In what is being hailed by the Indian Air Force as one of the biggest automated military maintenance systems in the world and an important milestone in IAF history, the Indian Air Force has launched its Electronic Maintenance Management System (e-MMS) Project, an automated military maintenance system.
It was inaugurated by the Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha at the Air Force Station in Pune, Maharashtra, giving a boost to Prime Minister’s ‘Digital India’ initiative.
Here are the 15 points to know about the e-MMS Project of the IAF:
- The e-MMS project is one of the largest Maintenance Repair Overhaul (MRO) IT implementation in the world.
- The project has been designed and developed by the Indian IT company, Wipro. The contract for the project e-MMS was signed with Wipro as a System Integrator (SI) on February 4, 2013.
- The deadline for this project has been set at December 2017.
- The e-MMS system has a central console that will help IAF to get rid of paper works and heavy logbooks. It will transform IAF’s paper-based legacy maintenance system to an online system as it will be implemented in IAF’s hierarchy and functioning.
- It seeks to seamlessly connect squadrons, wings, commands, and Air Headquarters after its implementation.
- It will help to transform work environment of IAF to become more efficient and also help to monitor the operational availability of all fleets and systems in real time at various hierarchical levels. It will help individually, squadron-wise, station-wise and command-wise.
- Though the project has several layers of operation, the IAF would opt for online management of its maintenance systems through a web-based application.
- The project would be an important asset in conflict situations for quick fleet mobilisation. All maintenance works on the aircraft would be electronically monitored.
- The e-MMS covers 12 verticals including combat fleet, weapons and radar systems, across 170 air force sites in the country.
- The IAF with Wipro had simultaneously launched two pilot projects, the first in Pune as the Sukhois constitute the largest of our fighter fleet and, the other in Gwalior for Mirage 2000 aircraft. The second pilot project is also expected to be completed soon.
- The project would comprise configuration management systems, fleet planning and management, maintenance repair and an overhaul.
- The project will improve IAF’s efficiency and maintenance activities which will show in terms of saving of man hours, better management of the systems so that the aircraft, weapon platform and weapon system availability improves and everybody up the chain can monitor these systems.
- The cost of the project is ₹900 crore as of now.
- However, hackers are a threat for the project. But the IAF will strive for fool-proof arrangements so that the system does not get compromised. The IAF will tackle the cyber and hacking threats to the system, and are planning to have software and tools to safeguard the system from getting hacked.
- The benefits of the e-MMS system include real-time pan IAF visibility, standardization and validation of maintenance processes, online document search, automation of work flows leading to paperless work, biometric time stamping for all work processes and many others.
