A joint optimal policy of block preventive replacement and spare part inventory

Maintenance and spare part should be considered jointly as they are related activities and maintenance generates the demand of spare parts. In this study, a joint optimization policy of block replacement and spare parts inventory for multi-components system is proposed by simulation optimization approach using Monte Carlo simulation. Through analyzing the process of maintenance replacement and spare inventory within replacement interval T, the total expected cost can be derived. The expected cost per unit time is the objective function to optimize the block replacement interval T and maximum inventory level S. Monte Carlo method is used to simulate the operate process and simulation algorithm is presented to derive the approximate optimal solution. Finally, a numerical example is presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed model. Sensitivity analysis and the effect of relevant parameters on the optimal decisions are discussed.