Optimal Condition-Based Maintenance Strategy for Multi-Component Systems under Degradation Failures

Abstract

This paper proposes a condition-based maintenance strategy for multi-component systems under degradation failures. The maintenance decision is based on the minimum long-run average cost rate (LACR) and the maximum residual useful lifetime (RUL), respectively. The aim of this paper is to determine the optimal monitoring interval and critical level for multi-component systems under different optimization objectives. A preventive maintenance (PM) is triggered when the degradation of component exceeds the corresponding critical level. Afterwards, the paper discusses the relationship between the critical level and the monitoring interval with regards to the LACR and RUL. Methods are also proposed to determine the optimal monitoring interval and the critical level under two decision models. Finally, the impact of maintenance decision variables on the LACR and RUL is discussed through a case study. A comparison with conventional maintenance policy shows an outstanding performance of the new model.