## 5 Conclusions  
Industrial maintenance engineering requires a staff with deep technical knowledge, and who have a high component of tacit knowledge, acquired through years of work experience. The main contributions of the research that are presented in this article, and that allow the extension of understanding on knowledge management in maintenance activities, are:  
* The main facilitators/barriers detected are summarized based on the qualitative research carried out. * The main strategic aspects of maintenance that can increase its efficiency are confirmed by adopting a knowledge management model. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c l} \hline
**Category of the Studied Phenomenon** & \multicolumn{2}{c}{**Maintenance Operational Technicians**} \\ \hline
**Tools for knowledge management** &
\begin{tabular}{l} Information and knowledge maps. \\ Agile and simple systems to capture experiences. \\ Mobile computing tools to capture images, videos, and experiences. \\ \end{tabular} \\ \hline
**Barriers in Knowledge Management** &
\begin{tabular}{l} Little time available to properly document important actions. \\ Cultural barriers. \\ Culture based on “own knowledge”, not shared. \\ Staff involvement. \\ Greater use of informal knowledge transfer mechanisms. \\ \end{tabular} \\ \hline
**Facilitators in Knowledge Management** &
\begin{tabular}{l} Open and flexible proactive organizational culture. \\ Participatory style of management. \\ Employee’s personal motivation. \\ Opportunity to learn. \\ Organizational culture of the maintenance area. \\ Management style. \\ Media. \\ Use of a manager of own knowledge of the maintenance activity. \\ \end{tabular} \\ \hline
**Observations** &
\begin{tabular}{l} A lot of strategic information, collected in a handwritten form \\ disaggregated in personal notes and notebooks, annotations on plans, not shared with the rest of the organization, which hinders the transmission \\ and use of the knowledge by the rest of the organization. \\ \end{tabular} \\ \hline
**Results of Proper Management of Knowledge in Maintenance Activity** &
\begin{tabular}{l} Capture of the tacit strategic knowledge of operational maintenance \\ technicians. \\ Resolving critical failures in less time (especially non-cyclical ones). \\ Reduction of operating manoeuvre times. \\ Facilitate the change of area or personnel substitutions. \\ Reduction of familiarization times for new personnel. \\ Capture of information and transfer of subcontractor companies. \\ Sharing the knowledge of employees that can be used by others who can detect new opportunities for improvement. \\ Improved knowledge of the reliability of equipment and facilities. \\ Improvement of knowledge for the detection and improvement of energy efficiency actions. \\ Optimization of time, which again results in knowledge management and the reduction of maintenance costs. \\ Improvement in self-learning in order to solve problems in the \\ factory itself. \\ \end{tabular} \\ \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 3: Tools, barriers, and facilitators in the K.M. in maintenance activity according to the perception of maintenance technicians. * The high level of tacit knowledge used in this activity is confirmed, normally based on the high experience level required of the operators, and which requires high engagement times with new personnel. * The knowledge directly impacts on, the resolution of critical actions and breakdowns in a shorter time, operational maneuver time reduction, and the improvement in knowledge for detecting and improving energy efficiency. When addressing a knowledge management model for this activity, it is necessary to have an impact on the fundamental strategic maintenance activities confirmed by all the interviewed staff (reliability, maintainability, energy efficiency, and operation/exploitation), and which can improve the efficiency of all facilities.