A Cost-Effective RCM Policy for Periodically Inspected Equipment Items (1996)
Zigmund M. Bluvband, Ph.D., ALD Ltd., Israel
Michael N. Zule, Ph.D., ALD Ltd., Israel

The developed RCM application includes the continuous planning of preventive condition-directed maintenance (PCDM) tasks and making decision when each task is to be undertaken.
The new PCDM policy requires the periodical prediction of an items remaining lifetime which is based on the current technical state of an item and its elapsed operating time. Such data can be obtained by means of non-destructive inspection and diagnostics.
The developed conditional probability distribution is used to:
•  predict Expected remaining lifetime and its other statistical characteristics
•  estimate Optimal Time Interval to next inspection
•  ascertain efficiency of immediate preventive repair versus operation until next scheduled inspection