TOPIC 7.

2 WORKSHOP PRACTICES
STANDARDS OF WORKMANSHIP
What is Workmanship?

The art of skill of a workman.

Quality.

The product or result of the labour and skill of a workman.

Attitude.

Duty of care (self).

Duty of care (others).

Duty of care (equipment).

Working to a Standard.

CARE OF TOOLS
Tools are designed to make a job easier and enable you to work more efficiently. If
they are not properly used and cared for, their advantages are lost to you.
Regardless of the type of work to be done, you must have, choose, and use the
correct tools in order to do your work quickly, accurately, and safely. Without the
proper tools and the knowledge of how to use them, you waste time, reduce your
efficiency, and may even injure yourself or others.
Tools are expensive; tools are vital equipment. When the need for their use arises,
common sense plus a little preventative maintenance prolongs their usefulness.
In general the following precautions for the care of tools should be observed:
Use each tool only for the job it was designed to do. Each particular type
of tool has a specific purpose. If you use the wrong tool when performing
maintenance or repairs, you may cause damage to the equipment you're
working on or damage the tool itself. Remember, improper use of tools
results in improper maintenance. Improper maintenance results in damage
to equipment and possible injury or death to you or others.
Never leave tools scattered about. Always avoid placing tools on or above
machinery or on electrical equipment. Never leave tools unattended where
machinery or aircraft engines are running. When they are not in use, stow
them neatly on racks or in toolboxes.
Never use damaged tools. A battered screwdriver may slip and spoil the
screw slot, damage other parts, or cause painful injury. A gauge strained out
of shape will result in inaccurate measurements.
Clean tools after each use. Oily, dirty, and greasy tools are slippery and
dangerous to use.
Conduct a thorough inventory on tools after use to prevent loss.
Remember, the efficiency of aircraft maintenance engineers and the tools they use
are determined to a great extent by the way they keep their tools. Likewise, you will
be frequently judged by the manner in which you handle and care for your tools;
therefore anyone watching will notice the care and precision with which you use the
tools of your trade.

2012/11/30

Training Material Only

Page 1 of 4

The care of hand tools should follow the same pattern as for personal articles; that
is, always keep hand tools clean and free from dirt, grease, and foreign matter. After
use, return tools promptly to their proper place in the toolbox. Improve your own
efficiency by organizing your tools so that those used most frequently can be
reached easily without digging through the entire contents of the box. Avoid
accumulating unnecessary junk.

TOOL CONTROL
Its a matter of fact tool control affects safety. When a tool is misplaced on the job,
the repercussions can be as minor as investing the dollars to replace it, or as major
as the permanent damage that occurs to an engine or aircraft. However what about
the safety risk?
Realising this, most aircraft maintenance organisations, in an effort to prevent the
problem of Foreign Object Damage (F.O.D.) caused by misplaced tools and the
possible cost involved, establish and enforce a Tool Control Program. Aviation
Australia utilises a shadow-board-and-tool-tag system whereby Instructors and
Trainees are issued with a number of tool tags and a tag is placed on the shadow
when a tool is removed. Once the tool is finished with, it is placed back on the
shadow board and the tag is retrieved. Like all good systems, it relies on the
honesty and integrity of the workforce to make it a success.
The goals of a Tool Control Program are:
Objective
The primary objective of a tool control program is the safety of personnel and the
prevention of aircraft damage which may result from:
Lost tools;
Damaged hardware;
Miscellaneous rubbish.
Responsibility
The primary responsibility for the control of tools is with the user. Management
should ensure adequate procedures are in place to assist with the control of
company and personal tools:
Area Control;
Tool Identification;
FOD critical zone/area.
Area Control Helps Tool Control
Areas where work controls are implemented should be designated by:
Appropriate signs;
Floor striping and access;
Limited to personnel required to perform task;
All items entering or removed must be accounted for.

