Patent ID: 6980959

Claim:
A method of maintaining a configuration of mechanical equipment, comprising the steps of: retrieving, by a data processor, a desired configuration of the mechanical equipment based on a design objective of the mechanical equipment, wherein the desired configuration includes configuration data on an equipment identifier, an equipment description, an assembly identifier, an assembly description, a part identifier, a part description data, an installation location data, an installation position data, a part specification data, an assembly specification data, and an equipment data, and wherein the design objective includes at least one of safety, reliability, and performance; retrieving, by the data processor, an actual configuration of the mechanical equipment, wherein the actual configuration includes configuration data on an equipment identifier, an equipment description data, an assembly identifier, an assembly description data, a part identifier, a part description, an installed position data, an installation date, a utilization history data, a maintenance history data, a longevity information, a part specification data, an assembly specification data, and an equipment specification data; comparing, electronically with the data processor, the desired configuration with the actual configuration to determine if the actual configuration complies with the desired configuration; and generating, by the data processor in accordance with the comparison of the desired configuration with the actual configuration, an upgrade requirement plan for upgrading the actual configuration to the desired configuration if the actual configuration is noncompliant.