Optimal Warranty Policies And Reliability Modeling.

In the summer of 2004, the Asian International Workshop on Advanced Reliability Modeling (AIWARM) was held in Hiroshima, Japan. In this two-day workshop, variety of problems and issues related to Reliability Theory were discussed. One of the special sessions organized on behalf of this Workshop was that of optimal warranty policies and related issues. A product warranty is an agreement offered by a producer to a consumer to repair or replace a faulty item, or to partially or fully reimburse the consumer in the event of a failure. Using the warranty database the manufacturer can identify issues and opportunities, build customer loyalty and enhance brand reputation. The companies that are leading the way in the customer satisfaction, producing and selling quality products, are the ones making aggressive changes to post-sales services, starting with their warranty programs.The main part of this e-book consists of extended versions of the papers presented in the above mentioned special session on warranty analysis.