present seven to nine-plus aircrafts as agreed to customer) for ABC Company.

This research has been conducted based on the available knowledge and extensive experience gained while working in the overhaul unit of the case organization for a long period of time. The research employs an integrated approach of multi-criteria decision method (in specific analytic hierarchy process (AHP)), theory of constraint (TOC) and simulation for M/M/1/K queuing environment for investigating the improvement strategies for lead time reduction in major overhaul of military aircraft. This has mainly included: Step 1: analysis of existing activity network using actual overhaul data; Step 2: ranking of constraint activities that most affects the lead time using AHP; Step 3: revised flow activity network using time buffers (TBs) concept of TOC; Step 4: mathematical model formulation for effective utilization of TB using single server finite queuing approach (M/M/1/K queuing environment); Step 5: discrete event simulation representing present overhaul conditions and revised overhaul conditions with different scenarios; and Step 6: sensitivity analysis and interpretation of results. The proposed methodology has been tested on an industrial case study dealing with an aircraft overhaul in India (namely ABC Company).

The proposed overhaul lead-time reduction plan points out the augmentation of resources in order to achieve more than 50 per cent reduction in lead time and waiting time under two scenarios – with overtime and without overtime.

An integrated approach proposed has so far been applicable to the specific aircrafts (Jaguar/Mirage/Kiran) of the ABC Company overhaul division. However, the particular methodology can be proved potentially useful and highly practical when applying to other aircraft types.

The results indicate several problems with the current overhaul strategies that need focused process improvements and a need for capacity augmentation for achieving the enhanced overhaul task of nine+ aircrafts per year with reduced overhaul lead time. The proposed approach also provides the maintenance planners with a platform for decision analysis and support often ignored the capacity augmentation.

Maintenance is a compulsory cost in any asset's operation and requires sufficient budget to be supported. However, insufficient maintenance allocation would lead to maintenance prioritization being practiced as a solution to relief the maintenance demands. The purpose of this paper is to review and discuss the related literature on the factors considered and methods practiced in maintenance prioritization, especially in asset managements.

A thorough literature search related to factors and methods used in maintenance prioritization was conducted through several journal databases. The keywords maintenance priority, maintenance prioritization, priority management and maintenance planning were used. Publications related to maintenance priority from the period of 1990 to 2016 were reviewed and filtered out. Literature focusing on methods and factors related to maintenance prioritization were analyzed and discussed.

This study presented the trend and publications related to maintenance priority throughout 1990 to 2016. Publications related with methods and factors were analyzed. The most used priority-setting methods include analytical hierarchy process; priority criterion; priority matrix; and failure mode and effect analysis. Factors for maintenance priority were categorized into four categories which are technical, financial, social and political category. A discussion on the strategic direction of maintenance prioritization was conducted to highlight future research and possible improvements.

The paper contains a state of the art on publications and discussion related to the factors, methods and suggestions on the strategic aspect of maintenance prioritization. It offers insights and information on the current body of knowledge to academics, researchers, maintenance managers, practitioners and stakeholders concerned with asset management.

The purpose of this paper is to implement a strategic decision-making framework by selecting clusters of maintainable machines and scheduling their maintenance as part of a company’s manufacturing strategy.

Multi-criteria clustering problem in conjunction with the application of a group technology is used to establish clusters of maintainable machines based on their need for maintenance according to the type of failures they can encounter.

Using the concept of group technology in conducting preventive maintenance will result in the grouping of machines according to the impact of a failure based on the criteria specified by the decision makers. Accordingly, it will facilitate the process of executing the maintenance itself by ordering spare parts and informing the maintenance personnel which will lead to minimize the maintenance cost.

The results presented in this paper are reliable, objective may be used to minimize the total cost of conducting preventive maintenance in a manufacturing environment.

With increasing pressure from the government and private sectors to be more environmentally and socially responsible, sustainable supplier selection has gained enormous currency in recent times. Particularly, in the case of the construction industry, owing to a large amount of industrial wastage generated and extreme workplace conditions, it is even more important to devise strategies to mitigate the harmful consequences. The most crucial step in this regard is the selection of sustainable suppliers that acquire a pivotal position in the supply chain ecosystem. This study aims to identify indicators for three criteria such as economic, environmental and social, and prioritize them according to their level of significance for sustainable supplier selection in the Indian construction industry.

In this study, the best-worst method (BWM) is presented for sustainable supplier selection in Indian construction organizations. Total of 27 indicators was identified for the three criteria of the triple bottom line (TBL) approach namely economic, environmental and social. Using BWM, the most important criterion was found and subsequently, all the indicators under each criterion were ranked in order of importance.

The analysis revealed that the environmental criterion was the most important criteria in the sustainable supplier selection followed by the economic criteria. The indicators that were the most influential in the effective selection process were “Usage of recyclable raw materials for production”, “Adoption of clean and green technologies”, “Waste management” and “Periodical environmental audits” under the environmental criteria; “Efficiency”, “Cost” and “Flexibility and Scalability” from the economic criteria; and “Safety programs” and “Information disclosure” in the social criteria.

The study provides a reference framework for the selection of sustainable suppliers in construction organizations. The findings can also be used for the assessment of suppliers' performance in the supply chains.

The novelty of this work lies in its attempt to model the performance of suppliers in the Indian construction supply chains.