Plant Management, Supervision, and Maintenance Administration
Domain 10: Plant Management, Supervision, and Maintenance Administration
This domain tests how a 2nd Class engineer plans work, sets priorities, controls maintenance, and supervises safe plant operations.
Core rules
- Maintenance types: corrective restores function; preventive is time- or usage-based; predictive uses condition data such as vibration and oil analysis; reliability-centered maintenance selects tasks by failure mode.
- A work order should define scope, safety permits, parts, craft, and completion record. Backlog is managed by priority and criticality, not by age alone.
- KPIs include MTBF, MTTR, availability, schedule compliance, and maintenance cost. MTBF = operating hours / failures. Availability = MTBF / (MTBF + MTTR).
- Management of change reviews fuel, chemical, procedure, or equipment changes before implementation.
- Supervision includes clear communication, verified qualifications, contractor control, and closed-loop follow-up on incidents.
Worked example
A pump runs 8,760 hours per year and fails 4 times. MTBF = 8,760 / 4 = 2,190 hours. Average repair time is 6 hours. Availability = 2,190 / (2,190 + 6) = 0.9973, or 99.73%. The reasoning: MTBF measures running time between failures; availability adds repair time to the denominator. If repair time rose to 60 hours, availability would fall to 97.3%.
Traps
Confusing MTBF with MTTR; treating a large backlog as a sign of productivity; over-lubricating or over-inspecting without a failure mode; and closing work orders without recording the cause.