Accendo Reliability

Your Reliability Engineering Professional Development Site

Home » Blog

by Leave a Comment

Can modular subsystems improve reliability?

Can modular subsystems improve reliability?

Modular subsystems in a wheelhouse technology may or may not be a staple in your industry.  There are some industries where they are not a standard practice and there are industries where without them, you can’t be a competitor.  Of course there is everything in-between.

First let’s define what a modular subsystem is for this discussion.  A modular subsystem is an assembly that is designed to be integratable into multiple products.  For the automotive industry this could be a transmission.  Each car model a manufacturer makes does not have a unique transmission design.  There may be six transmission types that cover 20 car models.

[Read more…]

by Leave a Comment

Achieving Innovation

Achieving Innovation

We want to be more innovative – but how?

Many companies talk about their desire for Innovation. Can Design of Experiments (DOE) help in that process? Each section below contains a 2-minute video to expand on the topic provided.

Too often, we manage on hope

How often do we hear a design or process development team express optimism – “We are almost there!” And how long does that same response continue without progress? The key is to decide when we have tried long enough using informal methods. Predictability and confidence are important to achieve project success.

[Read more…]

by Leave a Comment

Should I Train a Good Facilitator or a Great One?

Should I Train a Good Facilitator or a Great One?

One of our customers who is thinking about setting up a RCM Blitz™ Facilitator training class recently asked me if I had a list of traits that all good RCM facilitators seem to have?  He also wanted to know the background experience a good facilitator would have and what are some the qualities we should look for in selecting these people?

As I was about to tell him I could e-mail a document I had created on how to select a good RCM Facilitator, an interesting thought came to mind.

Are you really looking for someone to become a good facilitator or would you really like them a great facilitator? [Read more…]

by Leave a Comment

Real World Volatility: Implications for Scenario Generation

Real World Volatility: Implications for Scenario Generation

Guest Post by Geary Sikich (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

Introduction

In the risk-neutral world, all business and government continuity planning would be risk-balanced. However, in reality, risks, threats, hazards and their consequences change depending on an organizations exposure, sensitivities to impact and other factors.  For instance, a natural disaster, can occur without much warning and can have direct and indirect impact on an organization.  Complicating the Business Continuity Planners life is a simple fact, events have unforeseen consequences that can rarely be planned for.

[Read more…]

by 2 Comments

Why Parents Make the Best Reliability Engineers

Why Parents Make the Best Reliability Engineers

I am a parent of two young children. As a result of my experiences as a mom, I feel that parents make great Reliability Engineers because there are so many shared skill sets. Please enjoy this lighthearted comparison to start your week out with a little humor.

First, I have to point out the development of a brand new Reliability Engineer requires the same skills of lubrication and vibration that the conception of a child requires. [Read more…]

by Leave a Comment

What is Validation?

What is Validation?

Significant savings in product development costs can be realized with robust validation processes, starting with requirements validation.  Validation confirms the product meets customer needs for the products intended use, and answers the question “are we designing the right product?” The “right product” therefore starts with the “right” product requirements.  Even a product designed with detailed requirements, but incorrect specification limits, can be considered the “wrong product” (since the product would be rejected by the customer.) [Read more…]

by Leave a Comment

The 2 Parameter Logistic Distribution 7 Formulas

The 2 Parameter Logistic Distribution 7 Formulas

This is part of a short series on the common life data distributions.

The Logistic distribution is univariate continuous distribution. This short article focuses on 7 formulas of the Logistic Distribution.

If you want to know more about fitting a set of data to a distribution, well that is in another article.

It has the essential formulas that you may find useful when answering specific questions. Knowing a distribution’s set of parameters does provide, along with the right formulas, a quick means to answer a wide range of reliability related questions. [Read more…]

by 2 Comments

RAMS 2018: Reliability Goals in the Product Development Process

RAMS 2018: Reliability Goals in the Product Development Process

I just came back from one of the best RAMS conferences I have attended (In my over 10 years of attending).  I was fortunate enough to present a paper on “Balancing Reliability Goals in the Product Development Process”.  The questions I received were great!  The higher level management of how reliability integrates into product programs is the next big advancement for our discipline.

-Adam

https://youtu.be/YPJBxwIJAi4

 

by Leave a Comment

10 Things Your Reliability Engineers Can Do Today To Improve Reliability

10 Things Your Reliability Engineers Can Do Today To Improve Reliability

20 years ago, I began my first assignment as a Reliability Engineer at Eastman Kodak’s Photo Chemical facility in Rochester, New York. Now, I understand that I just lost several people who began reading this article by using the words “photo” and “chemical” in the same sentence, but 20 years ago, most photography was still a chemical process. [Read more…]

by Leave a Comment

Design Optimization Using Value Equations

Design Optimization Using Value Equations

Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is an excellent tool to ensure linkage of customer needs to product requirements.  This article will provide a high-level overview on creating a ‘first-level’ QFD and how it can be used to guide design optimization.

(There are many additional features of QFD , however, and readers of this article are encouraged to research the methodology further.)

As stated above, we use the QFD matrix (similar to a cause-effect matrix) to ensure linkage of customer needs to product requirements using the critical thinking / questions as follows: [Read more…]

by Leave a Comment

Note from “Inside FMEA” Author

As of the date of this note, the Inside FMEA series of articles has completed the “Introduction to FMEA Series,” and is nearly complete with the “FMEA Fundamentals Series.”

This year, Inside FMEA articles will continue on a monthly basis. Each article will be posted for readers on the 1st day of the month.

As soon as the “FMEA Fundamentals Series” is completed, articles will continue with the “FMEA Preparation Series,” followed by the “FMEA Facilitation Series” and the “FMEA Special Topics Series.”

Readers of my book, Effective FMEAs, will continue to find the content of the Inside FMEA articles consistent with the concepts in the book.

It is my sincere desire that each and every person who reads Inside FMEA articles will discover the articles enjoyable to read and experience improved success in FMEA applications. As I say to readers of my book, “best wishes for effective FMEAs.”

Carl S. Carlson