Average Repair Cost Research Articles

Factors associated with damages and repair costs of reusable flexible bronchoscopes in pediatrics in China

BackgroundFrequent repairs of pediatric flexible bronchoscopes can lead to a huge financial burden for the hospital. This study aimed to investigate the common causes of the failures in pediatric flexible bronchoscopes and propose the measures to prevent the failures.MethodsThis was a retrospective study. We collected repair information of the pediatric flexible bronchoscopes reprocessed in the Department of Sterile Processing at a hospital between September 1, 2018 and September 1, 2022 in order to investigate the causes and possible factors associated with the failures in pediatric flexible bronchoscopes.ResultsThe Department of Sterile Processing staff reprocessed the pediatric flexible bronchoscopes 4280 times. A total of 29 failures were identified. The failure rate was 0.678%. The average repair cost was USD7246.60. The common failures in the pediatric flexible bronchoscopes included dim video image, black dots, improper video image display or no image during angulation adjustment, and pressure marks in the insertion tube. The failure rates in flexible electronic bronchoscopes and small-diameter flexible bronchoscopes were 65.5% and 93.1%, respectively. The failure rate in the pediatric flexible bronchoscopes reprocessed by the staff members with less work experience was 75.9%.ConclusionThe failure rate in the pediatric flexible bronchoscopes was not high but the repair costs were extremely high. The types and size of the flexible bronchoscopes and work experience of the staff members responsible for bronchoscope reprocessing were the possible factors associated with the failure rate in the pediatric flexible bronchoscopes. It is advisable to further optimize the central workflow and management mode for reprocessing the pediatric flexible bronchoscopes, thereby extending their useful life and reducing costs.

Optimizing the maintenance strategies for a network of green infrastructure: An agent-based model for stormwater detention basins

Various stormwater best management practices and green infrastructures (GIs) are recommended to address flooding, stormwater runoff, water quality, and sustainability. While detention basins are considered one of the main GI strategies, their benefits cannot be fully realized without properly maintaining them and making sure that they stay operational. Therefore, this paper used agent-based modeling (ABM) to devise an optimal maintenance program for detention basins to ensure that they function properly and continue to perform their water quality and flood control functions. More specifically, the following 2 agent types were incorporated in the model: 1) the detention basins were considered as static agents, and 2) the service teams responsible for the operation (maintenance, repair, and replacement) of the detention basins were considered as active agents. The developed ABM was applied for the entire network of stormwater detention basins in Newark, NJ. Sensitivity analysis was conducted to identify the most critical variables affecting the total cost of operating the network of detention basins as well as the functioning percentage of detention basins. In addition, optimization was implemented to determine the best maintenance program or policy that minimizes the total cost of operations, while also making sure that a desired functionality level or threshold is achieved for the entire network of detention basins. Finally, the ABM was statistically validated using a total of 10,000 Monte Carlo runs and 99% confidence intervals. The optimization results showed that, in order to minimize the total cost of maintaining the entire network of detention basins and ensure that at least 80% of the basins are in a functioning state at the end of the planning horizon, the decision-maker should implement the following maintenance program or strategy: have 2 service teams for the operations of the detention basins, follow a replacement policy, and replace detention basins after 3 maintenance periods. Also, the identified optimal maintenance program or strategy would result with an average total annual cost of around $4,085,000, where the average annual repair cost is around $2,572,200, the average annual maintenance cost is around $19,700, the average annual replacement cost is around $763,100, and the average annual service team cost is around $730,000. The proposed ABM for detention basins can be extended to other GIs as well as to different geographical areas. The usage of ABM has the advantage to reduce the subjectivity in developing plans for managing GIs.

