The following table lists the relationship between Beta value and MTBF and how they affect the reliability of an equipment:
| Beta Value | MTBF | Equipment Reliability |
|---|---|---|
| β = 1 | Unchanging MTBE (predictable failures) | If the Beta value is equal to or close to one (1), then the reliability is constant, and time is not a major factor. |
| β < 1 | Increasing MTBE (improving reliability) | If the value of Beta is less than one, the reliability of the equipment is improving over time. |
| β > 1 | Decreasing MTBE (deteriorating reliability) | If the value of Beta is greater than one (1), then the reliability of the equipment is deteriorating over time. |
If the Beta value indicates that the MTBE is increasing or decreasing, you can try splitting the failure data up by time, failure mode, operating time, or some other appropriate value to create a set of data where the Beta value is closer to one. If you choose to split the data into time periods, you might try to split a single analysis into multiple segments.