May 2008In This Issue:.When we are working with, creating, or just looking at a process, it would be helpful to ask what can go wrong. Failure mode and effects analysis, or FMEA for short, is a way to prioritize potential trouble spots. There are two kinds of FMEAs. Type #1 is a design FMEA; this FMEA is used to anticipate potential failure and to create potential risk priority numbers. Type #2 is a process FMEA; this FMEA is used to monitor failure as it occurs and to record the actual reduction of risk priority results.
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ThisĀ month we takeĀ a look at the failure mode and effects analysis process. IntroductionFMEAs are an analytical way of identifying how a process can fail and the consequences of that failure. FMEAs are best used prior to implementing a new process, or prior to modifying an existing process. This type of analysis is an organized way of discovering what could go wrong, and planning what we can do to eliminate such potential problems.FMEAs evaluate three key dimensions of process failure; severity, occurrence frequency and detectability on a scale of 1 to 10 (1 lowest, 10 highest). Severity is a measure of how damaging a failure would be. Occurrence frequency tells us how often this type of failure might occur. A problem that occurs several times a day rates high on the occurrence scale while something that happens once every few years rates very low on the occurrence scale.Detectability is an estimate of how likely it is that you will detect the failure prior to its having a harmful effect.
A failure mode that would be obvious for a long time prior to any harmful effects happening rates a low detectability score. Failure modes that are essentially undetectable prior to the effects taking place rate high on this scale.
Failure Mode and Effects Analysis FormA blank FMEA form is shown below. This form is too small to do much with. You can download a free FMEA template from our website by clicking this link:.
This form is also included in the SPC for Excel software.The steps in constructing a FMEA are given below. Steps in Making a FMEAStep 1: What Is the Process?A Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) begins by specifying the process to be studied. You should have a process flow diagram (PFD) of the process.
Record what the process is in the first column on the top half of the FMEA sheet.Step 2: What is the Potential Failure Mode?As a group, brainstorm all possible ways that this process could fail. These are the 'potential failure modes.' Write these ideas on a flip chart in a fishbone format. Look at the process using 4Ms, P and E - Methods, Materials, Measurement, Machinery, People, and Environment - in the 'fishbone' format. From the brainstormed list, choose the most significant failure mode and write it in Column 2 on the FMEA form.
You can repeat this process for different failure modes.Step 3: What are the Potential Effects of the Failure Mode?Write down the effects that would happen if the potential failure were a real failure. How would the failure impact your company? Your suppliers? Your customers?
What would be the worst possible outcomes?Step 4: What is the Severity of the Failure Mode to the Customer, Product, or Service?The Severity Rate (S) is the 'best guess' of how serious it would be to the customers, the product, or the service if the failure really occurred. A rating of 1 would mean the effect of the failure is considered minor; a rating of 10 would indicate that the effect of the failure would be very severe.