Improving R&M CAE up front for downstream logistics concerns

The author depicts a planned sortie requirement for a front line fighter. He shows how things become more complicated when one considers maintenance delays and attrition. A lot of companies are recognizing that a product that is easier to manufacture and has fewer test failures in the factory is more reliable and easier to maintain in the field. Mechanisms include rule-based design and object-oriented design. Object-oriented design has the potential to take take mundane complexity out of the engineer's path to improve things. As an example, the author considers a connector-selection aid that recommends a connector based on a description of the application.<>