The material requirements planning system for aircraft maintenance and inventory control: a note

Airline operators and maintenance organizations were queried regarding their maintenance and inventoryprocedures. Of 175 respondents, 152 were using the reorder point system, and the remainder the material requirements planning (MRP) system. The surveywas intended to examine the experience of companies using MRP. It indicates that the aircraft parts industrytakes this system seriously. However, it is more difficult to implement in the aircraft maintenance environment than in a commercial environment, where the need for spare parts is unpredictable. But if the obstacles are understood and a sound plan is realised by good management, MRP can be successfullyimplemented, with substantial benefits.