Design Factors Influencing Down Time

The two main factors governing down time are equipment design and maintenance philosophy. In general it is the active repair elements which are determined by the design and the passive elements which are governed by the maintenance philosophy. The designer must be aware of the maintenance environment and of the possible equipment failure modes. He must understand that production difficulties all too often become field problems since, if assembly is difficult, maintenance will be well nigh impossible. Achieving acceptable repair times involves facilitating diagnosis and repair. The main design parameters are as follows.