Method for evaluating the resource, energy, and environmental impact of the casting fault rectification process in patternless sand castings

This study analyzes and compares the casting fault rectification procedure's resource, energy, and environmental impacts. In addition, a casting defect classification approach is provided to categorize them into three categories: more-component, less-component, and unqualified-component. Regarding energy, resources, and the environment, the analysis is conducted. A casting defect process impact model is constructed to obtain a quantitative study of the influence of various casting defects on production status and sustainability. Based on the model, the effect of repairing defects on resources, energy, and the environment for each of the three casting defects is examined. Moreover, it can be concluded from the case that the total impact of less-component defects is the largest, accounting for 50% of total scrap and 60% of resource consumption; the average repair cost of unqualified-component defects is 1.8 times higher than the average, yet their energy regeneration rate can reach 41%; the average resource and energy deviation rate of more-component defects is approximately 5%, yet their resource regeneration rate is 8% to 12% lower than other forms of defects. In conclusion, the model can effectively quantify the sustainability of the casting defect repair process and aid the foundry industry in achieving sustainability.

Optimizing the timeframe of scheduled repairs using valuation techniques

Aim. The paper examines technical systems (machinery and equipment), whose condition deteriorates in the course of operation, yet can be improved through repairs (overhaul). The items are subject to random failures. After another failure, an item can be repaired or disposed of. A new or repaired item is to be assigned the date of the next scheduled repairs. Regarding a failed item, the decision is to be taken as to unscheduled repairs or disposal. We are solving the problem of optimization of such repair policy. At the same time, it proves to be important to take into consideration the effect of repairs, first, on the choice of appropriate indicators of item condition that define its primary operational characteristics, and second, on a sufficiently adequate description of the dynamics of items’ performance indicators. Methods. Assigning the timeframe of scheduled repairs normally involves the construction of economic and mathematical optimization models that are the subject matter of a vast number of publications. They use various optimality criteria, i.e., probability of no failure over a given period of time, average repair costs per service life or per unit of time, etc. However, criteria of this kind do not take into account the performance dynamics of degrading items and do not fully meet the business interests of the item owners. The criterion of maximum expected total discounted benefits is more adequate in such cases. It is adopted in the theory of investment projects efficiency estimation and the cost estimation theory and is, ultimately, focused on maximizing a company’s value. The model’s formulas associate the item’s benefit stream with its primary characteristics (hazard of failure, operating costs, performance), which, in turn, depend on the item’s condition. The condition of non-repairable items is usually characterized by their age (operating time). Yet the characteristics of repairable items change significantly after repairs, and, in recent years, their dynamics have been described by various models using Kijima’s virtual age indicator (a similar indicator of effective age has long been used in the valuation of buildings, machinery and equipment). That allows associating the characteristics of items in the first and subsequent inter-repair cycles. However, analysis shows that this indicator does not allow taking into consideration the incurable physical deterioration of repaired items. The paper suggests a different approach to describing the condition of such objects that does not have the above shortcoming. Conclusions. The author constructed and analysed an economic and mathematical model for repair policy optimisation that is focused on maximizing the market value of the company that owns the item. It is suggested describing the condition of an item with two indicators, i.e., the age at the beginning of the current inter-repair cycle and time of operation within the current cycle. It proves to be possible to simplify the dependence of an item’s characteristics on its condition by using the general idea of Kijima models, but more adequately taking into consideration the incurable physical deterioration of such item. The author conducted experimental calculations that show a reduction of the duration of planned repairs as machinery ages at the beginning of an inter-repair cycle. Some well-known repair policies were critically evaluated.

Repair Strategies for Mobile Storage Systems

We study the data reliability problem for devices forming a dynamic distributed storage system. Such systems are commonplace in traditional cloud storage applications where storage node failures and updates are frequent. We consider the application of regenerating codes for file maintenance. Such codes require lower bandwidth to regenerate lost data fragments compared to file replication or reconstruction. We investigate threshold-based repair strategies where data repair is initiated after a threshold number of data fragments have been lost. We show that at a low departure-to-repair rate regime, in which repairs are initiated after several nodes have left the system outperforms if repairs are initiated after a single node departure. This optimality is reversed when the node turnover is high. We further compare distributed and centralized repair strategies and derive the optimal repair threshold for minimizing the average repair cost per unit of time. In addition, we examine cooperative repair strategies and show performance improvements. We investigate several models for the time needed for node repair including a simple fixed time model and a more realistic model that takes into account the number of repaired nodes. Finally, an extended model where additional failures are allowed during the repair process is investigated.

