Eliciting engineering knowledge about reliability during design - lessons learnt from implementation

In electronic design the use of engineering knowledge and experience is considered important in understanding and estimating the reliability performance of complex systems. There are numerous methods proposed for eliciting this knowledge in order to ensure that the data collected are valid and reliable. In this paper we describe our experiences in implementing an elicitation process that aims to extract engineering knowledge about the impact of design changes on a new aerospace product that is a variant of an existing product. The elicitation procedures used will be outlined and the ways in which we evaluated their usefulness will be described. This research generated many useful insights from the engineers and facilitators involved in the elicitation exercise. This paper shares their perspectives on the gains and losses associated with the exercise and makes recommendations for enhancing future procedures based on the lessons learnt.