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FMP practice questions

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Question 1Operations and Maintenance

In facilities maintenance planning, which time horizon is characteristic of a work order that is generated, scheduled, and completed within the same shift?

  1. Planned corrective work order
  2. Preventive maintenance work order
  3. Capital project work order
  4. Reactive breakdown work order Correct answer.

Explanation

Reactive or breakdown work orders are triggered by a failure and are typically executed immediately within the current shift because production is already interrupted. Planned corrective work orders are identified in advance and scheduled into a future window. Preventive work orders follow a fixed frequency and are usually scheduled ahead of time.

Question 2Operations and Maintenance

A maintenance planner is deciding which jobs to release to the floor for the coming week. Which practice best supports a stable weekly schedule?

  1. Scheduling to full crew capacity with no allowance for emergencies
  2. Scheduling only work that is fully kitted with parts, tools, and permits Correct answer.
  3. Holding all work orders until the end of the month to batch them
  4. Releasing every open work order so crews can choose freely

Explanation

Only fully kitted work should be released so technicians are not forced to search for parts, tools, or permits mid-job. Scheduling to roughly 80-90 percent of available hours leaves capacity for reactive work. Releasing everything or batching at month end destroys schedule stability.

Question 3Operations and Maintenance

Which metric is calculated as scheduled maintenance hours actually completed divided by scheduled maintenance hours planned for the same period?

  1. Mean time between failures
  2. Schedule compliance Correct answer.
  3. Maintenance cost per unit
  4. Overall equipment effectiveness

Explanation

Schedule compliance measures the proportion of planned maintenance work that was actually executed within the scheduled window. MTBF measures reliability between failures, OEE measures equipment effectiveness, and cost per unit measures maintenance spend relative to output.

Question 4Operations and Maintenance

A technician reports a bearing running hot on a critical conveyor. Vibration analysis shows a rising trend but the asset is still producing. Which response best reflects condition-based maintenance?

  1. Replace the bearing immediately without further data
  2. Run to failure and replace the conveyor when it stops
  3. Increase monitoring frequency and plan replacement before failure Correct answer.
  4. Add the bearing to a monthly lubrication route only

Explanation

Condition-based maintenance uses monitored parameters to intervene at the right time, so increasing monitoring and planning replacement before functional failure captures the remaining life. Immediate replacement without confirming severity may waste usable life, while run-to-failure ignores available condition data.

Question 5Operations and Maintenance

In a computerized maintenance management system, what is the primary purpose of a bill of materials attached to an equipment record?

  1. To track the depreciation schedule of the asset
  2. To list the components and spare parts required for that asset Correct answer.
  3. To record the labor hours booked against each work order
  4. To define the approval hierarchy for purchase requisitions

Explanation

An equipment bill of materials identifies the components and spare parts that make up the asset, which supports kitting, spares planning, and accurate work order planning. Labor booking, approval hierarchies, and depreciation are handled by other CMMS or ERP functions.

Question 6Operations and Maintenance

A plant records 12 failures of a pump over 36,000 operating hours. What is the mean time between failures?

  1. 3,000 hours Correct answer.
  2. 1,000 hours
  3. 4,320 hours
  4. 36,000 hours

Explanation

MTBF equals total operating time divided by the number of failures, so 36,000 divided by 12 gives 3,000 hours. The other values come from dividing by the wrong quantity or ignoring the failure count entirely.

Question 7Operations and Maintenance

What is the correct sequence of the five classical steps of root cause analysis applied to a recurring equipment failure?

  1. Document lessons, verify effectiveness, define problem, find cause, implement solution
  2. Find cause, define problem, document lessons, implement solution, verify effectiveness
  3. Define problem, find cause, implement solution, verify effectiveness, document lessons Correct answer.
  4. Implement solution, define problem, find cause, verify, document

Explanation

Root cause analysis starts by clearly defining the problem, then identifies the cause, implements a countermeasure, verifies that it worked, and documents the learning. Verification must follow implementation, and documentation closes the loop.

