This book offers an in-depth and systematic introduction to improved failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) methods for proactive healthcare risk analysis. Healthcare risk management has become an increasingly important issue for hospitals and managers. As a prospective reliability analysis technique, FMEA has been widely used for identifying and eliminating known and potential failures in systems, designs, products or services. However, the traditional FMEA has a number of weaknesses when applied to healthcare risk management. This book provides valuable insights into useful FMEA methods and practical examples that can be considered when applying FMEA to enhance the reliability and safety of the healthcare system. This book is very interesting for practitioners and academics working in the fields of healthcare risk management, quality management, operational research, and management science and engineerin. It can be considered as the guiding document for how a healthcare organization proactively identifies, manages and mitigates the risk of patient harm. This book also serves as a valuable reference for postgraduate and senior undergraduate students.

Multi-state System Reliability Analysis and Optimization for Engineers and Industrial Managers presents a comprehensive, up-to-date description of multi-state system (MSS) reliability as a natural extension of classical binary-state reliability. It presents all essential theoretical achievements in the field, but is also practically oriented. New theoretical issues are described, including: * combined Markov and semi-Markov processes methods, and universal generating function techniques; * statistical data processing for MSSs; * reliability analysis of aging MSSs; * methods for cost-reliability and cost-availability analysis of MSSs; and * main definitions and concepts of fuzzy MSS. Multi-state System Reliability Analysis and Optimization for Engineers and Industrial Managers also discusses life cycle cost analysis and practical optimal decision making for real world MSSs. Numerous examples are included in each section in order to illustrate mathematical tools. Besides these examples, real world MSSs (such as power generating and transmission systems, air-conditioning systems, production systems, etc.) are considered as case studies. Multi-state System Reliability Analysis and Optimization for Engineers and Industrial Managers also describes basic concepts of MSS, MSS reliability measures and tools for MSS reliability assessment and optimization. It is a self-contained study resource and does not require prior knowledge from its readers, making the book attractive for researchers as well as for practical engineers and industrial managers.

Outlines the correct procedures for doing FMEAs and how to successfully apply them in design, development, manufacturing, and service applications There are a myriad of quality and reliability tools available to corporations worldwide, but the one that shows up consistently in company after company is Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA). Effective FMEAs takes the best practices from hundreds of companies and thousands of FMEA applications and presents streamlined procedures for veteran FMEA practitioners, novices, and everyone in between. Written from an applications viewpoint with many examples, detailed case studies, study problems, and tips included the book covers the most common types of FMEAs, including System FMEAs, Design FMEAs, Process FMEAs, Maintenance FMEAs, Software FMEAs, and others. It also presents chapters on Fault Tree Analysis, Design Review Based on Failure Mode (DRBFM), Reliability-Centered Maintenance (RCM), Hazard Analysis, and FMECA (which adds criticality analysis to FMEA). With extensive study problems and a companion Solutions Manual, this book is an ideal resource for academic curricula, as well as for applications in industry. In addition, Effective FMEAs covers: * The basics of FMEAs and risk assessment * How to apply key factors for effective FMEAs and prevent the most common errors * What is needed to provide excellent FMEA facilitation * Implementing a "best practice" FMEA process Everyone wants to support the accomplishment of safe and trouble-free products and processes while generating happy and loyal customers. This book will show readers how to use FMEA to anticipate and prevent problems, reduce costs, shorten product development times, and achieve safe and highly reliable products and processes.

This book presents intuitive explanations of the principles of microgrids, including their structure and operation and their applications. It also discusses the latest research on microgrid control and protection technologies and the essentials of microgrids as well as enhanced communication systems. The book provides solutions to microgrid operation and planning issues using various methodologies including planning and modelling; AC and DC hybrid microgrids; energy storage systems in microgrids; and optimal microgrid operational planning. Written by specialists, it is filled in innovative solutions and research related to microgrid operation, making it a valuable resource for those interested in developing updated approaches in electric power analysis, design and operational strategies. Thanks to its in-depth explanations and clear, three-part structure, it is useful for electrical engineering students, researchers and technicians.

