Page 186 - DMGT524_TOTAL_QUALITY_MANAGEMENT

Unit 12: Failure Mode and Effect Analysis

Notes

Note The organisation must overcome its fear of the increased length and complexity of
the complete FMEA if FMEAs are to be used successfully.

As the FMEA process continues, many problems may be uncovered that must be solved if the
company is to become as good as it can be. There may not be enough resources to solve all of
these problems and still meet the launch deadline.
Knowing this, people begin to proclaim that FMEAs will never work. They believe that all the
hard work has been a waste of time. What good is it to know what is wrong and not be able to
correct it? Life was a lot easier when all the problems were not documented. If organisations
don’t overcome this obstacle they may slip back into stage one.

Stage 4: Using a FMEA’s Outputs

Management realises that the length of a FMEA cannot be predetermined. The complexity of the
product and process being analysed determines the FMEA’s length. Management understands
that all of the problems uncovered in the FMEA can’t be solved in one product launch. They
understand that the product will be launched with known problems and that they will have to
make objective decisions as to what to work on during this launch and what must be delayed.
When a problem occurs in an area that management decided not to work on, it is handled
without emotion. This is possible because the FMEA identified that it might happen and
management chose not to work on it so that other problems could be prevented.

Once the organisation launches the product, management creates a long-term plan to improve
the design and manufacturing systems. This plan minimizes the times the company must make
difficult decisions when doing FMEAs in the future.
Stage 5: Full FMEA Implementation and Integration

The organisation has implemented new design and manufacturing systems to answer the
majority of the problems identified in the FMEAs. Systems now exist to provide data to accurately
set occurrence and detection ratings. Due to the accuracy of the new ratings, predictions about
field failures and process yields can be made. The class column can now be accurately determined
and actions required for improvement prioritized.
Design engineers review design FMEAs before making design changes. If a change must be
made, operating personnel review the process FMEA and control plan to determine the impact
the change will have on the process.
When a problem occurs, the appropriate personnel consult the FMEAs. If the FMEA inadequately
addressed the problem, engineers make changes to the design and manufacturing system to
ensure that all possible steps have been taken to prevent a similar problem in the future.
The organisation uses the FMEAs as training tools because they contain the collective knowledge
of the company’s experts.

Task Prepare a FMEA model of a company based on the stages of FMEA you have
studied.

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