Question 8Operations and Maintenance

Which practice most directly supports 5S in a maintenance workshop?

  1. Keeping obsolete equipment in the work area for parts
  2. Storing all spare parts in a single unlabeled bin
  3. Allowing each technician to choose their own storage layout
  4. Marking floor locations and shadow boards for tools Correct answer.

Explanation

5S relies on visual order and standardization, so marked locations and shadow boards make the correct place for each tool obvious. Unlabeled bins, individual layouts, and retained obsolete equipment all undermine sort and set-in-order.

Question 9Operations and Maintenance

A maintenance supervisor wants to reduce the time technicians spend waiting for parts. Which planning action has the greatest direct effect?

  1. Reducing the preventive maintenance frequency
  2. Moving all spare parts to a central warehouse
  3. Kitting parts before the work order is released to the crew Correct answer.
  4. Increasing the number of work orders released each day

Explanation

Kitting assembles the required parts, tools, and materials before release so the technician can start work immediately. Releasing more work orders or reducing PM frequency does not address waiting, and centralizing stores can increase travel time.

Question 10Operations and Maintenance

In spare parts management, what does criticality classification primarily determine?

  1. The accounting depreciation method for the part
  2. The purchase price negotiated with each supplier
  3. The color of the bin label in the storeroom
  4. The stock level and control applied to each part Correct answer.

Explanation

Spare parts criticality ranks items by the consequence of their unavailability, which sets stocking levels, reorder points, and control rigor. Price, depreciation, and labeling may be influenced but are not the primary purpose of criticality classification.

Question 11Operations and Maintenance

A plant is moving from reactive maintenance toward preventive maintenance. Which indicator best shows the transition is succeeding?

  1. Falling ratio of reactive to planned work hours Correct answer.
  2. Rising total maintenance backlog
  3. Falling percentage of overtime hours
  4. Rising ratio of reactive to planned work hours

Explanation

A falling ratio of reactive to planned work hours shows that fewer hours are consumed by unplanned breakdowns relative to planned work. A rising ratio indicates the opposite, while overtime and backlog can move for unrelated reasons.

Question 12Operations and Maintenance

What is the purpose of a lockout/tagout procedure during maintenance on energized equipment?

  1. To verify the spare parts inventory level
  2. To record the maintenance labor hours for the job
  3. To schedule the next preventive maintenance task
  4. To isolate energy sources and prevent unexpected startup during work Correct answer.

Explanation

Lockout/tagout isolates and secures all energy sources so the equipment cannot be re-energized or started while technicians are working. It is a safety control, not a time-recording, scheduling, or inventory function.

Question 13Operations and Maintenance

A planner notices that 40 percent of corrective work orders are completed without any recorded failure code. What is the most likely consequence for reliability improvement?

  1. Schedule compliance improves without any action
  2. Failure trends cannot be analyzed and repeat problems go undetected Correct answer.
  3. Spare parts inventory automatically reorders correctly
  4. Preventive maintenance intervals shorten automatically

Explanation

Failure coding is the input to failure analysis, so missing codes prevent trending, Pareto analysis, and detection of repeat failures. Inventory, PM intervals, and schedule compliance are not improved automatically by the absence of codes.

Question 14Operations and Maintenance

Which activity belongs to the planning phase rather than the scheduling phase of maintenance work management?

  1. Assigning the job to a specific technician and start time
  2. Sequencing jobs across the crew for next Tuesday
  3. Leveling the weekly workload against available hours
  4. Determining the labor, parts, and tools needed for the job Correct answer.

Explanation

Planning defines the scope and the resources a job requires, including labor, parts, tools, and permits. Scheduling then assigns planned work to specific people and time slots and levels the workload across the week.

Question 15Operations and Maintenance

A critical motor fails repeatedly every few weeks despite being replaced each time. Which action best reflects a reliability-centered approach?

