A comparison between Monte Carlo and FORMS in calculating the reliability of a composite structure

In this paper a brief presentation of five reliability methods taken from literature is given. The methods are successively applied to two examples, a beam made of isotropic material and a laminated composite plate. Loads, geometries and material properties of both examples are defined as normal, uncorrelated stochastic variables. The aim of the paper is to compare and discuss the performances of the methods. Furthermore. the utility of the so-called "Directional Cosines" is put in evidence, and its utility in Robust design is suggested. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.