Universal Principles of Design, Updated and Expanded Third Edition

112 Maintainability

The ease with which a thing can be accessed, inspected, repaired, and serviced.

Maintainability is the ease with which a thing can be repaired, serviced, or upgraded. It is one of the most neglected aspects of design, often considered as an afterthought if at all — until, that is, something breaks or there is a catastrophic failure, at which point everyone acts incredulous about how bad the design is.1

There are five factors for achieving maintainability in design:

1. Accessibility — Essential components can be accessed and serviced with minimal effort. Examples in this context: well-placed access panels, junctions, and control panels; assemblies designed with sufficient space for human hands and tools; easily findable or ...