Design for Maintainability

Maintainability is the degree to which a product can be maintained or repaired easily, economically, and efficiently. Design for maintainability (DFMaint) encompasses the measures taken to reduce the time and other resources spent in keeping a product performing well. It benefits the end user by reducing the total ownership costs through less downtime (lost productivity), lower maintenance costs, less inventory, fewer tools, and improved safety. DFMaint can be a differentiating feature for otherwise commodity products. Although it may increase the costs to manufacture a product, DFMaint can also increase market share and extend the product lifecycle. DFMaint is presented in this tutorial as an approach for durable goods. However, it can also be adapted appropriately for software, service, operations, and processes.