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Nitin Rakheja 2.3- 1/7
ABSTRACT
LEVERAGING THE POWER OF
INTERACTIVE ELECTRONIC TECHNICAL MANUALS (IETM)
Major Nitin Rakheja (nitinrakheja@yahoo.com)
Maintainability Engineer,
MAG No17, BEL Ghaziabad
C/O HQ TG EME, Delhi Cantt – 10
The worldwide economic downturn has ruffled the feathers of the booming industry. Close to its heels of unveiling
new technology, the industry suddenly finds itself precariously placed and gasping for capital even as it waits
for the storm to pass. Whereas expansion plans have already been put on the backburner, the very survival of
Industries through maintenance of existing infrastructure has become a daunting task. Here again, Reliability has
been the bedrock of effective maintenance. The MTTR and MTBF completely determine the useful exploitation
of machinery and thus form the basis of an efficient production line. With maintenance hogging the limelight,
it is evident that the focal point is the maintenance man behind the machine. Empowering this man with all the
requisite information is the key to attain Plant Stability in the current economic crisis.
Faced with shrinking budgets, maintenance managers have turned to one small corner of the information spectrum
to meet their technological requirement; The Interactive Electronic Technical Manual (IETM), first conceptualised
in the 1980s, became a reality by 1990s and is on the verge of giving maintenance organisations a run for their
money if they underestimate its power in the hands of the end users. While on one hand, the IETM technology
is poised to change the way the users interact with information, it may sound the death knell for maintenance
organisations unless they act quickly to incorporate it in their maintenance and engineering support plans in a
comprehensive manner.
In just the past few years, advances in computing power, increased functionality in IETM delivery software,
portability of computers and reduced IETM development costs have paved the way for a successful electronic
documentation delivery and sustainment program. The combination of electronic documentation with multimedia
editing and delivery system can be used to establish the building blocks necessary for an Electronic Classroom (EC)
environment. Armed with these technologies, trainers now could develop more effective classroom instruction
that could be extended onsite. CD ROMs containing entire technical manuals and lesson guides can now be
provided to the user just-in-time for refresher training. The use of these Electronic Performance Support Systems
where IETM technology is integrated with training programs provides the opportunity to improve individual
performance and cut costs.
IETM is a powerful tool at the hands of the Maintenance Managers. Integrating it into the training backbone
can act as a force multiplier. An intricately fabricated IETM can allow the subject matter experts (SMEs), in
all areas (e.g., troubleshooting, fault isolation, accomplishing repairs or establishing alternate repair paths), to
bring their knowledge to the maintenance unit and apply it in a specific situation. Empowering the users as well
as the technicians in a symbiotic manner to act as experts can reduce expensive manpower as well as enhance

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operational fitness of the machinery thus providing a solid foundation in these shaky soils.
Introduction
Although cutting down maintenance expenditure may not have any immediate fallout, long term
effects of such an approach towards cost cutting have proved to be disastrous. This notwithstanding,
in Industry, one of the fi rst victims of a slowdown is the Maintenance Budget. Axing of maintenance
expenses is rampant during economic downturns even when the long term consequences are visible.
It thus becomes quite evident that to prevent the complete collapse of a plant, maintenance managers
have to be innovative to survive and sustain during times of meltdown and yet continuously provide for
the inescapable need of maintenance.
One of the factors that can act as a limited panacea to the pruning of the maintenance budget is
changing the mode of storing the Technical Support Data and Maintenance Information. Converting the
paper based ‘Technical Manuals’ and ‘Literature’ into highly interactive ‘Electronic Books’ has revealed
that there is a phenomenal potential available to improve the effi ciency of maintenance organisations.
Industries have thus begun to realize the advantages of Electronic Technical Manuals over ‘Paper
Books’ based technical support data.
IETM
An IETM or Interactive Electronic Technical Manual is an electronic medium to manage technical
documentation. IETMs compress volumes of text into Data Discs or online pages which may include
sound and video, and allow readers to locate needed information far more rapidly than in paper manuals.
The results are; massive cost cutting in holding/updating/storing maintenance information, timely
availability of accurate knowledge, reduced expensive trained manpower requirement, economising
on space, accessibility of information from remote/cut off sites, much higher MTBF and much reduced
MTTR, accurate fault diagnosis with faster repairs, portability of information eventually leading to a
vastly reduced maintenance budget.
Cutting Costs using IETMs
The use of automated techniques to create, manage, deliver and update technical information
documentation via an easily revisable database across hardware and software neutral platforms can
greatly reduce the life-cycle costs of technical information and improve the quantity and functional
integration of information for end-user use. The IETM and its associated database can act as the
repository for all deliverable technical information relating to the documented system; information which
can be extracted easily and quickly. The introduction of IETM solves or mitigates many of the problems
with the Engineering Support Documentation in the form of Paper Books:

