Unraveling the Significance of Availability in Engineering Systems: A Rigorous Exploration

One of the most important metrics for determining how well an engineering system is operating is availability. Although availability has been the subject of much mathematical research, little is known about the wider ramifications and practical importance of availability issues in system optimization and decision-making processes. The goal of this paper is to radically disentangle the general significance of system availability across a variety of industries, such as manufacturing, transportation, energy, and more. By utilizing a combination of probability theory, stochastic modeling, simulation analysis, and specially designed experimental testbeds, this paper will provide rigorous conceptual frameworks that explain the function of availability in industrial systems.