Speaking Of Reliability: Friends Discussing Reliability Engineering Topics | Warranty | Plant Maintenance

The regulators are here to keep us 'safe.' Awesome! But they need to be the adults in the room. And by that, we mean motivating good behaviors in the people who make stuff. If the regulators simply turn into people who are looking for reasons to say 'no,' then we have a problem. They are not the adults we need anymore.

What is the first thing you do when someone gives you a chunk of data? There are many examples of people rushing to analyze 'something' ... and then realizing they don't help change anything.

Basic Risk Management Abstract Greg and Fred discussing how to set up a risk assessment program. Key Points Join Greg and Fred as they discuss how to start risk analysis.  Topics include: How to start a risk program in a project or process in terms of looking at variation. How SPC, FMEA, and other quality […]

Checking Assumptions Abstract Greg and Fred discussing how assumptions in reliability and quality engineering are highly critical.  We all know what assume can stand for:  make an ‘ass of u and me.’ Key Points Join Greg and Fred as they discuss how assumptions are a form of bias that needs to be understood and mitigated […]

Backup Balance Abstract Kirk and Fred discussing how much we should invest in backup power or  systems redundancy to prepare for rare weather or use conditions. Key Points Join Kirk and Fred as they discuss how much money do we need to spend to have backup systems or increasing the strength or robustness of systems […]

Role of Technical Papers Abstract Kirk and Fred discussing technical papers, which Fred and Kirk have a few on the website Research Gate, and the role they play in the reliability engineering world. Key Points Join Kirk and Fred as they discuss the papers and books on reliability engineering, Research Gate, and the use of […]

Reliability Assumptions Abstract Carl and Fred discussing the broad subject of assumptions, and how they impact reliability analysis and applications. When are assumptions good and when are they questionable? Key Points Join Carl and Fred as they discuss how to evaluate the efficacy of assumptions that are used in reliability programs or analyses. Topics include: […]

FMEA Occurrence Question Abstract Carl and Fred discussing a question received by an Inside FMEA reader on the subject of FMEA occurrence rating. Key Points Join Carl and Fred as they discuss assessing the occurrence rating in an FMEA, and the various applications and methodologies. Topics include: Why is occurrence part of FMEA? The efficacy […]

What happens if you need to understand the reliability of something, but that something is brand new, has new technology, is being manufactured by a new facility, or all of the above? It can be, and has been done successfully in the past. So how do you do it?

Let's say you are going to do this thing called Ongoing Reliability Testing (ORT). Can we accelerate failure by increasing temperature? Should we test to failure to find the MTTF? What is ORT? What is MTTF? What are we trying to do? Listen to this podcast to learn more.

Dealing With Product Characteristics Abstract Dianna and Fred discussing engineering projects and dealing with product characteristics and requirements. Key Points Join Dianna and Fred as they discuss a listener’s question about dealing with product characteristics. Topics include: How Reliability Engineers can help with requirements by asking questions and giving feedback. Ways to evaluate...

New Ways to Break Things Abstract Dianna and Fred discussing new innovations from a reliability point-of-view: how is this new stuff going to break? What are going to be the new ways to break things? Key Points Join Dianna and Fred as they discuss up-and-coming, new technologies and what that means for the reliability profession. […]

Cultural and societal change is continuous. And so is complaining about it. Leadership is constantly telling us what we can do and what we can't. Which is unfortunate. Because leadership needs to be focused on a specific idea. If leadership is all about complaining about millennials, generation Z, people working from home, young people wanting to be part of decision-making and so on ... you are in...

We are often faced with vendors who have outrageous claims regarding the reliability of a component or product ... where we are underwhelmed with reliability test data? Particularly when there is zero failures ... and sometimes a lower confidence bound on the MTBF from this data?

Reliability and Statistics Abstract Kirk and Fred discussing the use of statistics in reliability engineering,  where they are useful and where their use may not be the most efficient way to find and fix the cause of failure. Key Points Join Kirk and Fred as they discuss their different viewpoints on the use of statistics […]

Learning about Failures Abstract Kirk and Fred discussing the idea of listing of failure mechanisms and their different viewpoints on how we learn some of the common failure mechanisms Key Points Join Kirk and Fred as they discuss the challenge of listing potential failure mechanisms that usually occur when some mistake has been made in […]

Single Use Product Reliability Abstract Dianna and Fred discussing single use product reliability. For products that are used once and then disposed or recycled, do we need to consider and plan for their reliability? The short answer: yes! They talk about the things to consider with single use products. Key Points Join Dianna and Fred […]

Stresses and Mechanism Abstract Dianna and Fred discussing a listener question about understanding stresses and mechanism of failures of a new design. Key Points Join Dianna and Fred as they discuss a listener question: Is there a listing of all failure mechanisms and their stresses that I can reference? When I’m looking at a product […]

Identify Weak Points Abstract Kirk and Fred discussing how a good reliability development process is to identify the weaknesses to improve a product including a recent fence repair at Kirk’s house. Key Points Join Kirk and Fred as they discuss how a fence repair specialist identify a weakness in a fence and gate support structure […]

Confirmation Bias Abstract Kirk and Fred discussing the paths they took in Reliability Engineering, how our past experience shaped our view of the best methods for improving the reliability of systems, and how we learn new information on reliability issues. Key Points Join Kirk and Fred as they discuss their paths to their current frame […]

Failure to Adjust Abstract Greg and Fred discussing why people have a hard time adjusting and pivoting in times of uncertainty, much like what we all experience today. Key Points Join Greg and Fred as they discuss why people have a difficult time adjusting to change.  Personal change.   Change in weather.  Or, change in anything. […]

Supply Chain Tradeoffs Abstract Greg and Fred discussing the tradeoffs in reshoring.  Many companies are considering bringing design and manufacturing back to the US or host country. Key Points Join Greg and Fred as they discuss reshoring or bringing manufacturing back to the US.  The challenge is the US has lost much of its engineering […]

Accountability is important. Except when you are trying to find 'someone else' who is accountable. Finding someone to blame (so you can hypothetically sue) does not improve or fix the problem. In fact, the fastest and cheapest solutions to many of the problems us reliability engineers routinely face is a multi-disciplinary approach where everyone works together in order to solve the issue. This me...

We can sometimes be frustrated by vendors or suppliers not giving us the reliability data we need to do our 'reliability stuff?' Can we glean something from their advertised warranty period? Can we somehow 'reverse engineer' the underlying warranty reliability if we make some assumptions about the cost of failure and profit margin?

Uniqueness of Reliability Engineers Abstract Philip and Fred discussing a handful of traits that may be unique to reliability engineers. Key Points Join Philip and Fred as they discuss what makes reliability engineering attract ‘particular’ types of people. Topics include: Curiosity with how things fail The ability to deal with and learn from failures The […]