MP17-02 REPAIR RATE AND ASSOCIATED COST OF REUSABLE FLEXIBLE URETEROSCOPES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS

You have accessJournal of UrologyHealth Services Research: Value of Care: Cost and Outcomes Measures I (MP17)1 Sep 2021MP17-02 REPAIR RATE AND ASSOCIATED COST OF REUSABLE FLEXIBLE URETEROSCOPES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS Dinah Rindorf, Bhaskar Somani, Olivier Traxer, Guido Kamphuis, Thomas Tailly, Sara Larsen, Lotte Ockert, and Kevin Koo Dinah RindorfDinah Rindorf More articles by this author , Bhaskar SomaniBhaskar Somani More articles by this author , Olivier TraxerOlivier Traxer More articles by this author , Guido KamphuisGuido Kamphuis More articles by this author , Thomas TaillyThomas Tailly More articles by this author , Sara LarsenSara Larsen More articles by this author , Lotte OckertLotte Ockert More articles by this author , and Kevin KooKevin Koo More articles by this author View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1097/JU.0000000000002002.02AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookLinked InTwitterEmail Abstract INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: The refined mechanics of the flexible ureteroscope (fURS) is known to be vulnerable to damage necessitating routine repair. Repair of fURS is costly and makes the device unavailable for clinical use. With the introduction of single-use ureteroscopes, accurate assessment of the resources required for fURS maintenance and repair is especially relevant. The aim of this study was to systematically review available literature and estimate 1) the total weighted repair rate of reusable fURS and 2) the average repair cost per ureteroscopy using meta-analysis. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted by searching the databases MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science and Cochrane library for studies estimating the repair rate of fURS used for ureteroscopy procedures. Study eligibility and data extraction was evaluated by two reviewers independently. Data on average repair cost of all repairs identified in the included studies was extracted if reported. A random-effects model was used to calculate the pooled total repair rate of fURS. The total weighted repair rate and the average cost per repair were multiplied to provide an average cost of repair per ureteroscopy procedure. RESULTS: We identified 15 studies that fulfilled the inclusion criteria, which included 219 repairs from 3,642 investigated ureteroscopy procedures. The calculated weighted repair rate was 5.96%±0.646 (95% confidence interval [Cl]: 4.70% - 7.23%; I2=60.8%), equivalent to 17 ureteroscopy procedures before repair. The average cost per repair was 5,746 USD and according to the weighted repair rate of 5.96%, this corresponds to an average repair cost of 357 USD per procedure. Egger’s regression test did not indicate significant publication bias (Egger’s test p>0.05). A subgroup analysis of the repair rate of major repairs showed a weighted repair rate of 4.52%±2.571 (95% Cl: 2.00% - 7.04%; I2=76.0%). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first meta-analysis to estimate the repair rate of fURS used for ureteroscopy. Our analysis demonstrates a repair rate of 5.96%. This indicates an average of 17 ureteroscopy procedures in between fURS repairs and a repair cost of 357 USD per procedure. High-volume ureteroscopy practices should consider fURS breakage rates and repairs costs to optimize the use of reusable versus disposable devices. Source of Funding: None © 2021 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 206Issue Supplement 3September 2021Page: e308-e308 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2021 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.MetricsAuthor Information Dinah Rindorf More articles by this author Bhaskar Somani More articles by this author Olivier Traxer More articles by this author Guido Kamphuis More articles by this author Thomas Tailly More articles by this author Sara Larsen More articles by this author Lotte Ockert More articles by this author Kevin Koo More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement Loading ...

A Runway Safety System Based on Vertically Oriented Stereovision

In 2020, over 10,000 bird strikes were reported in the USA, with average repair costs exceeding $200 million annually, rising to $1.2 billion worldwide. These collisions of avifauna with airplanes pose a significant threat to human safety and wildlife. This article presents a system dedicated to monitoring the space over an airport and is used to localize and identify moving objects. The solution is a stereovision based real-time bird protection system, which uses IoT and distributed computing concepts together with advanced HMI to provide the setup’s flexibility and usability. To create a high degree of customization, a modified stereovision system with freely oriented optical axes is proposed. To provide a market tailored solution affordable for small and medium size airports, a user-driven design methodology is used. The mathematical model is implemented and optimized in MATLAB. The implemented system prototype is verified in a real environment. The quantitative validation of the system performance is carried out using fixed-wing drones with GPS recorders. The results obtained prove the system’s high efficiency for detection and size classification in real-time, as well as a high degree of localization certainty.

