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

Routine Reliability Abstract Dianna and Fred discussing routine reliability from a listener’s question: when creating a reliability plan for a project, how do we separate the routine and unique parts of reliability activities? Key Points Join Dianna and Fred as they discuss reliability planning: the technique and frameworks used to achieve reliability objectives. Topics include: why having a process to create a plan is much better than trying to use a standard plan some traps when trying to standardize packing for travel, root cause analysis Watch for Fred and Carl’s new book about reliability planning, to be released soon! Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. Download Audio RSS Show Notes Have a standard process for how to CREATE a reliability plan. Don’t have a standard reliability plan. We first need to ask ourselves “why”? What is it we need to know this time? Then, what do we need to do? Some questions to ask to put together a plan to achieve reliability objectives: What are we trying to achieve? What information do we know or don’t know? What are our constraints? How are we going to get that information to inform decisions? How do we monitor it? Review a previous plan for lessons learned, to incorporate those into your new plan. Some traps to be aware about: We tend to get asked, “How many samples do I need?” Instead, we should ask, “What type of information do we need to extract from samples?” Collecting test results out of habit without really doing anything with the results. Doing tests because we have the equipment and because that’s how we’ve always done it, but not really getting the answers we need to achieve those real reliability objectives. SOR 793 Putting Reliability Plans Together The Art of Creating a Reliability Plan The post SOR 844 Routine Reliability appeared first on Accendo Reliability.

Hidden Reliability Wins Abstract Dianna and Fred discussing hidden reliability wins: when reliability efforts go right, things don’t go wrong. So then, how can reliability engineers quantify their work? Key Points Join Dianna and Fred as they discuss hidden reliability wins. To quantify reliability engineering work, we need to do some due diligence and shine light on its value. Topics include: how to define the value of reliability work and the types of feedback to collect when we focus on value when and how to report and share it the importance of taking the time to do this in a quantified way celebrating heroes, fairytales, and fighting project fires If you’ve tried this, what has been your experience? What’s working? What’s not working? Let us know. Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. Download Audio RSS Show Notes What can we do to highlight those hidden reliability wins, to make them more visible? We need to bring to light reliability work by summarizing our work in a value statement (one slide/page): what was the problem? what was the solution? what difference did it make (what was the value)? Present the value statement in terms that internal customers will understand. This usually incorporates financials. We also may need to connect the dots (almost step-wise) between REs activities and the value quantification. You may start with hindsight to quantify your wins and collect a catalog. Then, during planning phases, you can start to prioritize activities based on the value they may add. When should you do and share these value statements? Just after an analysis, as part of a year-end tally, on a bulletin board, or when planning – just as a few examples. It’s not statistics and not engineering. Get comfortable making estimations! Just get started! Related Topics SOR 742 Reliability and Quality(Opens in a new browser tab) The post SOR 843 Hidden Reliability Wins appeared first on Accendo Reliability.

Working on the Right Things Abstract Philip and Fred discussing what should reliability engineers be working on that are the right things. Key Points Join Philip and Fred as they discuss Topics include: Do certifications provide a basis for what adds the most value? Dealing with reliability is the culture, not the presence of reliability engineering. A good start is to ask what we can do that will make a material difference. Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. Download Audio RSS Related Topic: SOR 566 An Effective Start in Reliability Engineering(Opens podcast in a new browser tab)   The post SOR 842 Working on the Right Things appeared first on Accendo Reliability.

Expectations Abstract Philip and Fred discussing how setting expectations impact reliability engineering tasks and results. Key Points Join Philip and Fred as they discuss Topics include: The set of written and unwritten expectations for your role as a reliability engineer. The different set of expectations when reacting to problems or proactively avoiding them. Dealing with the often myopic view of what a reliability engineer should be doing. Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. Download Audio RSS Related Topics SOR 650 Reliability Expectations(Opens podcast in a new browser tab)   The post SOR 841 Expectations appeared first on Accendo Reliability.