The fundamental motivation of this book is to contribute to the future advancement of Asset Management in the context of industrial plants and infrastructures. The book aims to foster a future perspective that takes advantage of value-based and intelligent asset management in order to make a step forward with respect to the evolution observed nowadays. Indeed, the current understanding of asset management is primarily supported by well-known standards. Nonetheless, asset management is still a young discipline and the knowledge developed by industry and academia is not set in stone yet. Furthermore, current trends in new organizational concepts and technologies lead to an evolutionary path in the field. Therefore, this book aims to discuss this evolutionary path, starting first of all from the consolidated theory, then moving forward to discuss: * The strategic understanding of value-based asset management in a company; * An operational definition of value, as a concept on the background of value-based asset management; * The identification of intelligent asset management, with the aim to frame a set of "tools" recommended to support the asset-related decision-making process over the asset lifecycle; * The emergence of new technologies such as cyber physical systems and digital twins, and the implications of this on asset management.

This proceedings of the 13th World Congress on Engineering Asset Management covers a range of topics that are timely, relevant and practically important in the modern digital era towards safer, cost effective, efficient, and secure engineered assets such as production and manufacturing plants, process facilities, civil structures, equipment, machinery, and infrastructure. It has compiled some pioneering work by domain experts of the global Engineering Asset Management community representing both public and private sectors. The professional coverage of the book includes: Asset management in Industry 4.0; Standards and models; Sustainable assets and processes; Life cycle perspectives; Smart and safer assets; Applied data science; Workplace safety; Asset health; Advances in equipment condition monitoring; Critical asset processes; and Innovation strategy and entrepreneurship The breadth and depth of these state-of-the-art, comprehensive proceedings make them an excellent resource for asset management practitioners, researchers and academics, as well as undergraduate and postgraduate students.

These proceedings showcase the best papers selected from more than 500 submissions, and introduce readers to the latest research topics and developmental trends in the theory and application of MMESE. The integrated research topic Man-Machine-Environment System Engineering (MMESE) was first established in China by Professor Shengzhao Long in 1981, with direct support from one of the greatest modern Chinese scientists, Xuesen Qian. In a letter to Long from October 22nd, 1993, Qian wrote: "You have created a very important modern science and technology in China!" MMESE studies the optimum combination of man-machine-environment systems. In this system, "man" refers to the people in the workplace (e.g. operators, decision-makers); "machine" is the general name for any object controlled by man (including tools, machinery, computers, systems and technologies), and "environment" describes the specific working conditions under which man and machine interact (e.g. temperature, noise, vibration, hazardous gases, etc.). The three main goals of optimizing man-machine-environment systems are to ensure safety, efficiency and economy. These proceedings present interdisciplinary studies on concepts and methods from physiology, psychology, system engineering, computer science, environmental science, management, education, and other related disciplines. They offer a valuable resource for all researchers and professionals whose work involves interdisciplinary areas touching on MMESE subjects.

This book describes principles, industry practices and evolutionary methodologies for advanced safety studies, which are helpful in effectively managing volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) environments within the framework of quantitative risk assessment and management and associated with the safety and resilience of structures and infrastructures with tolerance against various types of extreme conditions and accidents such as fires, explosions, collisions and grounding. It presents advanced computational models for characterizing structural actions and their effects in extreme and accidental conditions, which are highly nonlinear and non-Gaussian in association with multiple physical processes, multiple scales, and multiple criteria. Probabilistic scenario selection practices and applications are presented. Engineering practices for structural crashworthiness analysis in extreme conditions and accidents are described. Multidisciplinary approaches involving advanced computational models and large-scale physical model testing are emphasized. The book will be useful to students at a post-graduate level as well as researchers and practicing engineers.

