Improving reliability and reducing risk by minimising the rate of damage accumulation

Abstract

The paper introduces the principle of minimised rate of damage accumulation as a domain-independent principle of reliability improvement and risk reduction. A classification is proposed of methods for reducing the rate of damage accumulation. The paper introduces the method of substitution for reducing the rate of damage accumulation. The original assembly/system is substituted with assembly/system performing the same function and based on different physical principles. Such a substitution often eliminates failure modes characterised by intensive damage accumulation. One of the methods discussed is an optimal replacement resulting in the smallest rate of damage accumulation and maximum system reliability. A method for achieving the smallest rate of damage accumulation for a system with components logically arranged in series has been proposed for the first time. A dynamic programming algorithm for determining the optimal variation of multiple damage-inducing factors to minimise the rate of damage accumulation has also been proposed for the first time. The paper shows that the necessary and sufficient condition for using the additivity rule for calculating the threshold of accumulated damage precipitating failure is the factorisation of the rate of damage accumulation into a function of the amount of damage and a function of the damage-inducing factor.

Keywords:

• Reliability improvement
• risk reduction
• rate of damage accumulation
• method of substitution
• deliberate weak links

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

M. T. Todinov

Michael Todinov has a background in mechanical engineering, applied mathematics and computer science. He received his PhD and his higher doctorate (DEng) from the University of Birmingham and is currently a professor in mechanical engineering in Oxford Brookes University, UK. In 2017, he received the prestige IMechE award in the area of risk reduction in mechanical engineering.