. . .and then there was. . . data.

In 1984, the Helicopter Association International (HAI) began to develop a system that would facilitate the collection and collation of empirical data on any removable airframe or engine part(s); including service difficulties with helicopters, and timely analysis of that data. HAI's Maintenance/Technical Committee took the lead in this effort, which became known as the Maintenance Malfunction Information Report (MMIR) System.

With the approval of HAI's Board of Directors, including the necessary financial backing and supported by the HAI staff, the Maintenance/Technical Committee designed a one-page, four-copy, self-carboning MMIR form. This "universal" form was accepted by manufacturers for warranty claim and by the FAA in lieu of the SDR. Initially, HAI printed and circulated 10,000 copies of this form for field trial use.

Acceptance of the new form was very high, and minor modifications were made based on user responses. The procedure was for a reporting organization to retain one copy and submit one copy each to: the FAA, the manufacturer, and HAI. At first, all processing was manual; the data was extracted from the hard copies and entered into a computer system. This was undertaken as an interim measure, with the realization that the sheer volume of reports would soon overwhelm any manual system.

Using the COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) database development program FoxPro, HAI developed a software version of the MMIR form. The MMIR software package uses lookup tables to access data such as the ATA codes, part numbers, aircraft model numbers, or addresses. The lookup tables ensure data accuracy and reward the user with fast form completion by eliminating repetitive, redundant entries.

The MMIR software has been fine tuned and improved through extended field evaluations with operators such as Petroleum Helicopters and Era Aviation. Thanks to their help, significant improvements have been made to the MMIR software, including default data fields, duplicate record function, key word search, and automatic data filing via the Internet.

MMIR is now Web-based. The data is collected at HAI and analysis reports are available for MMIR users. These reports provide crucial information for trend monitoring, which has the potential to detect incipient failures on a real-time basis, as well as to supply justification data to extend life limits and/or overhaul times.

Although the original MMIR paper form is still in use today, the MMIR program has evolved into a comprehensive, automated, computerized maintenance management tool. Hundreds of users have saved time and money by making the painless transition to the electronic program.