This book presents a bibliographical review of the use of Bayesian networks in reliability over the last decade. Bayesian network (BN) is considered to be one of the most powerful models in probabilistic knowledge representation and inference, and it is increasingly used in the field of reliability. After focusing on the engineering systems, the book subsequently discusses twelve important issues in the BN-based reliability methodologies, such as BN structure modeling, BN parameter modeling, BN inference, validation, and verification. As such, it is a valuable resource for researchers and practitioners in the field of reliability engineering.

This book comprises select papers presented at the International Conference on Mechanical Engineering Design (ICMechD) 2019. The volume focuses on the different design aspects involved in manufacturing, composite materials processing as well as in engineering management. A wide range of topics such as control and automation, mechatronics, robotics, composite and nanomaterial design, and welding design are covered here. The book also discusses current research in engineering management on topics like products, services and system design, optimization in design, manufacturing planning and control, and sustainable product design. Given the range of the contents, this book will prove useful to students, researchers and practitioners.

This book features selected papers from the 11th Asia-Oceania Symposium on Fire Science and Technology (AOSFST 2018), held in Taipei, Taiwan. Covering the entire spectrum of fire safety science, it focuses on research on fires, explosions, combustion science, heat transfer, fluid dynamics, risk analysis and structural engineering, as well as other topics. Presenting advanced scientific insights, the book introduces and advances new ideas in all areas of fire safety science. As such it is a valuable resource for academic researchers, fire safety engineers, and regulators of fire, construction and safety authorities. Further it provides new ideas for more efficient fire protection.

Next Generation HALT and HASS presents a major paradigm shift from reliability prediction-based methods to discovery of electronic systems reliability risks. This is achieved by integrating highly accelerated life test (HALT) and highly accelerated stress screen (HASS) into a physics-of-failure-based robust product and process development methodology. The new methodologies challenge misleading and sometimes costly mis-application of probabilistic failure prediction methods (FPM) and provide a new deterministic map for reliability development. The authors clearly explain the new approach with a logical progression of problem statement and solutions. The book helps engineers employ HALT and HASS by illustrating why the misleading assumptions used for FPM are invalid. Next, the application of HALT and HASS empirical discovery methods to quickly find unreliable elements in electronics systems gives readers practical insight to the techniques. The physics of HALT and HASS methodologies are highlighted, illustrating how they uncover and isolate software failures due to hardware-software interactions in digital systems. The use of empirical operational stress limits for the development of future tools and reliability discriminators is described. Key features: * Provides a clear basis for moving from statistical reliability prediction models to practical methods of insuring and improving reliability. * Challenges existing failure prediction methodologies by highlighting their limitations using real field data. * Explains a practical approach to why and how HALT and HASS are applied to electronics and electromechanical systems. * Presents opportunities to develop reliability test discriminators for prognostics using empirical stress limits. * Guides engineers and managers on the benefits of the deterministic and more efficient methods of HALT and HASS. * Integrates the empirical limit discovery methods of HALT and HASS into a physics of failure based robust product and process development process.

This volume presents selected papers from the International Conference on Reliability, Safety, and Hazard. It presents the latest developments in reliability engineering and probabilistic safety assessment, and brings together contributions from a diverse international community and covers all aspects of safety, reliability, and hazard assessment across a host of interdisciplinary applications. This book will be of interest to researchers in both academia and the industry.

This book addresses the question of how system software should be designed to account for faults, and which fault tolerance features it should provide for highest reliability. With this second edition of Software Design for Resilient Computer Systems the book is thoroughly updated to contain the newest advice regarding software resilience. With additional chapters on computer system performance and system resilience, as well as online resources, the new edition is ideal for researchers and industry professionals. The authors first show how the system software interacts with the hardware to tolerate faults. They analyze and further develop the theory of fault tolerance to understand the different ways to increase the reliability of a system, with special attention on the role of system software in this process. They further develop the general algorithm of fault tolerance (GAFT) with its three main processes: hardware checking, preparation for recovery, and the recovery procedure. For each of the three processes, they analyze the requirements and properties theoretically and give possible implementation scenarios and system software support required. Based on the theoretical results, the authors derive an Oberon-based programming language with direct support of the three processes of GAFT. In the last part of this book, they introduce a simulator, using it as a proof of concept implementation of a novel fault tolerant processor architecture (ERRIC) and its newly developed runtime system feature-wise and performance-wise. Due to the wide reaching nature of the content, this book applies to a host of industries and research areas, including military, aviation, intensive health care, industrial control, and space exploration.