  1. Increase the motor size without investigating
  2. Analyze installation, alignment, and operating conditions to find the cause Correct answer.
  3. Continue replacing the motor as the fastest response
  4. Add the motor to a daily cleaning checklist

Explanation

Repeat failures of the same component usually indicate a systemic cause such as misalignment, soft foot, or operating conditions, so the reliability approach investigates those factors. Repeated replacement treats the symptom and does not prevent recurrence.

Question 16Operations and Maintenance

What does overall equipment effectiveness combine?

  1. Utilization, overtime, and rework
  2. Availability, performance, and quality Correct answer.
  3. Safety, cost, and schedule compliance
  4. MTBF, MTTR, and backlog

Explanation

OEE is the product of availability, performance, and quality, giving a single measure of how effectively equipment produces good output when scheduled. The other combinations mix unrelated maintenance and business metrics.

Question 17Operations and Maintenance

A plant wants to introduce autonomous maintenance. Which task is most appropriate to transfer to operators?

  1. Performing daily cleaning, inspection, and lubrication checks Correct answer.
  2. Calibrating vibration analyzers
  3. Overhauling gearboxes and replacing bearings
  4. Rewinding electric motors

Explanation

Autonomous maintenance gives operators basic care tasks such as cleaning, inspection, tightening, and lubrication so they detect deterioration early. Overhauls, rewinding, and instrument calibration require specialized skills retained by maintenance technicians.

Question 18Operations and Maintenance

Which measurement is the mean time to repair?

  1. Total maintenance cost divided by repair count
  2. Total production volume divided by downtime events
  3. Total operating hours divided by number of failures
  4. Total repair hours divided by number of repairs Correct answer.

Explanation

MTTR is the average time required to restore an asset to function, calculated as total repair time divided by the number of repairs. Dividing operating hours by failures gives MTBF, and the other options measure production or cost.

Question 19Operations and Maintenance

During weekly scheduling, a planner finds that planned work exceeds available craft hours by 30 percent. What is the most appropriate action?

  1. Release all work and expect the crew to work overtime
  2. Reduce the estimated hours on each work order
  3. Defer lower-priority work to a later week and protect critical jobs Correct answer.
  4. Cancel all preventive maintenance for the week

Explanation

When demand exceeds capacity, the planner should prioritize and defer lower-criticality work so the schedule is achievable and critical jobs are protected. Relying on overtime, cancelling all PM, or falsifying estimates undermines the schedule and asset health.

Question 20Operations and Maintenance

What is the main benefit of tracking mean time between repairs separately for each failure mode rather than for the asset as a whole?

  1. It reveals which specific failure mode drives downtime so countermeasures can be targeted Correct answer.
  2. It eliminates the need for preventive maintenance
  3. It automatically calculates spare parts cost
  4. It reduces the number of work orders created

Explanation

Analyzing reliability by failure mode shows which mechanism consumes the most operating time or causes the most downtime, allowing targeted countermeasures. Asset-level averages can mask a dominant failure mode, and the analysis does not replace PM or calculate costs automatically.

Question 21Operations and Maintenance

Which document defines the step-by-step method and safety precautions for performing a specific maintenance task?

  1. Spare parts catalog
  2. Shutdown readiness review
  3. Preventive maintenance job plan or procedure Correct answer.
  4. Purchase requisition

Explanation

A job plan or procedure documents the sequence of steps, required resources, and safety precautions for a specific task. A requisition is a purchasing document, a readiness review confirms shutdown preparedness, and a catalog lists parts.

Question 22Operations and Maintenance

A plant uses a run-to-failure strategy for non-critical light bulbs but condition monitoring for critical pumps. Which principle explains this difference?

  1. All assets should receive identical maintenance strategies
  2. Maintenance strategy should reflect the consequence of failure and asset criticality Correct answer.
  3. Run-to-failure is never acceptable in any plant
  4. Condition monitoring is always cheaper than replacement

Explanation

Maintenance strategy should be proportionate to the consequence and likelihood of failure, so low-consequence items can run to failure while critical assets justify monitoring. Uniform strategies waste resources, and cost or acceptability depends on context.

Question 23Operations and Maintenance

What is the purpose of a maintenance backlog expressed in craft weeks?

