Assessment of Staffing Needs of Systems Specialists in Aviation (2013)
Chapter: Front Matter
Assessment of Staffing Needs of
Systems Specialists in Aviation
Committee on Staffing Needs of Systems Specialists in Aviation
Board on Human-Systems Integration
Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, D.C.
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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This study was supported by Contract No. DTFAWA-12-P-00276 between the National Academy of Sciences and the Federal Aviation Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.
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Suggested citation: National Research Council. 2013. Assessment of Staffing Needs of Systems Specialists in Aviation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
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COMMITTEE ON STAFFING NEEDS OF SYSTEMS SPECIALISTS IN AVIATION
NANCY T. TIPPINS (Chair), Valtera, Corporate Executive Board, Greenville, SC
COLIN G. DRURY, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, University of Buffalo, State University of New York
T. MARK HARRISON (NAS), Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles
CHRISTOPHER HART, National Transportation Safety Board, Washington DC
PAUL F. HOGAN, Federal National Security and Emergency Preparedness, The Lewin Group, VA
BRIAN NORMAN, Compass Manpower Experts, LLC, San Antonio, TX
TONYA L. SMITH-JACKSON, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, North Carolina A&T State University
WILLIAM J. STRICKLAND, Human Resources Research Organization, Alexandria, VA
ELMORE M. WIGFALL, (Retired) Federal Aviation Administration, Los Angeles, CA
Staff
DANIEL E.J. TALMAGE, JR., Study Director
JEANNE C. RIVARD, Senior Program Officer
ELIZABETH T. CADY, Program Officer
BOARD ON HUMAN-SYSTEMS INTEGRATION
NANCY J. COOKE (Chair), College of Technology and Innovation and Department of Biomedical Informatics, Arizona State University
ELLEN J. BASS, College of Information Science and Technology and College of Nursing and Health Professions, Drexel University
PASCALE CARAYON, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering and Center for Quality and Productivity Improvement, University of Wisconsin–Madison
MARY (MISSY) CUMMINGS, Aeronautics and Astronautics Department, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
SARA J. CZAJA, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Industrial Engineering, University of Miami
FRANCIS (FRANK) T. DURSO, School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology
ANDREW S. IMADA, A.S. Imada and Associates, Carmichael, CA
KARL S. PISTER (NAE), University of California, Berkeley (Emeritus)
DAVID REMPEL, School of Medicine, Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, University of California, San Francisco
MATTHEW RIZZO, Department of Neurology, University of Iowa
BARBARA SILVERSTEIN, Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, Olympia, WA
DAVID H. WEGMAN, Department of Work Environment, University of Massachusetts at Lowell (Emeritus)
HOWARD M. WEISS, School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology
Staff
BARBARA A. WANCHISEN, Board Director
TOBY M. WARDEN, Associate Board Director
JATRYCE JACKSON, Program Associate
MOSES JACKSON, Program Associate (prior to August 2012)
Preface
In January 2012, Congress mandated that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ask the National Research Council (NRC) to review and report back on three areas of the FAA: A staffing model for Airway Transportation Systems Specialists (ATSS), a review of the air traffic controllers model, and a study on NextGen, the FAA’s Next Generation Air Transportation System. This first report focuses on ATSS, the FAA employees who maintain and certify the equipment of the National Airspace System (NAS). The report reviews various approaches to establishing staffing levels and the variables that should be incorporated in the development of a model to assist FAA management in correctly establishing staffing levels and allocating the right number of workers to maintain the NAS safely and efficiently.
I wish to express my appreciation to the members of the committee for their diligent and dedicated contributions to the study and to the preparation of this report within an ambitious time frame. The committee’s diverse expertise and experience contributed greatly to the broad perspective that is incorporated in this report. The committee is also grateful to the FAA as well as the representatives of the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists for their active participation throughout the study. The committee cannot sufficiently thank the NRC staff members—Barbara Wanchisen, Toby Warden, Jeanne Rivard, Daniel Talmage, Cherie Chauvin, Tina Winters, Elizabeth Cady, and Renée Wilson-Gaines—for their dedication to the study and to the preparation of this report. We would also like to thank Manu Sharma for her administrative support throughout the study process. And finally we thank the executive office reports staff of the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, especially Robert Katt (consultant editor), who provided valuable help with editing the report, and Kirsten Sampson Snyder, who managed the report review process. Without the NRC’s guidance and wise counsel, the committee’s job would have been even more difficult if not impossible.
Nancy T. Tippins, Chair
Committee on Staffing Needs
of Systems Specialists in Aviation
Reviewers
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s (NRC’s) Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
Ellen J. Bass, College of Information Science and Technology and College of Nursing and Health Professions, Drexel University
Raymond E. Conley, Manpower, Personnel, and Training Program, RAND Project AIR FORCE, Arlington, VA
Gene T. Crabtree, Jr., (Retired) Technical Operations, Federal Aviation Administration
R. John Hansman (NAE), MIT International Center for Air Transportation, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Kurt Kraiger, Center for Organizational Excellence, Department of Psychology, Colorado State University
Leif E. Peterson, Advanced HR Concepts & Solutions, LLC, Beavercreek, OH
Karlene H. Roberts, Haas School of Business and Center for Catastrophic Risk Management, University of California, Berkeley
Juan I. Sanchez, Department of Management and International Business, Florida International University
Thomas B. Sheridan (NAE), Departments of Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics and Astronautics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Emeritus)
Philip J. Smith, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, The Ohio State University
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by the monitor, Wesley L. Harris (NAE), Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics and associate provost, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and coordinator Jeremiah A. Barondess (IOM), president emeritus and scholar in residence, New York Academy of Medicine. Appointed by the NRC, they were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.