The revised edition of this book offers an expanded overview of the reliability design of mechanical systems and describes the reliability methodology, including a parametric accelerated life test (ALT) plan, a load analysis, a tailored series of parametric ALTs with action plans, and an evaluation of the final designs to ensure the design requirements are satisfied. It covers both the quantitative and qualitative approaches of the reliability design forming in the development process of mechanical products, with a focus on parametric ALT and illustrated via case studies. This new reliability methodology - parametric ALT should help mechanical and civil engineers to uncover design parameters improving product design and avoiding recalls. Updated chapters cover product recalls and assessment of their significance, modern definitions in reliability engineering, parametric accelerated life testing in mechanical systems, and extended case studies. For this revised edition, one new chapter has been introduced to reflect recent developments in analysis of fluid motion and mechanical vibration. Other chapters are expanded and updated to improve the explanation of topics including structures and load analysis, failure mechanics, design and reliability testing, and mechanical system failure. The broad scope gives the reader an overview of the state-of-the-art in the reliability design of mechanical systems and an indication of future directions and applications. It will serve as a solid introduction to the field for advanced students, and a valuable reference for those working in the development of mechanical systems and related areas.

This volume contains selected papers from the Second Quadrennial International Conference on Structural Integrity (ICONS-2018). The papers cover important topics related to structural integrity of critical installations, such as power plants, aircrafts, spacecrafts, defense and civilian components. The focus is on assuring safety of operations with high levels of reliability and structural integrity. This volume will be of interest to plant operators working with safety critical equipment, engineering solution providers, software professionals working on engineering analysis, as well as academics working in the area.

This book presents selected papers from the International Conference of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering 2019 (AeroMech 2019), held at the Universiti Sains Malaysia's School of Aerospace Engineering. Sharing new innovations and discoveries concerning the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), with a focus on 3D printing, big data analytics, Internet of Things, advanced human-machine interfaces, smart sensors and location detection technologies, it will appeal to mechanical and aerospace engineers.

A UNIQUELY PRACTICAL APPROACH TO ROBUST DESIGN FROM A STATISTICAL AND ENGINEERING PERSPECTIVE Variation in environment, usage conditions, and the manufacturing process has long presented a challenge in product engineering, and reducing variation is universally recognized as a key to improving reliability and productivity. One key and cost-effective way to achieve this is by robust design making the product as insensitive as possible to variation. With Design for Six Sigma training programs primarily in mind, the author of this book offers practical examples that will help to guide product engineers through every stage of experimental design: formulating problems, planning experiments, and analysing data. He discusses both physical and virtual techniques, and includes numerous exercises and solutions that make the book an ideal resource for teaching or self-study. Presents a practical approach to robust design through design of experiments. Offers a balance between statistical and industrial aspects of robust design. Includes practical exercises, making the book useful for teaching. Covers both physical and virtual approaches to robust design. Supported by an accompanying website (www.wiley/com/go/robust) featuring MATLAB(R) scripts and solutions to exercises. Written by an experienced industrial design practitioner. This book s state of the art perspective will be of benefit to practitioners of robust design in industry, consultants providing training in Design for Six Sigma, and quality engineers. It will also be a valuable resource for specialized university courses in statistics or quality engineering.

