Track 2 Session 7
1:10 to 2:20 p.m. Thursday June 15, 2006

Applying Management Strategy Metrics During Development Testing

A reliability growth program differs from a conventional reliability program in that there is a more objectively developed growth standard against which assessment are compared. A comparison between the assessment and the planned value provides a good estimate of whether or not the program is progressing as scheduled and will attain the desired goal. If the program does not progress as planned, then new strategies should be considered. For example, a reexamination of problem areas may result in changing the management strategy so that more problem failure modes surfaced during the testing actually receive a corrective action instead of a repair. The management strategy may be driven by budget and schedule but it is defined by the actual actions of management in correcting reliability problems. The proper approach to what modes to fix and when is often difficult, particularly if certain failure patterns and trends are not measured and understood. In this paper we discuss management strategy concepts and provide metrics to aid management and engineering in interpreting certain key trends and averages during reliability growth development testing. Important metrics discussed include growth potential, unseen problem mode failure rate, and effectiveness factors which are very useful for keeping a development program on track to meet requirements. These concepts are illustrated by numerical examples and applications to case studies.

Key Words: Reliability Growth, Management Strategy