Patent Number: 
Section: claims

1. A method of managing maintenance activities for at least one item of equipment, the method comprising:determining a configuration maintenance requirements for maintaining a target configuration of an item of equipment;including establishing the target configuration of the item of equipment based on a design objective of the item of equipment, wherein the design objective includes safety, reliability, and performance, or a combination thereof;evaluating an actual configuration of the item of equipment;determining if the actual configuration complies with the target configuration;determining a predictive maintenance requirements for the item of equipment based on a longevity estimate, a probability of failure, a financial analysis, or a combination thereof;planning for the availability of at least one of resources and a component for performing maintenance consistent with the configuration maintenance requirements and the predictive maintenance requirement;including planning an upgrade requirement for upgrading the actual configuration to the target configuration if the actual configuration is noncompliant; andcoordinating the upgrade requirement and the predictive maintenance requirement into a combined maintenance schedule for both the upgrade requirement and the predictive maintenance requirement. 2. The method according to claim 1 further comprising establishing a universal representation of components to facilitate acquisition of components from multiple sources, interchangeability of components, and tracking of component utilization, or a combination thereof. 3. The method according to claim 1 wherein the determining predictive maintenance requirements comprises:tracking performance data on the component; anddetermining the predictive maintenence requirement based upon the performance data with respect to a defined performance standard. 4. The method according to claim 3 wherein the planning comprises:scheduling performance of the predictive maintenance requirement at a defined respective time. 5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the planning comprises planning for the acquisition of at least one of the resources and the component consistent with the configuration maintenance requirements and the predictive maintenance requirements. 6. The method according to claim 1 wherein the planning comprises planning for the delivery the resources and the component for a time interval at a common geographic location. 7. The method according to claim 1 wherein determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a longevity of the component based on a historical longevity of the component. 8. The method according to claim 1 wherein determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a probability of failure of the component based on a historical probability of failure of the component. 9. The method according to claim 1 wherein determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a financial impact of the component based on a historical financial impact of the component. 10. The method according to claim 1 wherein planning includes obtaining the component for the target configuration and scheduling human resources consistent with availability of the component. 11. The method according to claim 1 further comprising updating the target configuration based on an engineering change. 12. The method according to claim 1 further comprising updating the target configuration to facilitate compliance with a regulatory requirement. 13. The method according to claim 1 wherein planning includes scheduling and bringing together at least two of the following resources at a specific time and place: a requisite component, technical instructions, supporting equipment, acceptance criteria and procedures, tools, and repair personnel. 14. The method according to claim 1 further comprising establishing a universal nomenclature definition applicable to a component, an item of equipment, a system, and an assembly of components, or a combination thereof to support the exchange of data associated with the universal nomenclature definition. 15. The method according to claim 1 further comprising querying a database containing components associated with corresponding universal nomenclature descriptors. 16. The method according to claim 1 further comprising estimating a remaining life span of the component by determining a usage time span between an installation date of the component and a subsequent date, and deducting the usage time span from the longevity for the component. 17. The method according to claim 1, where determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a longevity of the component based on a historical longevity of a different component analogous to the component. 18. The method according to claim 1, where determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a longevity of the component based on a historical longevity of both the component and a different component analogous to the component. 19. The method according to claim 1, where determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a probability of failure of the component based on a historical probability of failure of a different component analogous to the component. 20. The method according to claim 1, where determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a probability of failure of the component based on a historical probability of failure of both the component and a different component analogous to the component. 21. The method according to claim 1, where determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a financial impact of the component based on a historical financial impact of a different component analogous to the component. 22. The method according to claim 1, where determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a financial impact of the component analogous based on a historical financial impact of both the component and a different component analogous to the component. 23. A system of managing maintenance activities for at least one item of equipment, the system comprising:a configuration monitor for determining a configuration maintenance requirements for maintaining a target configuration of an item of equipment;wherein the configuration monitor establishes the target configuration of the item of equipment and determines whether an actual configuration complies with the target configuration;the target configuration being based on at least one of safety, reliability, and performance;a predictive maintenance controller for determining a predictive maintenance requirements for the item of equipment based on a longevity estimate, a probability of failure, and a financial analysis, or a combination thereof;a resource planner for planning for the availability of at least one of resources and a component for performing maintenance consistent with the configuration maintenance requirements and the predictive maintenance requirement;wherein the resource planner is arranged to plan an upgrade requirement for upgrading the actual configuration to the target configuration if the actual configuration is noncompliant; andwherein the resource planner coordinates the upgrade requirement and the predictive maintenance requirement into a combined maintenance schedule for both the upgrade requirement and the predictive maintenance requirement. 24. The system according to claim 23 wherein the resource planner schedules performance of the predictive maintenance requirement at a defined time to maximize availability of the item of equipment. 25. The system according to claim 23, wherein the predictive maintenance controller tracks performance data on the component and determines the predictive maintenance requirement based upon the performance data with respect to a defined performance standard. 26. The system according to claim 19, wherein the resource planner scheduals performance of the predictive maintenance requirement at a defined at a defined time to maximize availability of the item of equipment. 27. The system according to claim 23 wherein the resource planner plans for the acquisition of at least one of the resources and the component consistent with the configuration maintenance requirement and the predictive maintenance requirement. 28. The system according to claim 23 wherein the resource planner plans for the delivery of the resources and the component for a time interval at a common geographic location. 29. The system according to claim 23 wherein the longevity estimate of the component is based on a historical longevity of the component. 30. The system according to claim 23 wherein the probability of failure of the component is based on a historical probability of failure of the component. 31. The system according to claim 23 wherein the financial impact of the component is based on a historical financial impact of the component. 32. The system according to claim 23 further comprising: a purchasing system for obtaining the component for the target configuration; and a personnel management system for scheduling human resources consistent with availability of the component. 33. The system according to claim 23 wherein the target configuration complies with an engineering standard. 34. The system according to claim 23 wherein the target configuration complies with a regulatory requirement. 35. The system according to claim 23 further comprising a resource planner for scheduling and bringing together at least two of the following resources at a specific time and place:a requisite component, technical instructions, supporting equipment, acceptance criteria and procedures, tools, and repair personnel. 36. The system according to claim 23 further comprising a universal nomenclature manager for establishing a universal nomenclature definition applicable to at least one of a component, an item of equipment, a system, and an assembly of components to support the exchange of data associated with the universal nomenclature definition. 37. The method according to claim 1, where determining the predictive maintenance requirement comprises estimating a longevity of the component based on a historical longevity of a different component analogous to the component. 38. The system according to claim 23, wherein the longevity estimate of the component is based on a historical longevity of a different component analogous to the component. 39. The system according to claim 23, where the longevity estimate of the component is based on a historical longevity of both the component and a different component analogous to the component. 40. The system according to claim 23, where the probability of failure of the component is based on a historical probability of failure of a different component analogous to the component. 41. The system according to claim 23, where the probability of failure of the component is based on a historical probability of failure of both the component and a different component analogous to the component. 42. The system according to claim 23, where the financial impact of the component is based on a historical financial impact of a different component analogous to the component. 43. The system according to claim 23, where the financial impact of the component is based on a historical financial impact of both the component and a different component analogous to the component.