This book reports on innovative technologies and their applications in the field of mechanical engineering, covering new design methods as well as the practical implementation and optimization of existing ones to satisfy growing and changing industrial needs. The book features the proceedings of the International Online Conference on Innovations Induced by Research in Technical Systems (IIRTS'2019), organized by the Department of Technical and Informatics Systems Engineering - Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Koszalin University of Technology (Poland). The book offers a snapshot of innovative methods, cutting-edge applications, and industrially relevant findings in the broad field of technical systems.

This book explores food traceability in raw materials, additives and packing of the dairy sector and it provides an accessible and succinct overview of the new Extended Traceability (ExTra) software. In this work, the authors present several practical examples of extended food traceability for edible products and food-contact materials in the cheese-making industry. Readers will also discover a summary of the existing legal and regulatory requirements for food traceability in Europe. This book will appeal to a wide readership, from academic researchers to professionals and auditors in industry working in quality control, food and packing traceability, and international regulation.

This book discusses reliability applications for power systems, renewable energy and smart grids and highlights trends in reliable communication, fault-tolerant systems, VLSI system design and embedded systems. Further, it includes chapters on software reliability and other computer engineering and software management-related disciplines, and also examines areas such as big data analytics and ubiquitous computing. Outlining novel, innovative concepts in applied areas of reliability in electrical, electronics and computer engineering disciplines, it is a valuable resource for researchers and practitioners of reliability theory in circuit-based engineering domains.

Content of this proceedings discusses emerging trends in structural reliability, safety and disaster management, covering topics like total quality management, risk maintenance and design for reliability. Some papers also address chemical process reliability, reliability analysis and engineering applications in chemical process equipment systems and includes a chapter on reliability evaluation models of chemical systems. Accepted papers from 2019 International Conference on Reliability, Risk Maintenance and Engineering Management (ICRRM 2019) are part of this conference proceeding. It offers useful insights to road safety engineers, disaster management professionals involved in product design and probabilistic methods in manufacturing systems.

Here, expert authors delineate approaches that can support both decision makers as well as their concerned populations in overcoming unwarranted fears and in elaborating policies based on scientific evidence. Four exemplary focus areas were chosen for in-depth review, namely:- The scientific basis of risk management- Risk management in the area of environmental and ecological policy- Risk management in radiation medicine- Risk management in context with digitalization and roboticsGeneral as well as specific recommendations are summarized in a memorandum. Fundamental thoughts on the topic are presented in the introductory part of the book. The idea for and contents of the book were developed at a workshop on "Sustainable Risk Management: How to manage risks in a sensible and responsible manner?" held in Feldafing at Lake Starnberg (Germany) on April 14 to 16, 2016. The book offers important information and advice for scientists, entrepreneurs, administrators and politicians.

This book brings together studies broadly addressing human error from different disciplines and perspectives. It discusses topics such as human performance; human variability and reliability analysis; medical, driver and pilot error, as well as automation error; root cause analyses; and the cognitive modeling of human error. In addition, it highlights cutting-edge applications in safety management, defense, security, transportation, process controls, and medicine, as well as more traditional fields of application. Based on the AHFE 2019 International Conference on Human Error, Reliability, Resilience, and Performance, held on July 24-28, 2019, Washington D.C., USA, the book includes experimental papers, original reviews, and reports on case studies, as well as meta-analyses, technical guidelines, best practice and methodological papers. It offers a timely reference guide for researchers and practitioners dealing with human error in a diverse range of fields.

This book discusses the latest findings on ensuring employees' safety, health, and welfare at work. It combines a range of disciplines - e.g. work physiology, health informatics, safety engineering, workplace design, injury prevention, and occupational psychology - and presents new strategies for safety management, including accident prevention methods such as performance testing and participatory ergonomics. The book, which is based on the AHFE 2019 International Conference on Safety Management and Human Factors, held on July 24-28, 2019, Washington D.C., USA, provides readers, including decision makers, professional ergonomists and program managers in government and public authorities, with a timely snapshot of the state of the art in the field of safety, health, and welfare management. It also addresses agencies such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), as well as other professionals dealing with occupational safety and health.