  1. To calculate the depreciation of maintenance tools
  2. To measure the reliability of each production line
  3. To show how many weeks of available labor are required to clear open work Correct answer.
  4. To record the number of spare parts awaiting delivery

Explanation

Backlog in craft weeks converts open work order hours into the number of weeks of available labor needed to complete them, indicating whether the backlog is healthy. It does not track parts deliveries, line reliability, or tool depreciation.

Question 24Operations and Maintenance

A technician completes a repair but finds the same fault returns within a week. Which follow-up step in the work order process is most important?

  1. Reassigning the work order to a different crew
  2. Closing the work order without comments to save time
  3. Recording the failure code and findings to enable trend analysis Correct answer.
  4. Deleting the original work order history

Explanation

Recording the failure code and diagnostic findings preserves the data needed to detect repeat failures and drive root cause analysis. Closing without comments, deleting history, or merely reassigning loses the information required for improvement.

Question 25Operations and Maintenance

Which practice best supports accurate maintenance labor hour tracking in a CMMS?

  1. Technicians entering actual hours against the work order at completion Correct answer.
  2. Estimating hours at month end from memory
  3. Using a single default code for all labor
  4. Recording only overtime hours for each job

Explanation

Accurate labor tracking requires technicians to record actual hours against the specific work order as the work is performed, which supports planning accuracy and cost analysis. Estimating from memory, recording only overtime, or using a default code distorts the data.

Question 26Operations and Maintenance

A maintenance planner is deciding how to structure the preventive maintenance program for a large population of identical conveyor gearboxes. Which approach best reflects a sound PM optimization principle?

  1. Eliminate PM tasks entirely once any condition monitoring sensor is installed on the gearbox
  2. Perform all PM tasks weekly regardless of duty cycle so that no failure mode is missed
  3. Base the task interval on the manufacturer's recommended interval and adjust it using observed failure and condition data Correct answer.
  4. Set every PM interval to the shortest interval found in any vendor manual to guarantee coverage

Explanation

PM optimization starts from a defensible baseline such as the vendor recommendation and then adjusts intervals using actual failure history and condition data. This balances risk against maintenance cost and avoids over-maintaining assets. Blanket short intervals or weekly tasks inflate cost without evidence of benefit.

Question 27Operations and Maintenance

In a CMMS, a work order is created for a bearing replacement on a critical pump. Which field most directly enables later reliability analysis of that failure?

  1. Requested completion date
  2. Problem or failure code assigned to the work order Correct answer.
  3. Priority level chosen at creation
  4. Assigned craft name on the work order

Explanation

Failure or problem codes classify what actually failed and how, which is the raw input for Pareto and reliability analysis. Craft, priority, and dates describe execution logistics rather than the failure itself. Without coded failure data, trends cannot be aggregated.

Question 28Operations and Maintenance

A plant operates a critical compressor whose failure would halt production. Condition monitoring shows a developing bearing defect with a clear trend. Which maintenance response is most appropriate?

  1. Continue running until the bearing seizes and then perform corrective maintenance
  2. Plan and schedule the bearing replacement before the defect reaches the alarm limit Correct answer.
  3. Increase the monitoring frequency but defer all corrective action indefinitely
  4. Shorten the lubrication interval and take no other action

Explanation

Predictive maintenance uses trended condition data to schedule corrective work before functional failure, converting potential unplanned downtime into planned work. Waiting for seizure creates unplanned outage and secondary damage. Lubrication changes or monitoring alone do not remove an established defect.

Question 29Operations and Maintenance

A maintenance manager is calculating craft capacity for next week. Which input is essential to determine available wrench time?

  1. Number of work requests submitted by operators
  2. Total value of spare parts consumed last month
  3. Average age of the equipment in the plant
  4. Number of technicians, scheduled hours, and an allowance for non-productive time Correct answer.

Explanation

Available capacity is the product of headcount and scheduled hours, reduced by allowances for meetings, breaks, travel, and other non-wrench activities. Parts value, request volume, and equipment age do not define labor hours available. Capacity must be expressed in craft hours to match workload.