Contents
Airway Transportation Systems Specialists
Origin of Study and Statement of Task
Importance of Human-Systems Integration
2 WORK ENVIRONMENT CONSIDERATIONS FOR AIRWAY TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS SPECIALISTS
Discipline Types and Staff Substitutions
Acknowledged Problem Areas in the ATSS Work Environment
Needs Identified by ATSS Stakeholders
Other Issues That Impact the Workload and Staffing of ATSS Personnel
Needs Identified by Other Stakeholders
Major Drivers Behind ATSS Staffing Needs
The Next Generation Air Transportation System
Other Considerations for an ATSS Staffing Model
Tracking Maintenance Activities
Balancing Budgetary Priorities
Implications for Staffing Models
3 CONSIDERATIONS IN CREATING A STAFFING MODEL
Workforce Modeling as Part of a Larger Cycle of Workforce Planning
Value of Practical Models for ATSS Personnel
Conceptual Approach to Modeling Used by the Committee
Comprehensive Study Design Process
Summary and Criteria for Assessing Modeling
4 FAA APPROACHES TO ESTIMATING STAFFING OF AIRWAY TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS SPECIALISTS
History of FAA Modeling Efforts for ATSS Staffing
Tech Ops District Staffing Model
Staffing Approach by Grant Thornton-Led Study Team
Comparison Between Current and Past Models
Findings and Conclusions on WSSAS
Findings and Conclusions on the Tech Ops District Model
Findings and Conclusions on the Grant Thornton Approach
Potential Alternative Modeling Approaches
U.S. Air Force Staffing Models
Other Potentially Relevant Models
A Logical Approach to a New Model for ATSS
Figures, Tables, and Boxes
FIGURES
1-1 FAA air traffic organization, Technical Operations organizational chart
1-2 A conceptual model of human-systems integration
2-1 Overview of the Technical Operations organization
2-2 A mapping of 8,505 of the 66,749 facilities and equipment locations across the NAS
2-4 Reliability centered maintenance
3-1 OPM’s workforce planning cycle
3-2 Steps for successful modeling
3-3 Logical design process: model development phases for comprehensive study
4-1 Conceptual logical relationship between service and staffing level
5-1 Phases of staffing model development and implementation
TABLES
1-1 Stakeholders Identified by the FAA
2-1 Percentage of 2101 Disciplines Represented by Location
3-1 Notional Example: “Location X” Staffing for a Particular Point in Budget Year
4-1 Structure and Evaluation of Current and Proposed Staffing Models for ATSS
| ADS-B | Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast |
| AFL-CIO | American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations |
| AFMS | Air Force Manpower Standards |
| ARSR | Air Route Surveillance Radar |
| ARTCC | Air Route Traffic Control Center |
| ASR | Airport Surveillance Radar |
| ASTARS | AVS Staffing Tool and Reporting System |
| ATC | Air Traffic Control |
| ATCBI | Air Traffic Control Beacon Interrogators |
| ATSS | Airway Transportation Systems Specialists |
| AVS | Office of Aviation Safety |
| CMMS | Computerized Maintenance Management Software |
| DME | Distance Measuring Equipment |
| ESU | Environmental Support Unit |
| FAA | Federal Aviation Administration |
| FSEP | Facility, Service, and Equipment Profile |
| FTE | full-time equivalent |
| FY | fiscal year |
| GNAS | General National Airspace System |
| GNSS | Global Navigation Satellite System |
| HSI | human-systems integration |
| ILS | Instrument Landing System |
| LCOM | Logistics Composite Model |
| LDR | Labor Distribution Reporting |
| MIT | Miles-in-Trail |
| MON | Minimum Operational Network (of VORs) |
| NAS | National Airspace System |
| NAVAID | navigational aid |
| NextGen | Next Generation Air Transportation System |
| OCC | Operations Control Center |
| OJT | on-the-job training |
| OPM | Office of Personnel Management |
| PASS | Professional Aviation Safety Specialist |
| PFD | personal, fatigue, and delay (time) |
| PFF | Precommission Facility File |
| POD | process-oriented description |
| RMLS | Remote Monitoring and Logging System |
| RMM | Remote Maintenance Monitoring |
| SOC | Service Operations Center |
| SOC/OCC | Service Operations Center/Operations Control Center |
| SSC | System Support Center |
| TRACON | Terminal Radar Approach Control |
| VOR | VHF Omnidirectional Range |
| VOR/DME | VHF Omnidirectional Range/Distance Measuring Equipment |
| VV&A | verification, validation, and acceptance |
| WBS | work breakdown structure |
| WSSAS | Windows Staffing Standards Analysis System |
