A Multi-Criteria AHP Approach for Asset Criticality Assessment and Maintenance Prioritization in Shrimp Aquaculture Systems

Aquaculture production systems rely on the reliable operation of mechanical and electromechanical equipment to maintain stable environmental conditions. In shrimp farming, failures in critical assets may directly affect dissolved oxygen availability and compromise production stability. Despite the operational importance of these systems, structured methodologies for asset criticality assessment and maintenance prioritization in aquaculture remain limited. This study proposes a multi-criteria decision-making framework based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to evaluate and prioritize critical assets in shrimp aquaculture production systems. The model integrates nine technical and operational criteria related to reliability, maintainability, operational exposure, and production impact. The proposed methodology was applied to three key assets in the Primary Production stage: mechanical aerators, turbines, and stationary engines. The results indicate that mechanical aerators exhibit the highest criticality score (0.350), followed by stationary engines (0.328) and turbines (0.322). These findings highlight the dominant operational role of aeration systems in maintaining dissolved oxygen levels and ensuring production stability in shrimp farming systems. The proposed framework demonstrates that multi-criteria decision models can effectively support maintenance prioritization by transforming expert knowledge and operational information into a structured and consistent evaluation process. The methodology provides a replicable decision-support tool that can assist managers and maintenance planners in improving asset management and resource allocation in aquaculture production systems.