Question 30Operations and Maintenance

A plant has a backlog of 900 craft hours and 12 technicians each available for 30 productive hours per week. What does the backlog represent in craft weeks?

  1. About 7.5 craft weeks
  2. About 0.4 craft weeks
  3. About 2.5 craft weeks Correct answer.
  4. About 30 craft weeks

Explanation

Weekly capacity is 12 technicians times 30 productive hours, or 360 craft hours. Dividing the 900-hour backlog by 360 gives 2.5 craft weeks of work. Expressing backlog in craft weeks shows how long the queue would take to clear at current capacity.

Question 31Operations and Maintenance

During a shutdown, a contractor must work inside a confined vessel. Which control should be verified before entry is permitted?

  1. A completed entry permit with atmospheric testing and a designated attendant Correct answer.
  2. A posted sign on the vessel hatch
  3. A verbal confirmation from the contractor supervisor only
  4. A copy of the contractor's insurance certificate

Explanation

Confined space entry requires a formal permit, atmospheric testing for oxygen and hazardous gases, and an attendant stationed outside. Verbal assurances or signage alone do not establish the required controls. Insurance documentation is a commercial matter, not an entry safety control.

Question 32Operations and Maintenance

A reliability engineer wants to distinguish whether a recurring seal failure is caused by operating practice or by an inherent design weakness. Which action best supports that determination?

  1. Replace all seals with a different brand immediately
  2. Record the seal replacement cost on each work order
  3. Compare seal life across identical units under different operating conditions Correct answer.
  4. Increase the PM frequency for seal inspection on all units

Explanation

Comparing the same design across units with differing operating conditions isolates whether practice or design drives the failures. Immediate brand changes confound the analysis without evidence. Inspection frequency and cost recording do not separate the causal factors.

Question 33Operations and Maintenance

Which element of a maintenance work order is primarily intended to capture the actual resources consumed during execution?

  1. The safety permit reference
  2. The original request description
  3. The equipment tag number
  4. Labor hours and materials issued against the order Correct answer.

Explanation

Actual labor hours and materials issued are the execution records that feed cost and productivity analysis. The request description, permit reference, and tag number are planning and identification fields. Accurate capture of consumed resources enables backlog and cost control.

Question 34Operations and Maintenance

A planner is building a job plan for a complex valve overhaul. Which inclusion most improves consistency between different technicians performing the task?

  1. A list of all spare parts in the warehouse
  2. A sequenced task list with time estimates, tools, and acceptance criteria Correct answer.
  3. A copy of the vendor's full catalog
  4. A general note to overhaul the valve per good practice

Explanation

A job plan specifies the sequence, estimated durations, required tools, and measurable acceptance criteria so results are repeatable. Vague instructions leave execution to individual judgment. Parts lists and catalogs support the job but do not define the method.

Question 35Operations and Maintenance

A plant tracks maintenance KPIs and notices that schedule compliance is high but emergency work remains at 40 percent of total hours. What does this combination most likely indicate?

  1. The planners are scheduling too much work each week
  2. The schedule covers only planned work while urgent breakdowns bypass it Correct answer.
  3. The CMMS is failing to record labor hours
  4. The technicians are completing work faster than planned

Explanation

High compliance measured only against planned jobs can coexist with heavy emergency work because breakdowns are handled outside the schedule. The metric is being read in isolation from the reactive share. Reducing emergency hours requires addressing the causes of unplanned failures.

Question 36Operations and Maintenance

Which practice most improves the accuracy of equipment history used for future maintenance decisions?

  1. Recording only the total cost of each work order
  2. Allowing technicians to close orders verbally with the supervisor
  3. Archiving completed work orders immediately after the job
  4. Requiring closure of work orders with a failure code and actual hours Correct answer.

Explanation

Complete closure with a failure code and actual hours ensures each event is captured in a form usable for trend analysis. Verbal closure and immediate archiving lose detail. Recording only cost loses the failure and labor information needed for reliability work.

