Utilizing Weibull failure rates in repair limit analysis for equipment replacement/preventive maintenance decisions

Repair limit analysis was originally proposed as a methodology for determining whether to repair or to replace an operating unit. The approach structures the problem as a Markov or semi-Markov decision process in which state-dependent repair limits trigger the replacement decision. Such a basic framework can easily be applied to more general equipment repair/overhaul environments in which typical maintenance condition monitoring information can serve as the overhaul trigger. One unnecessary limitation of repair limit analysis found in the literature is the use of a constant force of mortality within each state of the model. The purpose of this paper is to extend the repair limit analysis by incorporating a changing force of mortality as the unit ages. In this way, the analysis is more flexible in the parameter estimation phase and it is argued here more appealing since a changing (and usually increasing) force of mortality is utilized in equipment maintenance environments.