Metric optimization-based design of systems subject to hostile disruptions

In many applications, engineering systems are required to operate acceptably well in hostile environments. In the past, survivability engineering has addressed this requirement using heuristic rule-based design approaches followed by analysis to determine if survivability constraints have been satisfied. The treatment of survivability as a constraint rather than an independent design objective hinders the ability of system engineers to trade off survivability with other design objectives, such as cost and performance. Herein, the survivability problem is posed in terms of maximizing expected performance and minimizing the risk of unacceptable performance. Design metrics that allow optimal selection of systems on the basis of these survivability dimensions are presented. The metrics are part of a systematic approach to system engineering in which survivability concerns are quantified and individual systems and entire classes of systems can be compared objectively. These metrics are a necessary step toward an integrated design process wherein tradeoffs between all design objectives can be identified. This methodology is demonstrated on the design of a notional electric warship integrated engineering plant (IEP) that is subject to hostile disruptions posed by antiship missiles. By use of this method, the performance of the IEP is shown to be improved.