Reliability in Systems Engineering

Catalog description

Reliability in systems engineering refers to the probability that a system will perform its intended function without failure under specified conditions for a given period of time, and plays a critical role in ensuring safety, performance, and customer satisfaction. High reliability is crucial in many industries, such as aerospace, defense, telecommunications, energy & power, where system failures can have significant consequences, including safety risks, financial losses, and reputational damage. Understanding reliability allows engineers to predict system failures, enhance system performance, and implement cost-effective maintenance strategies. This course will equip the students with the tools and methods needed to design, analyze, and improve the reliability of complex and large-scale systems, with a particular focus on aerospace, defense, energy and power, and other industrial applications. The course covers foundational concepts such as reliability mathematics, life data analysis, prediction and modeling, failure mode and effects analysis, and fault tolerance, as well as more specialized topics of reliability parameters in industrial applications, military and industry reliability standards, design for reliability across product and industry lines, such as space, power & energy, aeronautics, and naval systems, software reliability, and monitoring field performance. The course also examines how reliability engineering impacts system operational effectiveness and the US Government’s Life Cycle Sustainment Outcome Metrics.