Comparative study of the maintenance of the inboard engine and outboard motor for the MMEA Halilintar Class boat

As to enhance the asset reliability of agency, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) has introduced a "repowering" program which involves the replacement oforiginal Inboard Engine (IE) with the new Outboard Motor (OBM) in the propulsion system of Halilintar boat. Hence, objective of this study is to compare and evaluate the performance and effectiveness of the two engines on Halilintar boat in terms of cost, availability of spare parts, as well as maintenance levels. The research utilise both qualitative interviews and quantitative case studies to gather comprehensive data. Five key persons that has been involved directly in the “repowering” program, including a Senior Officer from the Marine Engineering Branch (MEB) at MMEA Headquarters, three Halilintar boat crew members, and an executive representative from the shipyard has been chosen to be participated in the study. After thoroughly analysis throughout the study, it has been confirmed that the use of the OBM outperforms the IE in terms of maintenance effectiveness which resulting in 18.35% cost reduction; better spare parts availability; as well as growing enhancement in maintenance level. Furthermore, the implementation of the "repowering" program led to a significant increase, averagely 225.16% of the Operational Availability (OA) of the Halilintar boat. These findings notonly provide evidence of the superiority of the OBM in terms of maintenance and operational aspects but also serve as a valuable reference for MMEA's Engineering Division in implementing the "repowering" program for the other boats, thereby strengthening the organization’s assets in the future.