System Maintenance Using Several Imperfect Repairs Before a Perfect Repair

Allowing several imperfect repairs before a perfect repair can lead to a highly reliable and efficient system by reducing repair time and repair cost. Assuming exponential lifetime and exponential repair time, we determine the optimal probability $p$ of choosing a perfect repair over an imperfect repair after each failure. Based on either the limiting availability or the limiting average repair cost per unit time, we determine the optimal number of imperfect repairs before conducting a perfect repair.

Optimal placement for repair-efficient erasure codes in geo-diverse storage centres

Erasure codes are increasingly being used by storage providers to reduce the cost of reliably storing large volumes of data. As compared to the default mechanism of triple replication, erasure codes result in optimal storage efficiency, but require significant network and disk usage during repair of failed data. The repair process is particularly complicated for storage clusters with data centres spread across a wide geographical area. For such geo-diverse clusters, the recovery performance of the code used depends more on the network throughput and latency than on the computations required for decoding. Hence, the recovery performance of most erasure codes can be improved if the surviving blocks for effecting a node repair are placed optimally.This article affirms the idea by proposing an optimization framework for placement of blocks in geo-distributed storage clusters, addressing the open problem posed by Dimakis et al. in their celebrated paper on network coding. To this end, a signomial program is formulated that yields the optimal placement minimizing the average single-block repair cost over large number of files. Though non-convex, the structure of the problem allows us to use a monomial approximation to solve the problem efficiently. MATLAB simulation results and equivalent translation to implementation with popular codes used in Hadoop storage setting are presented, that validate our framework. The idea could be applied to any coded geo-diverse storage system to achieve significant benefits in repair performance during node failures.

Reducing network cost of data repair in erasure-coded cross-datacenter storage

Nowadays, cross-datacenter storage is widely used because of its high disaster-tolerance. Moreover, the erasure code is gradually being applied to cross-datacenter storage since it offers the same reliability as replication with a significant decrease in the amount of storage required. However, the network cost of repairing erasure-coded data in existing cross-datacenter storage (repair cost of cross-datacenter erasure code) is high, which usually results in a long repair time. To reduce the repair time by reducing the repair cost, in this paper, we study both the encoding method and repair method of cross-datacenter erasure code. First, we propose the concept of average weighted locality, which is proportional to the average repair cost of cross-datacenter erasure code. Then, we propose a network environment-adaptive encoding method of cross-datacenter erasure code (NEC). Under different network environments and encoding parameters, NEC can compute the approximate optimal generator matrix and data placement scheme online in a parallel heuristic way to achieve the approximate smallest average weighted locality. After that, we propose a hybrid-structured repair method of cross-datacenter erasure code (HRepair), which can achieve a good tradeoff between repair cost and repair efficiency by constructing a hybrid tree-star transmission topology to organize data transmission in the repair process. Experiments show that: Compared with several state-of-the-art erasure codes, NEC can reduce the repair cost and repair time by 26.8%–40% and 13.9%-37.1%. Besides, HRepair can reduce repair cost and repair time further.

Comparison of Repair Costs for Small and Mid-Sizes Farm Machinery in Malaysian Oil Palm Plantation