2012/11/30

Training Material Only

Page 2 of 4

Identification of Tools
Only tools that have been permanently identified should be allowed or used in a tool
control area. This may include colour coding, engraving or other prominent
markings.
FOD Critical Zones/ Area
Be aware of where you are working. For example, are you working on or near flight
controls or engine controls or near engine inlets? Will misplaced tools be a hazard
to the safe operation of the aircraft?
Control in FOD Critical Areas
All items taken into FOD critical areas must be accounted for. Employees personal
tools should be documented on a tool list and tools should be transported in a bag
or small case.
Whether you use tools from a tool board or operate from your own tool box, a Tool
Control Program should be designed and implemented to keep track of tools from
the minute they leave the tool board or tool box to the moment they're returned.
For different workplaces, the details of tool control can vary depending on the needs
and parts the workshop uses, but usually the basics remain the same.
Individual Toolboxes
Individual Toolboxes at a minimum should have a method to quickly determine that
all tools are accounted for at the end of a maintenance task. This can be only be
done if each tool has a specific place where it is stored that allows for quick
identification if the tool is missing. One method utilises custom foam toolbox inserts
that allow technicians to instantly see if a tool is missing. When a tool is removed
for use from its perfectly shaped resting place that matches its size, a colour (yellow
or red) is revealed beneath to signal that it's out of the toolbox. As long as the top
colour of the foam (blue or black) is visible, all tools are present. The foam can be
sized to fit any toolbox, and it has the added benefit of reducing tool damage due to
improper storage.
Shadow Boards
Shadow Boards are one of the most popular forms of visual management tool
control. Many aviation organisations are installing shadow boards, or boards
marked with the shapes of tools, to indicate proper tool locations. The shadow
board visually conveys two pieces of information:
Where the tool belongs and
Whether the tool is missing from its designated location.
This "at-a-glance" visual indicator can be a real time saver, as it eliminates the need
to spend time searching through tool boxes, tool drawers or cabinets to find a tool.
Posting the shadow board in plain sight of all who use the tools provides immediate
feedback as to the status of the tool.

2012/11/30

Training Material Only

Page 3 of 4

Some organisations have taken the shadow board concept a step further by
introducing colour-coding. The shadow boards themselves are painted a certain
colour, then the tools that belong on those boards have a matching colour applied
(usually either with paint or durable tape). Typically, each work area is assigned a
dedicated colour for the shadow board and the tools. One area for example may
have blue colour-coded tools, another red colour-coded tools and yet another black
colour-coded tools. In such a system, it is easy to see if a tool is in the wrong
location because a black tool on a red tool board stands out.
Tool Identification
Some maintenance organisations require employees permanently mark their tools
for tool identification purposes. This provides a way to quickly identify who a tool
belongs to when it is found. Tools can be marked using a vibra-peen tool or laser
etching. Some other marking methods such as permanent marker may not be very
effective in a hangar environment.
If your company requires mechanics to mark their personal tools in a uniform
method, be careful of the requirement, for example, it would be best to use
Engineers initials as a tool identification marking. Company specific numbers such
as employee numbers should be avoided. If you change job to another company,
these numbers will not be relevant, and you may have to mark them all over again.
If employees are required to mark their personal tools, it can be useful to maintain
a tool identification log in a central location (Maintenance Control or Quality
Assurance for instance). This log would list all the employees and the identification
that they are using to mark their tools. This way if a tool is found, the log can be
referenced to find out who owns the tool.
Marking tools serves two purposes. Firstly, it ensures that if a tool is found it is
returned to the owner. Secondly, it helps ensure compliance with missing tool
reporting. It makes employees become more vigilant in reporting missing tools
instead of just going to the closest tool truck or store to buy a replacement.
Tool Inventory
A tool inventory should be accomplished on a regular basis so that any missing
tools can quickly be identified and searched for before they affect the safety of an
aircraft. This can be done after each work task or at least once a day. Many aircraft
maintenance organisations choose to do it at the beginning and end of each shift.
Missing Tool Reporting
An important part of any tool control program is a process for missing tool
reporting. In order to achieve the goal of accounting for all tools to ensure a safe
product for the customer, a culture must be present that encourages employees to
report any missing tool. This procedure should be clear as to how often tools need
to be inventoried, how the employee should report a missing tool, and the steps to
be taken once a missing tool is reported. An important part of this is the person
who has the authority to release the aircraft in the event a missing tool is not
found.

2012/11/30

Training Material Only

Page 4 of 4