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1) Weight – Where mobility is a top priority (ships, aircrafts, mobile ground units), every area where
a reduction in weight can be accomplished is scrutinized. Standard calculations assume that a CD can
store approximately 3,400 pages of text, tables and graphics.
2) Volume – Paper takes up much needed space. The same documentation would occupy much
less space if placed entirely on CD. Many facilities, which now receive duplicate copies of a single
technical manual, operate in a networked environment. A single copy of an IETM on CD would be
suffi cient for the initial IETM network installation and would serve as a backup.
3) Information Access – At a minimum, even the most basic (Class I) IETMs provide a limited
hyperlinking capability to allow the user to point, click, and quickly access desired information. The
functionality of higher order classes permits word/phrase search capability, internal cross- reference
links and links to other material (inventory, training, etc.). Northwest Airlines, using a prototype system,
experienced a minimum 50% reduction in airline mechanics’ time spent looking for the appropriate
documents.
4) Up-to-date Information – Once an IETM has been developed, integrating and distributing updates
can be a continuous process.
5) Reduced fault isolation times - With complex systems, fault isolation is probably the most
diffi cult step in any maintenance sequence. An IETM signifi cantly shortens the time required to perform
troubleshooting with its interactive functions. A technician enters a test result and the IETM can
automatically and immediately advance to the next appropriate test. This process continues until the
cause of the problem is isolated. This results in
a) Increased percentage of successful fault isolation
b) Reduced maintenance time
c) Reduced false alarms - This can be a serious matter in aircraft industry.
d) Reductions in false removal rates
e) Greater effectiveness of inexperienced technician
f) Improved personnel and equipment safety
g) Reduction in turn-around time for reporting and correcting technical manual discrepancies
h) Reduction in technician time spent completing maintenance reporting forms
Classes of IETMs
The functionality of IETMs systems is divided into fi ve classes. These classes are more like broad
guidelines with most real-world IETM products falling somewhere in between two classes.

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• Class I - This IETM class follows the structure and format of a printed book, with indexes and
table of contents that are hyperlinked into the content of the document. This might be a scanned book
with some links added.
• Class II - This format includes more hyperlinks than Class I, such as fi gures, tables and section
references. A hyperlinked PDF document is the typical example. The document would be authored in
XML/SGML.
begin begin end Class 2 Class 3 Class 5 Class 4 • Page oriented • Redundant • Linear
•
Class III - The difference between Class II and Class III is analogous to the difference between PDF
book and a web site. The book structure is discarded; instead the document is structured more freely
following the logic of the content. The document can still be printed but it won’t necessarily match the
presentation on the screen. Hyperlinking throughout the document is expected. The document would
be authored in a markup language, typically SGML.
• Class IV - This class stores the data in a relational database, obtaining benefi ts of data integrity
and removal of data redundancy. Relationships in the content that are presented as hyperlinks, are
mapped directly to relations in the database schema. Redundancy in the data that exists in earlier
classes is removed. The sequence of presentation is also different than earlier classes. There is no
longer the concept of a static page. Content can change dynamically based on users’ navigation and
input through the content; the content may now be user specifi c. However, it is no longer possible to
print a linear format of the document.

