Hull tiles on Submarines are not very complicated...and are actually quite robust. The problem is the process of adhering them to the hull correctly is difficult under conditions next to seawater. We didn’t used to have much of a problem on the 637s I was on, and I don’t recall big problems on the 688s either. When the Virginias came out though it seemed like a process change or a change in the chemical composition of the adhesive caused the boats to lose large patches of tiles. I don’t know that they ever really solved that problem, and obviously we are not the only ones that have boats subjected to it.
My first boat was a 637 and went to the yard and came back with tiles, and two extra diver billets. Later the adhesive was changed to be more eco-friendly and that is where the troubles started with lots of tiles failing. A COBs nightmare.