Farm machinery has been tremendously used to perform laborious tasks and speed-up the in-field operations in Malaysian oil palm plantation. In line with significant increase in farm machinery usage in Malaysian oil palm plantation, hence, repair costs of farm machinery should be well-managed. Failure to do so may result the plantations profits will be affected. This study aims to analyze and compare the current data of repair costs for small and mid-sizes farm machinery that are commonly used in Malaysian oil palm plantation. Besides, this study also aims to update and adapt the values of repair factors for cumulative repair and maintenance (Crm) costs model of farm machinery in Malaysian oil palm plantation. The relevant data were collected through a survey that was carried out at several oil palm plantations in Melaka and Negeri Sembilan states of Malaysia. The findings indicated the common sizes of farm machinery used Malaysian oil palm plantation were in range of small-size (28HP) to mid-size (75HP). It was found that annual average repair costs of mid-size farm machinery was 60.08% higher than the small-size one. Meanwhile, mean ages of mid-size farm machinery was also 80.7 % longer than the small-size one. The values of repairs factors 1 (RF1) and repairs factor 2 (RF2) for cumulative repair and maintenance costs model (Crm) of farm machinery in Malaysian oil palm plantation were 1.4061 and 1.6588, respectively. Conclusively, the findings of study can give a valuable contribution to the oil palm plantations management in developing their strategic planning concerning to the allocation of overall costs of farm machinery.

Better Buy, Inc

This case pertains to one of the most important topics in financial accounting and reporting: revenue recognition. It is intended for use in a required MBA financial accounting course or in an MBA elective course in Financial Reporting and Analysis. The company, Better Buy, Inc., is an electronics retailer selling TVs and other electronic products. The company is a bit unique, however, in that it not only sells major brand TVs, but it also sells TVs under its own brand that carry a one-year warranty for which the retailer—not the manufacturer—is responsible. The company also offers an additional two-year warranty on its TVs that also is the sole responsibility of the retailer. The case asks students to address a number of revenue recognition situations along with the associated expenses. These situations include a product sale where the sales price also includes a warranty provision, a “bundle” of a product sale and an extended warranty sale, and a bundle of a product sale and an extended warranty sale where the company has an agreement to outsource the servicing of its extended warranty service Excerpt UVA-C-2330 Oct. 26, 2011 Better Buy, Inc. Better Buy, Inc., (BB) was a reputable electronics retailer that had experienced strong and profitable sales growth throughout North America. Much of the company's growth was due to its reputation for providing an outstanding selection of state-of-the-art televisions and other popular electronic products at very competitive prices. In addition, BB's non-commission sales personnel were known for their superior product knowledge and friendly, personal customer service. Although the majority of the company's television sales had come from the sales of numerous recognized brands, the company also sold a limited variety of high-definition televisions under the Better Buy brand name. One of the least expensive of these Better Buy televisions sold for $ 1,800. This particular television was manufactured for BB by a well-known, quality global manufacturer at a cost of $ 1,200, and BB disclosed the identity of the manufacturer so customers could assume a certain level of quality. Included in the $ 1,800 selling price was a one-year warranty from BB. This warranty arrangement was unique because most retail electronics equipment came with a one-year manufacturer's warranty. But in order to ensure its price-competitive position in the market, BB relieved the manufacturer of any warranty obligation. Thus, the initial one-year warranty on BB televisions was the retailer's responsibility. BB had created an excellent internal service and repair capability that took care of all the initial one-year-warranty service work. Past history, although limited, had shown that these BB televisions were extremely reliable and that only about 5% of them ever needed warranty service within the first year. For those that did, the average repair cost was about $ 1,000 per television, with very few outside the $ 800 to $ 1,200 range. . . .

Farm machinery repair costs: a case study at oil palm plantations in Malaysia

Repair costs of farm machinery vary depending on specific geographical conditions of a country. This study was conducted to investigate current data on farm machinery repair costs with respect to characteristics of oil palm plantations in Malaysia. Relevant data were collected through face-to-face interviews and surveys that were carried out at several oil palm estates in Malaysia. Spreadsheet software was used to analyse the collected data. Findings of the study indicated relationships between farm machinery size and annual average repair costs in accordance with specific conditions and type of operations at the plantations. The relationships between farm machinery size and annual hours of farm machinery use, and farm machinery age are also discussed. This study also established a specific mathematical model for estimating Cumulative Repair and Maintenance (CRM) costs of farm machinery in Malaysian oil palm plantations.

