PARTNERING WITH PRIVATE SECTOR: EMERGING FUTURE DIRECTION FOR
MRO
Maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) may appear to be having limited scope but its larger understanding will reveal that the scope is very wide. It encompasses design, manufacturing, provision of auxiliary equipment, provision of spares for all facets of conventional MRO from womb to tomb and now post discard/obsolescence disposal due to environmental concerns. Its scope keeps getting further enhanced as we deliberate more on this issue viz inclusion of upgrades as well as other measures of enhancing life of the equipment. Given the high cost of equipment, substantial resources and time invested for the training of crew as well as the maintenance demand , MRO needs to be given a serious consideration not only in the defence forces but in all other fields in the country which have direct/indirect linkages with this important subject.
In the defence forces, initial approach of MRO was predominantly based on the defence forces only taking the entire load themselves. With entry of sophisticated and variety of technologically advance equipment, OEMs or their nominated reps also entered in this domain. With passage of time, number of Indian establishments have also entered in this particular domain albeit directly as well as indirectly.
With time, profile of the equipment has undergone a major change. Though large number of our equipment is still ex-import but with number of negative lists being promulgated by MOD and focus on Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India, indigenous component will increase in the defence forces. One hopes that India will slip down to lower rankings in defence import as against being the third largest importer of the defence equipment in the world. With this profile change, MRO providers can also be from the industry in either PPP mode or in any other model wherein the dedicated maintainers in the defence forces be restricted to the select equipment including the classified equipment. A detailed study is needed to decide as to what all should be handled exclusively by the defence forces and what all can be entrusted to the industry. The identification of the equipment will need a review after a gap of three to five years wherein more responsibility can be given to the industry as enhancement in indigenous percentage will provide a large opportunity for the industry. An alternative mechanism could be to include this requirement while formulating the GSQR and issuing the RFP. It will avoid the repetitive review and segregation of the equipment into two categories viz ‘In-house’ as well as ‘Industry supported’.
In an article written by Colin Shaw, he has highlighted that a well crafted MRO can be as high as 60 percent more efficient in the life cycle of any equipment. This will also bring in substantial cost saving. It will, however, require the acceptance of a pragmatic approach of doing things which are different and at times, decision makers find it difficult to accept such changes.
The writer has also highlighted that in most of the armies the world over, one third to half of the equipment remains unavailable for conflict participation due to lack of support from the MRO perspective. We are no different in India though percentages may vary.
While the importance of revitalised and enhanced MRO is well appreciated both in the defence forces as well as in the civil domain, its operationalisation remains a huge challenge. Industry participation has not been very enthusiastic so far as non-assured orders make their ventures uneconomical. Being a profit based organisation, there is a need to provide long term orders with substantial outlays . This will still result in reducing the costs besides keeping our equipment battle ready. Equipment readiness becomes more critical for India when more than 50000 troops are opposing each other on or close to LAC in Eastern Ladakh with possibility of conflict escalation.
What clearly emerge that industry participation in overall MRO needs to be increased substantially and is required to be pegged at a level wherein the industry can sustain not only its profit motive but also the assembly lines can be sustained. Dual use to multiuse solutions and extending the support to the other countries of the world in this domain will facilitate viability of such a concept.
There are live examples wherein the Indian defence forces maintainers have made equipment like tanks also serviceable in the other countries. Involvement of the industry in all such ventures will reduce their input cost and enhance profitability which are precursors for long term commitment but the industry must ensure cost effectiveness, possess demonstrated capability to deliver in operations and deliver strictly as per contract including being ready for Swift and severe financial penaltyfor failing to deliver.It should be willing to accept forward zone maintainers to come under Army Act at least during conflict.
Whether we go on the USA model of outsourcing to the industry on the percentage terms or decide on type of equipment is a matter of detail. Both the models are workable. Maybe, even a hybrid model may be needed to suit Indian conditions.
We are in a time zone where distrust of civilians has to vanish in the military minds. It is strange that such an ecosystem prevails to some extent when the Indian defence forces strictly work under civilian control. It is also a myth that during the war, the civil MRO constituents will not go to the conflict zone. Once such old mindsets are changed and we structure MRO with ignited minds by giving Industry the requisite space to ensure that even complete overhaul including upgrades for the complex equipment planned is done in ‘few days’ as against in ‘multiple months’. This will revitalise the sector and has the huge potential of cost saving of at least 30 percent, if not more.
Anurag Saksena
This approach is a step in the right direction for the multiple advantages accrued. Keeping the operational imperatives foremost the idea of involving the well established civil manufacturing setup across the country will open new vistas. A honest appraisal of the Myraid costs of Evolving, manning and operationalising an in-situ MRO within the Services as compared to outsourced professional Organisations which are also not surprisingly very efficient, Ethical and innovative. From the expert Machinist operating a milling machining in the narrow balances of Okhla or those manufacturing Mixie parts in Ambala one had no difficulty in fabricating parts of sophisticated , Precision sports rifles for my daughter. Sourcing the right metal for the Job too was not difficult, once the purpose was understood. It does take time as well as motivation to enthuse the skilled worker to devote this time, away from his mundane yet voluminous job of finishing flanges of industrial pumps. Point being that the civil trade is not even aware of the Military MRO requirements. CNC, VMC machines lie unutilised yet there is no interface between civil trade and the Services to get the job done. Individual efforts and one off examples nothwithstanding Establishing confidence, trust and quality are
akin to the iterative Boehme’s spiral loop involving the seeker and the provider. At the larger level the same has been the norm for many successful projects executed by the DRDO. The industrial hubs of Hyderabad, Bangalore and Coimbatore which have executed projects in the background, can always step in to support the Military requirements once a proper interface as well as expeditious payment method is evolved.