Regulators and Risk Abstract Chris and Fred discuss the age-old problem or regulation. If the regulators are not the adults in the room, then we have a problem. Key Points Join Chris and Fred as they discuss the role that regulators should play in making things safer and more reliable. Topics include: Regulators need to be the adults in the room. If regulators are engaged in fighting the organizations they are supposed to regulate … then we have a problem. Like the Boeing 737 Max debacle regarding the MCAS system and the crashes it caused. Yes, Boeing was very, very wrong in how they went about the engineering behind the aircraft. But it starts with a regulator (in this case the FAA) that created these behaviors by making the certification of ‘new’ aircraft so hard, that Boeing bends over backwards to convince the regulator that a new aircraft is in fact … not new. And then, convincing FAA to certify the aircraft themselves. Madness. Regulators can act like ‘gods’ without having ‘god-like’ knowledge. What does this mean? Regulators don’t tell industries like the autonomous vehicle industry what needs to happen for their vehicles to be deemed ‘safe.’ But … the same regulators are demanding lots of information from manufacturers to help them make this decision. Which essentially means that manufacturers are only volunteering information to regulators that gives them reasons to say ‘NO.’ So are manufacturers withholding information or being devious with the data they release? Absolutely. And this is wrong. But this starts with the regulators fishing for reasons to say ‘NO’ instead of defining what they need to say ‘YES.’ And if you don’t know what ‘YES’ looks like … then you need to accept risk. Which many regulators cannot comprehend. Regulators are not competent at design and manufacture … which is not a problem but needs to be acknowledged. Every US Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) regulates a characteristic that a manufacturer came up with. Like seatbelts and ABS brakes. Which means that older vehicles that are still being driven on the road don’t meet current FMVSS. And this is OK … because continual improvement is … continual. So we know regulations cannot be ‘perfect’ before the technology is deployed. Which means something needs to ‘be blown up’ before autonomous vehicles are on the road. Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. Download Audio RSS Related Topic SOR 412 Are Regulators Good For Reliability(Opens podcast in a new browser tab) The post SOR 840 Regulators and Risk appeared first on Accendo Reliability.

First Steps with Data Abstract Chris and Fred discuss what is the first thing with you do when someone gives you lots of information. What do you do? Key Points Join Chris and Fred as they discuss what your steps are when someone gives you a lot of data to analyze. Where do you start? Topics include: Understand the decision you are trying to inform. If the only data you have is failure data … but you need to estimate reliability, then you don’t have the right data. You need to have data from all the products or units that have not failed. So you need to understand the decision before you even know if you have the right data. Make sure the data makes sense. Are the columns missing headings? Is the data supposed to be warranty data only, but there are failure events included that fall outside the warranty period? Is the ‘root cause’ the same for every failure event? The reason why this matters is that if there is a problem with how the data is collected … it makes it hard to trust everything else. Does the data match what you expect? Is the failure data supposed to be investigating infant mortality … but the data infers a ‘bell curve’ as the probability distribution of best fit? Do you even know what sort of failure a bell curve implies? If not … learn about it. And you will quickly realize that we are not dealing with infant mortality. So you need to ask why? You have either discovered something amazing, different, or corrupt. Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. Download Audio RSS iTunes Stitcher Show Notes   The post SOR 839 First Steps with Data appeared first on Accendo Reliability.

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 tools are examples of risk analyses. Why risk management is the future of quality. Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. Download Audio Related Topic: Risk Decision Making, Frameworks, and Assessments(Opens article in a new browser tab)   The post SOR 838 Basic Risk Management appeared first on Accendo Reliability.

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 through transparency. Topics include: We all make assumptions, which can turn into biases in problem solving and decision making. Why it’s important to understand and write down the assumptions in your problem solving and decision making. When assumptions are written and understood by stakeholders, then problem solving and decision making can be improved. Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. Download Audio RSS Related Topics SOR 552 Assumptions and Maintenance(Opens in a new browser tab) The post SOR 837 Checking Assumptions appeared first on Accendo Reliability.