Question 37Operations and Maintenance

What is the primary purpose of a preventive maintenance inspection route in a CMMS?

  1. To record contractor invoices
  2. To list all employees authorized to enter the warehouse
  3. To generate scheduled inspection work orders at defined intervals for specific assets Correct answer.
  4. To store the plant's capital budget projections

Explanation

A PM route groups inspection tasks by asset and interval so the system can generate scheduled work orders automatically. It is an execution tool for recurring inspections. Budgets, invoices, and access lists belong to other functions.

Question 38Operations and Maintenance

A technician reports that a newly installed pump is running hot. Which immediate action best fits a disciplined troubleshooting approach?

  1. Immediately dismantle the pump to inspect the internals
  2. Order a replacement pump to avoid production risk
  3. Adjust the operating setpoint until the temperature reading looks normal
  4. Gather baseline data such as temperature, vibration, and alignment readings before changing anything Correct answer.

Explanation

Collecting baseline measurements documents the actual condition and supports a reasoned diagnosis before intervention. Immediate dismantling or setpoint changes may destroy evidence or mask the cause. Ordering a replacement before diagnosis risks unnecessary cost.

Question 39Operations and Maintenance

Which factor most strongly determines whether a spare part should be held in stock rather than purchased on demand?

  1. The number of suppliers who can quote the item
  2. The combination of failure consequence and the part's lead time Correct answer.
  3. The color coding of the storeroom bin
  4. The physical size of the part

Explanation

Stocking decisions weigh the operational consequence of the part failing against how long it takes to obtain. High-consequence, long-lead items justify holding stock. Size, bin labeling, and supplier count are secondary considerations.

Question 40Operations and Maintenance

A plant wants to reduce the mean time to repair for a critical line. Which action most directly targets that metric?

  1. Pre-staging kits, tools, and procedures so technicians begin work without delay Correct answer.
  2. Extending the operating hours of the line
  3. Reducing the spare parts inventory value
  4. Increasing the number of PM inspections on the line

Explanation

MTTR includes the time to diagnose, obtain parts and tools, and complete the repair, so pre-staged kits and clear procedures shorten the execution path. More PM inspections and longer operating hours do not reduce repair duration. Cutting inventory can actually increase waiting time.

Question 41Operations and Maintenance

Which statement best describes the role of a maintenance scheduler as distinct from a planner?

  1. The scheduler approves capital expenditure for new equipment
  2. The scheduler performs the repairs personally when crews are short
  3. The scheduler sequences approved work into time slots and balances it against available crews Correct answer.
  4. The scheduler writes the detailed job procedures for each task

Explanation

Scheduling takes planned, approved work and places it into a time-based sequence matched to crew availability. Writing job procedures is a planning function. Capital approval and hands-on repair fall outside the scheduler's role.

Question 42Operations and Maintenance

A plant's maintenance cost per unit produced is rising while total maintenance spending is flat. Which explanation is most plausible?

  1. The plant has reduced its number of assets
  2. Production output has fallen, so the same maintenance cost is spread over fewer units Correct answer.
  3. Spare parts prices have dropped sharply
  4. Labor rates have declined across the site

Explanation

Cost per unit is a ratio, so a flat numerator with a shrinking denominator raises the metric. Falling output with unchanged maintenance spending produces exactly this pattern. Lower parts prices, fewer assets, or lower labor rates would tend to reduce the ratio.

Question 43Operations and Maintenance

Which action best supports a maintenance organization's effort to move from paper records to a functional CMMS?

  1. Standardizing asset numbering and work order types before data migration Correct answer.
  2. Allowing each department to define its own asset codes
  3. Migrating all historical paper records without review
  4. Delaying user training until after go-live

Explanation

Consistent asset numbering and defined work order types create a clean structure that makes reporting possible after migration. Unreviewed legacy records and department-specific codes create duplication and inconsistency. Training before go-live reduces early data errors.