Farm machinery repair costs: a case study at oil palm plantations in Malaysia

Repair costs of farm machinery vary depending on specific geographical conditions of a country. This study was conducted to investigate current data on farm machinery repair costs with respect to characteristics of oil palm plantations in Malaysia. Relevant data were collected through face-to-face interviews and surveys that were carried out at several oil palm estates in Malaysia. Spreadsheet software was used to analyse the collected data. Findings of the study indicated relationships between farm machinery size and annual average repair costs in accordance with specific conditions and type of operations at the plantations. The relationships between farm machinery size and annual hours of farm machinery use, and farm machinery age are also discussed. This study also established a specific mathematical model for estimating Cumulative Repair and Maintenance (CRM) costs of farm machinery in Malaysian oil palm plantations.

Representation of replacement rules in the form of a matrix

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to represent replacement policies (rules) in the form of a matrix. Visualization of replacement rules is useful for maintenance records. Matrix representation is more effective than the verbal description usually provided, as it allows better understanding of the specifics of the different replacement rules without careful research of their mathematical models. Design/methodology/approach – This approach employs mathematical models to investigate the simple conditions (requirements) for replacement of system component with illustrative examples. When comparing the different replacement rules a cost structure is applied to takes into account the nature and technology of disassembly assembly actions for the repair unit. Findings – Representation of replacement rules in the matrix form is useful when describing planned replacement models, opportunity replacement models, group replacement models and others, as well as computer modeling of the renewal process. Forming simple conditions for the replacement of system components ensures the total average repair cost is minimized. These conditions can be applied in the early stages of creating a maintenance program for the machine. Practical implications – Replacement matrices can be specified in a technical manual for maintenance of machines to achieve reliable operation and to reduce repair costs. Replacement matrices can be put into practical use for maintenance records and may be included in the maintenance procedures library of CMMSs. Developed in the paper, the replacement matrix, the conditions for replacement of system components and the cost structure will help engineers to make decisions at the time of repair for assembly units. Originality/value – Proposed in the paper is a new approach to the visualization of the replacement rules and cost structure which simplifies the analysis of options for repair actions. The proposed technique contributes to the record of maintenance actions and the decision making process for replacement.

Optimal imperfect preventive maintenance policy for equipment leased during successive periods

In this paper, we consider randomly failing equipment leased several times during their life cycle with a given warranty period. A mathematical model is developed to determine the optimal efficiency levels of preventive maintenance (PM) to be performed on the equipment between successive lease periods, maximising the expected total profit of the lessor over the equipment life cycle. The model considers the expected leasing revenue as well as the equipment acquisition cost and the average PM and repair costs. PM actions allow reducing the age of the equipment to a certain extent with a corresponding cost depending on the PM level adopted. The efficiency of the PM is determinant of the expected revenue during the next lease period. Given a set of K possible PM levels and the number of lease periods n over the equipment life cycle, Kn−1 PM strategies are possible. A genetic algorithm is proposed in order to obtain nearly optimal policies in situations where the number of possibilities Kn−1 is very high. Obtained numerical results are discussed. Small- and big-size instances of the problem are considered in the case of a service company in the oil and gas industry specialised in leasing specific equipment such as separators, to oil companies for production activities with a limited duration of several months like well testing or short production tests.

The Characteristics of the Repair Cost Distribution in Apartment Housing

Purpose: The repair would require to conserve and improve the building function and performance since built. Each household is responsible for maintaining the public facilities and paying the required cost. Therefore, it needs to get the tool or method to forecast the required cost in the future. Before the repair cost is provided, it needs to catch the repair cost distribution and provide the unit cost for the repair cycle. In this study, it aimed at providing the repair cost unit and analyzing the repair cost distribution in a roof proofing work, elevator work and building painting, which are divided into a fully work and partly change. Results of this study are shown that first, the average repair cost for roof proofing work is provided with <TEX>$166.59{\times}10^3won/household$</TEX> and <TEX>$1.59{\times}10^3won/m^2$</TEX> of a full change, <TEX>$33.22{\times}10^3won/household$</TEX> and <TEX>$0.33{\times}10^3won/m^2$</TEX> for a partly work. In addition, elevator work is <TEX>$557.45{\times}10^3won/household$</TEX> and <TEX>$5.38{\times}10^3won/m^2$</TEX> for a full change, <TEX>$32.92{\times}10^3won/household$</TEX> and <TEX>$0.56{\times}10^3won/m^2$</TEX> for a partly repair. Painting has a <TEX>$304.48{\times}10^3won/household$</TEX> and <TEX>$2.94{\times}10^3won/m^2$</TEX>. Second, the distribution pattern of repair unit cost has a weibull-typed distribution which has a long tail to the right.