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 to insure reliabile use or availability. Topics include: Engineering always has tradeoffs between costs and reliability and we know that someone will accidentally or on purpose drop a cell phone out a 12-story building window.  Should we considering making cell phones that can withstand that abuse? Fred lives in a beautiful wooded area in California, but the tradeoffs are that they lose power fairly often, either due to weather or the power company cutting off electrical service to prevent possible forest fires from power lines arcing. Spending money to buy and install a automatic backup generator to prepare for the occasional loss of power is much better than a catastrophic forest fire. The bottom line is that we cannot prepare for all rare weather or environmental conditions that cause failures, and we have to make priorities based on the impacts of a failure. Safety is of course the highest priority. Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. SOR 836 Backup BalanceKirk Grayshare Social: Link: Embed: https://episodes.reliability.fm/sor/sor-836-backup-balance.mp3 Download Audio RSS Show Notes You can now purchase the recent recording of Kirk Gray’s Hobbs Engineering 8 (two 4 hour sessions) hour Webinar “Rapid and Robust Reliability Development 2022 HALT & HASS Methodologies Online Seminar” from this link. Please click on this link to access a relatively new analysis of traditional reliability prediction methods article from the US ARMY and CALCE titled  “Reliability Prediction – Continued Reliance on a Misleading Approach” For more information on the newest discovery testing methodology here is a link to the book “Next Generation HALT and HASS: Robust design of Electronics and Systems” written by Kirk Gray and John Paschkewitz. Related Topic: 33 – Utilizing Multiple Layers of Protection with Fred Schenkelberg(Opens podcast in a new browser tab) When You Should (And Shouldn’t) Use Redundant Equipment To Improve System Reliability(Opens article in a new browser tab)

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 citations of our work. Topics include: Technical papers provide references to the previous work of others as noted long ago by Sir Isaac Newton, the famous English scientist, who once said, If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants. Kirk’s book “Next Generation HALT and HASS: Robust design of Electronics and Systems” was building on the original concepts and ideas of  Gregg Hobbs, Ph.D, PE who was Kirk’s mentor and originator of the new paradigm of HALT and HASS methods. Kirk’s book added the use of Thermal HALT for skewing signal speeds and its ability to show marginal signal integrity or race conditions in software/hardware interactions. Many Academic papers will have large numbers of references to support one fact and maybe impress on the reader how well researched the material is, and yet  only 10% were actually used. Sometimes references to our work supporting or trying to support ideas and concepts that we may consider misleading and wonder if the author even read our work or is using it just to increase the number of references to impress. Research in Reliability Engineering at academic institutions such as CALCE at the University of Maryland mostly focus on intrinsic reliability issues with particular technologies widely used in the industry. Li-ion batteries, counterfeit electronic components, and wear out mechanisms.  Reliability failures due to special assignable causes is generally not published, as it is a companies most confidential and sensitive data. Enjoy an episode of Speaking of Reliability. Where you can join friends as they discuss reliability topics. Join us as we discuss topics ranging from design for reliability techniques to field data analysis approaches. Download Audio RSS Show Notes To go to the Research Gate Website click here You can now purchase the recent recording of Kirk Gray’s Hobbs Engineering 8 (two 4 hour sessions) hour Webinar “Rapid and Robust Reliability Development 2022 HALT & HASS Methodologies Online Seminar” from this link. Please click on this link to access a relatively new analysis of traditional reliability prediction methods article from the US ARMY and CALCE titled  “Reliability Prediction – Continued Reliance on a Misleading Approach” For more information on the newest discovery testing methodology here is a link to the book “Next Generation HALT and HASS: Robust design of Electronics and Systems” written by Kirk Gray and John Paschkewitz. Related Topic: SOR 158 Technical Papers: Your Professional Reading(Opens podcast in a new browser tab) The post SOR 835 Role of Technical Papers appeared first on Accendo Reliability.