Question 44Operations and Maintenance

A plant uses vibration analysis on critical rotating equipment. What does a rising overall vibration trend most reliably indicate?

  1. That the machine will fail within a fixed number of hours
  2. A developing mechanical condition that warrants investigation Correct answer.
  3. That the machine is operating within normal limits
  4. That the lubricant must be replaced immediately

Explanation

A rising vibration trend signals a developing mechanical condition such as imbalance, misalignment, or bearing wear that requires investigation. It does not predict an exact failure time or specify a single corrective action. A rising trend is not evidence of normal operation.

Question 45Operations and Maintenance

A planner finds that a recurring corrective task is performed several times per month on the same asset with nearly identical job steps. What is the most useful planning response?

  1. Assign the task to a different technician each occurrence
  2. Remove the task from the CMMS to reduce administrative load
  3. Create a standard job plan and evaluate whether the recurrence points to a chronic fault Correct answer.
  4. Continue creating a new ad hoc work order each time

Explanation

Recurring identical work justifies a standard job plan that improves efficiency, and the repetition itself signals a chronic problem worth investigating. Ad hoc orders, rotating technicians, or deleting records hide the pattern and waste effort.

Question 46Operations and Maintenance

Which of the following best describes the purpose of a maintenance key performance indicator such as percentage of planned work?

  1. To satisfy an external audit only
  2. To replace the need for a maintenance strategy
  3. To measure progress toward a defined maintenance objective and prompt corrective action Correct answer.
  4. To rank individual technicians for discipline

Explanation

A KPI quantifies performance against an objective so management can detect drift and act. It supports, rather than replaces, the maintenance strategy. KPIs are organizational measures, not tools for individual discipline or mere audit compliance.

Question 47Operations and Maintenance

A plant is deciding between repairing and replacing a 15-year-old compressor. Which analysis best supports the decision?

  1. Choose whichever option the vendor recommends
  2. Compare the total lifecycle cost of continued repair against replacement, including reliability and energy use Correct answer.
  3. Choose repair because it has the lower immediate invoice
  4. Choose replacement because the asset is old

Explanation

A repair-versus-replace decision should compare full lifecycle costs, including reliability, downtime, and energy consumption, not just the immediate invoice. Age alone is not a sufficient criterion. Deferring to a vendor introduces commercial bias.

Question 48Operations and Maintenance

Which documentation should a technician consult to confirm the correct torque value for a flange bolted joint on a pressure vessel?

  1. The storeroom parts catalog
  2. A general workshop handbook of typical values
  3. The previous technician's personal notes
  4. The equipment-specific maintenance procedure or engineering specification Correct answer.

Explanation

Torque values for pressure-containing joints must come from the equipment-specific procedure or engineering specification, which accounts for gasket type, bolt size, and service conditions. Generic tables, catalogs, or personal notes may not reflect the actual design requirements.

Question 49Operations and Maintenance

A maintenance team wants to reduce the number of repeat failures on a critical motor. Which measure would best reveal whether past corrective actions were effective?

  1. Tracking the failure mode and time to next failure for each repair Correct answer.
  2. Recording the number of technicians assigned to each job
  3. Counting the total number of work orders closed each month
  4. Measuring the total maintenance budget spent on the motor

Explanation

Linking each repair to its failure mode and the interval until the next failure shows whether the corrective action actually resolved the cause. Total work order counts, spending, and staffing do not reveal recurrence. Effectiveness requires following the asset forward in time.

Question 50Operations and Maintenance

During a planned outage, the maintenance supervisor must decide the order in which to release work. Which sequencing principle is most defensible?

  1. Sequence by the seniority of the assigned technician
  2. Sequence strictly by the alphabetical order of equipment tags
  3. Sequence by dependency and critical path so downstream tasks are not delayed Correct answer.
  4. Sequence by the value of the spare parts consumed

Explanation

Outage work should follow the critical path and task dependencies so that predecessor tasks finish before successors begin. Alphabetical, seniority, or parts-value ordering ignores the logical constraints that determine completion. Poor sequencing extends the outage unnecessarily.