Nonperiodic Inspections to Guarantee a Prescribed Level of Reliability.

A cost-optimal nonperiodic inspection policy is derived for complex multicomponent systems. The model takes into consideration the degradation of all the components in the system with the use of a Bessel process with drift. The inspection times are determined by a deterministic function and depend on the system's performance measure. The nonperiodic policy is developed by evaluating the expected lifetime costs and the optimal policy by an optimal choice of inspection function. The model thus gives a guaranteed level of reliability throughout the life of the project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]