Maintaining and ensuring the long-term viability of critical electronic systems
Critical electronic systems must retain their reliability and availability despite equipment aging, technological changes and component obsolescence. In demanding industrial sectors, systematic replacement is not always possible or appropriate: extending their service life is a major challenge for operational performance and cost control.
At LGM, we support industrial companies with the repair, maintenance and modernization of critical electronic systems, including embedded systems and test benches. Our services cover preventive and corrective maintenance, the design of test equipment, mid-life refurbishment and obsolescence management.
Our approach aims to preserve equipment operational capabilities, anticipate risks associated with aging and define technical solutions tailored to operating constraints.
Designing and developing maintenance test benches
Maintaining electronic systems requires suitable test equipment to diagnose malfunctions, verify that equipment is operating correctly, and check its performance.
LGM designs and develops maintenance test benches to support diagnostics, verification, and return-to-service operations.
This test equipment is designed to take into account equipment characteristics, maintenance team requirements, and operating constraints. It helps identify failures and ensure reliable maintenance operations.
Suitable test equipment is also essential for maintaining diagnostic skills, supporting equipment upgrades, and ensuring continuity of repair activities.
Providing preventive and corrective maintenance for systems
Keeping electronic equipment in operational condition depends on a maintenance strategy tailored to its criticality, environment, and conditions of use.
LGM provides preventive and corrective maintenance for embedded systems and test benches.
Preventive maintenance aims to anticipate failures and limit the risk of unavailability through planned interventions tailored to the condition of the equipment.
Corrective maintenance involves diagnosing failures, identifying their causes, and implementing the actions needed to restore the expected functions.
These activities help preserve equipment reliability, reduce service interruptions, and control the costs associated with failures. They are part of an approach to extending system life, taking into account system configurations and changes to their components.
Prepare and carry out mid-life refurbishment
During operation, equipment may require major refurbishment to maintain its performance, reliability, or compatibility with operational requirements.
LGM supports the planning and execution of mid-life overhauls, taking into account equipment condition, maintenance history, and constraints related to its use.
These operations make it possible to assess the work required, plan the tasks, and restore systems to their expected capabilities when technically appropriate.
Preparing mid-life refurbishment helps anticipate periods of downtime, organize the resources required, and limit risks related to aging. It also makes it possible to identify components or subassemblies that require repair, replacement, or a technical upgrade.
Manage electronic component obsolescence
Obsolescence poses a major risk to the long-term viability of electronic systems. The discontinuation of a component, the disappearance of a supplier or advances in technology can jeopardize the maintenance of equipment that is still operational.
LGM supports electronic obsolescence management by assessing the criticality of affected components and identifying suitable technical solutions.
This approach may include:
- identifying obsolete components or those at risk of becoming obsolete through technology monitoring;
- assessing their criticality and the impact on system availability;
- identifying equivalent components;
- evaluating the compatibility of replacement solutions;
- exploring redesign solutions when direct replacement is not possible.
The choice of solution is based on technical constraints, qualification requirements, component availability and service life objectives.
This approach helps anticipate supply risks, minimize maintenance disruptions and preserve equipment operational capabilities over time.
Assessing equipment condition and extending service life
Over time, component aging and changes in the operating environment can affect equipment reliability and maintainability.
LGM conducts equipment condition assessments to evaluate system condition, identify vulnerabilities, and estimate the risks associated with continued operation.
On this basis, our teams assess various lifecycle extension scenarios: maintaining equipment as is with enhanced monitoring, repair, component replacement, retrofit, or design changes.
Comparative analysis of these solutions helps inform decisions by taking technical feasibility, risks, costs, and operational prospects into account.
In particular, a retrofit can modernize all or part of existing equipment by integrating components or technical solutions suited to current needs, without necessarily replacing the entire system.
This approach aims to develop a service life extension strategy that aligns with the operational and economic priorities of each piece of equipment.