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• Class V - In this class the documentation is integrated with expert systems that may infl uence
the display of content. For example, the IETM system may aggregate data from a large number of
user inputs; feed that to the expert system that analyzes it and then the result gets fed back to the user
through the IETM system.
Strategies for Implementation
The Industry IETM Strategy should intend to identify, develop, and fund IETMs that contribute the
greatest potential for cost saving effi ciencies while improving the functionality and readiness of the
machinery and controlling systems in force in the Plant. IETMs would thus be customized solutions
for every plant keeping in view the structure, expectations from maintaining sub-units, supply chain
characteristics, reliance on partners, technology intensiveness in the plant, aptitude of workers, futuristic
expansion vision and possible integration into the existing maintenance solution. The goal must be to
establish a management structure and evaluation criteria that will accelerate IETM implementation to
derive maximum benefi ts from:
• Reduced system maintenance costs and time
• Increased system availability
• Reduced training costs and course lengths
• Improved repair technician performance, quality, and effi ciency
• Reduced costs to author, deliver, manage, and update TM information
• Capability to transmit to remote locations.
‘IETM integrated Training’ Strategy
Today’s industry budgets must demand the cost effective development of IETM products that serve both
maintenance and training requirements. IETMs are a key source of data to implement the electronic
classroom and on-the-job training. Training benefi ts from IETMs have already been demonstrated
through practical applications in several programs. Training development for a system is a long and
complex logistics support process that is begun early in system acquisition. Clearly, there is a major
interface between development of training and the development of IETMs. When appropriate, a training
plan (or equivalent) should address those IETM items needed for familiarization, formal classroom, and
on-the-job training for system operation, maintenance, and other special forms of logistic support. To
identify and understand requirements and interfaces, close coordination between the maintenance
planning, technical manual, and training disciplines for an IETM is required. In order to determine the
IETM functionality needed to economically support training, input is required on training infrastructure
requirements and its objectives to:

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• Develop, reduce or eliminate formal course training
• Develop on-site training
• Defi ne and develop a shared IETM and training database
Once the equipment and user training requirements are determined, all disciplines must identify the
issues and resources required for each to implement the IETM within their community. The Training
Plan is needed prior to contract award to permit defi nition of IETM features needed to support the
training requirements, whether in a formal classroom or on-site.
There are four strategies for approaching the interface between training and the IETM development
process:
• Coordinated (exchanging fi les, interfacing software) - Independent IETM and training
product development with planned and coordinated exchange of IETM fi les, software, etc. for
interface with automated curriculum development programs.
• Concurrent (developing some shared data, sharing/interfacing software) - Simultaneous,
planned, and coordinated development of IETM and training support products; development
and use of shared data and software; initial joint planning and requirements determination
which enable data integration into the training curriculum.
• Integrated (developing a shared database; sharing software) - Structured, concurrent,
and shared development of all maintenance, operations, and training materials into a single,
fully integrated database that uses multiple tailored view packages to present material to various
users.
• Embedded - Combining all requirements and materials into an integrated database
with a single view package so that training materials are indistinguishable from maintenance,
operations, and other materials; enable operations, maintenance, and training personnel to use
a single product.
In its initial planning, it must be decided which approach will provide the most benefi t, including acquisition
and support of both IETM and training requirements throughout the life-cycle. As training will have a
signifi cant impact on both acquisition and life-cycle costs, these decisions may affect the choice of
IETM that will most appropriately support the system.
Conclusion
In just the past few years, advances in computing power, increased functionality in IETM delivery

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software, portability of computers and reduced IETM development costs have paved the way for a
successful electronic documentation delivery and sustainment program. The combination of electronic
documentation with multimedia editing and delivery system can be used to establish the building blocks
necessary for an Electronic Classroom (EC) environment. Armed with these technologies, trainers can
develop more effective classroom instruction that could be extended onsite. CD ROMs containing entire
technical manuals and lesson guides can now be provided to the user just-in-time for refresher training.
The use of these Electronic Performance Support Systems where IETM technology is integrated with
training programs provides the opportunity to improve individual performance and cut costs.
IETM is a powerful tool at the hands of the Maintenance Managers. Integrating it into the training
backbone can act as a force multiplier. An intricately fabricated IETM can allow the subject matter
experts (SMEs), in all areas (e.g., troubleshooting, fault isolation, accomplishing repairs or establishing
alternate repair paths), to bring their knowledge to the maintenance unit and apply it in a specifi c
situation. Empowering the users as well as the technicians in a symbiotic manner to act as experts can
reduce expensive manpower as well as enhance operational fi tness of the machinery thus providing a
solid foundation in these shaky soils.