We testEd reliability assessment methods in a real-life
problem; the evaluation of the probability of failure of a
deck panel of a cruiser. This panel, which has a knuckle,
has failed due to buckling in one cruiser. Reliability
assessment methods explained why the panel failed. Previous
efforts, which employed deterministic analysis,
failed to explain why the panel buckled. Reliability assessment
methods also allowed us to identi~ and rank the
most important uncertainties and the most effective design
improvements.