We analyse the performance of risk reduction strategies for terrorist attacks with Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) for large governmental building structures in terms of cost-efficiency, significance and effectiveness accounting for life safety in conjunction with societal preferences and capabilities. The approach builds upon an extended Bayesian pre-posterior decision analysis and the princi

The use of load and structural performance measurement information is vital for efficient structural integrity management and for the cost of energy production with Offshore Wind Turbines (OWTs). OWTs are dynamically sensitive structures subject to an interaction with a control unit exposed to repeated cyclic wind and wave loads causing deterioration and fatigue. This study focuses on the quantifi

This paper proposes a framework for the planning of the structural integrity and risk management (SIRM) of offshore structures by utilizing the value of information and action (VoIA) analysis. Multiple structural health information sources, i.e. inspections, structural health monitoring (SHM) and damage detection systems (DDS), are modeled in dependency of the information acquirement state. In the

This paper introduces an extended formulation of decision analyses, which provides an enhanced basis for the definition of the value of information, the value of actions and the value of actions and information analyses. The formulation of decision analyses is (1) extended by introducing an action implementation uncertainty and - following the reasoning of Raiffa and Schlaifer (1961) - (2) by cons

Fatigue safety verification of existing bridges that uses ''re-calculation'' based on codes, usually results in insufficient fatigue safety, triggering invasive interventions. Instead of “re-calculation”, Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) should be used for the assessment of the existing bridges. Monitoring systems provide data that can reduce uncertainties associated with the fatigue loading pro

Structural Health Information (SHI) may be provided by various sources such as e.g. structural health monitoring, inspections, testing and digital technologies and networks as by the Industry Internet of Things (HOT). SHI holds a high potential for industrial, life safety and sustainability value and facilitates an optimal and intelligent life cycle management of infrastructure and machinery syste

Risk-based inspection (RBI) planning is concerned with the optimal allocation of deterioration control which is based on the pre-posterior analysis using the Bayesian decision theory and the expected utility theory. It has been widely used to make inspection and repair strategy in the field of civil engineering and infrastructure systems. Nowadays, with the developments of sensing and inspection t

This paper contains a quantification and decision theoretical optimization of the posterior utilities for several options for monitoring campaigns on the particular case of fatigue life predictions of an orthotropic steel deck. The monitoring campaigns are defined by varying monitoring durations and phases. The decision analysis is performed with real data from the Structural Health Monitoring (SH

We introduce a new concept that enables a decision analyst to explore and quantify the benefits of decision alternatives that exceed the scope of a pre-posterior decision or value of information analysis. This new concept, namely, the expected value of sample information and action analysis, facilitates to examine decision alternatives that become only possible with additional knowledge. The conce

The paper presents research results from the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network INFRASTAR in the field of reliability approaches for decision-making for wind turbines and bridges. This paper addresses the application of Bayesian decision analysis for installation of heating systems in wind turbine blades in cases where an ice detection system is already installed in order to allow

Implementation of Bridge weigh-in-motion (B-WIM) measurements and probabilistic approaches in bridge assessment may reveal hidden bridge reserves and changes in reliability levels over their projected service life, providing a key input for optimized bridge management. But, as scientists and engineers and at the same time vendors of our own ideas, we need to be in position to present the results o

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) has been a subject of major international research in Civil Engineering structures mainly during the last 20 years. While in the beginning, SHM mainly focused on sensor developments, nowadays practical implications regarding the acquisition, collecting and processing of data are being addressed. Indeed, SHM systems have been evolving along the two last decades an

To capture highly dynamic biological processes at cellular resolution is a recurring challenge in biology. Here we show that combining selective-volume illumination with simultaneous acquisition of orthogonal light fields yields three-dimensional images with high, isotropic spatial resolution and a significant reduction of reconstruction artefacts, thereby overcoming current limitations of light-f

BACKGROUND: It has been proposed that pregnant women and their fetuses may be particularly at risk for poor outcomes due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. From the few case series that are available in the literature, women with high risk pregnancies have been associated with higher morbidity. It has been suggested that pregnancy induced immune responses and cardio-vascular changes can exagg

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is the most common movement disorder and second most common neurodegenerative disease. The principal hallmark of the pathology is represented by a loss of mesencephalic Dopaminergic neurons (mesDA) that reside in the Substantia Nigra pars compacta (SNpc). Another feature of the disease is represented by formation of abnormal protein aggregates, known as Lewy Bodies (LBs),

This paper provides an overview, insights, results and a classification related to development and analyses of case studies within the scientific networking project COST Action TU1402 on the value of Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) information. With an outline of the framework and approaches, a procedure on how to quantify the value of SHM information on the basis of the Bayesian decision theor

This paper describes the assessment of the cost efficiency of risk mitigation strategies for terrorist attacks with Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) for an iconic bridge structure. The assessment is performed with a decision theoretical framework building upon very recent advances in the COST Action TU1402 on Quantifying the Value of Structural Heath Monitoring. The decision scenario is formula

Structural monitoring (e.g. structural measurement and damage detection) and inspections have been widely applied as part of structural maintenance. However, the potential of using the obtained information is not yet fully exploited to update the structural reliability and support the maintenance and operation strategy. This paper describes the foundations, limitations, and characteristics of meas

Identifying optimal inspection and repair strategies for offshore jacket structures is a challenging task. We present an approach, which is based on recent developments in the field of risk-based operation and maintenance planning at the structural system level. The approach utilizes heuristics to define inspection and repair strategies at the system level and to reduce the search space of possibl

This paper addresses the effects of the deterioration on the value of damage detection information. The quantification of the value of damage detection information for deteriorated structures is based on Bayesian pre-posterior decision analysis, comprising structural system performance models, consequence, benefit and costs models and damage detection information models throughout the service life