HIGHLIGHTS

Supportability engineering is a technical process that focuses on the design and development of products. Before launching into a detailed introduction, two definitions are in order.

Support The physical act of enabling and sustaining an item to achieve a predetermined goal or objective.

Supportability A prediction or measure of the characteristics of an item that facilitate the ability to support and sustain its mission capability within a predefined environment and usage profile.

These two definitions are the foundation of supportability engineering. To understand the full scope of supportability engineering, it is easier to start with support. The definition of support indicates that when an item is being used, it normally requires some type of support in order to maintain its capability. For example, the use of an automobile requires many different types of support, including fuel, lubricants, and coolants while it is operating. Occasionally, the automobile breaks and requires repair. This is another type of support. By taking the automobile to a repair facility, it is returned to a completely operable state. Repair and maintenance also are support. In fact, anything that is done to service or repair the automobile can be classified as support. It is important to point out that support occurs when the item, in this example an automobile, is in the possession of the owner and is in active use. There are many issues that create requirements for support, but they can be grouped into two general categories, the...