Cost Analysis of Flexible Ureteroscope Repairs: Evaluation of 655 Procedures in a Community-Based Practice.

The frequency of flexible ureteroscopy has increased with the introduction of improved instrumentation. Ureteroscopes allow increased endoscopic access to the ureter and kidney. However, maintenance and repair of scopes may increase the total procedure expense. In 3 years (8/2011-7/2014), 655 flexible ureteroscopies were performed at a single-specialty, urology, ambulatory surgery center. Procedures were performed by 26 board-certified urologists using four Olympus URF P5 flexible ureteroscopes. The instruments were handled by a single team and sterilized through the STERIS System E1. Repairs were performed by the manufacturer on an as needed basis. Patient records were reviewed to determine the preoperative diagnosis, operative time, location and size of the stone, and use of laser or ureteral sheath. The occurrence, nature of flexible ureteroscope damage, and cost of repairs were evaluated. Of the ureteroscopies performed, 78% was for the treatment of calculi (50.1% in the kidney). Mean stone size was 8.5 ± 0.2 mm, with larger stones (11 mm) located in the kidney. The flexible ureteroscope was advanced over a guidewire (88% of cases); a laser fiber was introduced in 70%, and a ureteral sheath was used in 13.4%. Mean procedure time was 40 minutes. The most common reasons for ureteroscope repair were cloudy lens (16 repairs) and broken optic fibers (9 repairs). There were 31 repairs during the study period (average 21 cases per repair). Flexible ureteroscopes were out of service for an average of 11 days per repair (range 3-20). The total cost of repairs was $233,150 or ∼$7521 per repair. The average repair cost per flexible ureteroscopy performed was $355. Expenses associated with instrument repair can significantly impact a procedure's net revenue, thus efforts should be made to minimize instrument breakage. The expense of repairing a flexible ureteroscope per procedure can be significant and needs to be considered when pricing this procedure.

Causes, impacts and costs of strikes on buried utility assets

Preventing accidental damage to buried utilities is a key area that the civil engineering and construction industry is attempting to make progress on. In addition to the health and safety consequences of operatives striking buried cables or pipes, there are numerous other impacts that can occur as a result of the damage. Many organisations collect data on utility strikes and incidents, but these are not shared across the industry. The research reported in this paper is based on unprecedented access to statistics from nine organisations, which provided a total of 3348 incidents to determine any patterns. The key results were that damage to telecommunications or electric cables was the most common; the frequency of incidents peaked between 09:00 and 12:00 on working days; hand tools were the most common excavation tool involved in utility strikes, closely followed by mechanical excavators; and rules not followed contributed to half of the incidents for one organisation. Furthermore, a definitive list of the impacts and costs associated with utility strikes is presented. Repair costs, calculated in the form of an average damage repair cost per utility, have been quantified as electricity £970, gas £485, telecommunications £400, fibre-optic £2800 and water £300–980.

Failure rate, repair time and unscheduled O&amp;M cost analysis of offshore wind turbines

AbstractDetermining and understanding offshore wind turbine failure rates and resource requirement for repair are vital for modelling and reducing O&amp;M costs and in turn reducing the cost of energy. While few offshore failure rates have been published in the past even less details on resource requirement for repair exist in the public domain. Based on ~350 offshore wind turbines throughout Europe this paper provides failure rates for the overall wind turbine and its sub‐assemblies. It also provides failure rates by year of operation, cost category and failure modes for the components/sub‐assemblies that are the highest contributor to the overall failure rate. Repair times, average repair costs and average number of technicians required for repair are also detailed in this paper. An onshore to offshore failure rate comparison is carried out for generators and converters based on this analysis and an analysis carried out in a past publication. The results of this paper will contribute to offshore wind O&amp;M cost and resource modelling and aid in better decision making for O&amp;M planners and managers. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.