Reliability, Maintenance, and Safety Engineering – serie

Root Cause Analysis, or RCA, "What is it?" Everyone uses the term, but everyone does it differently. How can we have any uniformity in our approach, much less accurately compare our results, if we’re applying different definitions? At a high level, we will explain the difference between RCA and Shallow Cause Analysis, because that is the difference between allowing a failure to recur or dramatically reducing the risk of recurrence.In this book, we will get down to basics about RCA, the fundamentals of blocking and tackling, and explain the common steps of any investigative occupation. Common investigation steps include: Preserving evidence (data)/not allowing hearsay to fly as fact Organizing an appropriate team/minimizing potential bias Analyzing the events/reconstructing the incident based on actual evidence Communicating findings and recommendations/ensuring effective recommendations are actually developed and implemented Tracking bottom-line results/ensuring that identified, meaningful metrics were attainedWe explore, "Why don’t things always go as planned?" When our actual plans deviate from our intended plans, we usually experience some type of undesirable or unintended outcome. We analyze the anatomy of a failure (undesirable outcome) and provide a step-by-step guide to conducting a comprehensive RCA based on our 3+ decades of applying RCA as we have successfully practiced it in the field. This book is written as a how-to guide to effectively apply the PROACT® RCA methodology to any undesirable outcome, is directed at practitioners who have to do the real work, focuses on the core elements of any investigation, and provides a field-proven case as a model for effective application. This book is for anyone charged with having a thorough understanding of why something went wrong, such as those in EH&S, maintenance, reliability, quality, engineering, and operations to name just a few.

Root Cause Analysis, or RCA, "What is it?" Everyone uses the term, but everyone does it differently. How can we have any uniformity in our approach, much less accurately compare our results, if we’re applying different definitions? At a high level, we will explain the difference between RCA and Shallow Cause Analysis, because that is the difference between allowing a failure to recur or dramatically reducing the risk of recurrence.In this book, we will get down to basics about RCA, the fundamentals of blocking and tackling, and explain the common steps of any investigative occupation. Common investigation steps include: Preserving evidence (data)/not allowing hearsay to fly as fact Organizing an appropriate team/minimizing potential bias Analyzing the events/reconstructing the incident based on actual evidence Communicating findings and recommendations/ensuring effective recommendations are actually developed and implemented Tracking bottom-line results/ensuring that identified, meaningful metrics were attainedWe explore, "Why don’t things always go as planned?" When our actual plans deviate from our intended plans, we usually experience some type of undesirable or unintended outcome. We analyze the anatomy of a failure (undesirable outcome) and provide a step-by-step guide to conducting a comprehensive RCA based on our 3+ decades of applying RCA as we have successfully practiced it in the field. This book is written as a how-to guide to effectively apply the PROACT® RCA methodology to any undesirable outcome, is directed at practitioners who have to do the real work, focuses on the core elements of any investigation, and provides a field-proven case as a model for effective application. This book is for anyone charged with having a thorough understanding of why something went wrong, such as those in EH&S, maintenance, reliability, quality, engineering, and operations to name just a few.

In industry, owners, engineers and workers have struggled with lubricant degradation and its effects on their equipment. The purpose of Lubrication Degradation Mechanisms: A Complete Guide is to help personnel to understand the reasons behind the degradation of their lubricant, determine methods to identify the onset of degradation and reduce or eliminate lubricant degradation within their equipment. One of the most common forms of lubricant degradation is oxidation. However, this is not the only method by which a lubricant degrades. By understanding the differences between degradation patterns, personnel can employ specific tasks / tests to aid in their identification of the type of degradation and the factors responsible. The aim of this book is to educate facility personnel on the methods of degradation and ways in which it can be reduced or eliminated while keeping an eye on the cost of operation.

In industry, owners, engineers and workers have struggled with lubricant degradation and its effects on their equipment. The purpose of Lubrication Degradation Mechanisms: A Complete Guide is to help personnel to understand the reasons behind the degradation of their lubricant, determine methods to identify the onset of degradation and reduce or eliminate lubricant degradation within their equipment. One of the most common forms of lubricant degradation is oxidation. However, this is not the only method by which a lubricant degrades. By understanding the differences between degradation patterns, personnel can employ specific tasks / tests to aid in their identification of the type of degradation and the factors responsible. The aim of this book is to educate facility personnel on the methods of degradation and ways in which it can be reduced or eliminated while keeping an eye on the cost of operation.

Root Cause Failure Analysis (RCFA) is a method used by maintenance and reliability industry professionals as one of the key tools to drive improvement. This book offers a quick guide to the applications involved in performing a successful RCFA by providing a foundational view of maintenance and reliability strategies. It also highlights the practical applications of RCFA and identifies how to achieve a successful RCFA, as well as discussing common equipment failures and how to solve them. Case studies on topics including pump system failure analysis and vibration analysis are included.Suggests examples on how to solve common failure on many types of equipment, including fatigue, pumps, bearings, and mechanical power transmission Highlights practical applications of RCFA Identifies key elements for how to achieve a successful RCFA Presents case studies on topics including pump system failure analysis and vibration analysis The book is a must-read for any reliability engineer, particularly mechanical reliability professionals.

Root Cause Failure Analysis (RCFA) is a method used by maintenance and reliability industry professionals as one of the key tools to drive improvement. This book offers a quick guide to the applications involved in performing a successful RCFA by providing a foundational view of maintenance and reliability strategies. It also highlights the practical applications of RCFA and identifies how to achieve a successful RCFA, as well as discussing common equipment failures and how to solve them. Case studies on topics including pump system failure analysis and vibration analysis are included.Suggests examples on how to solve common failure on many types of equipment, including fatigue, pumps, bearings, and mechanical power transmission Highlights practical applications of RCFA Identifies key elements for how to achieve a successful RCFA Presents case studies on topics including pump system failure analysis and vibration analysis The book is a must-read for any reliability engineer, particularly mechanical reliability professionals.

This book combines the topics of Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and Lubrication Degradation Mechanisms (LDM) with the goal of allowing the reader to develop the disciplined thought process for getting to the root causes of each of the degradation mechanisms. This new way of thinking can be applied to other areas within their facility to mitigate or eliminate any future recurrence. Lubrication Degradation: Getting into the Root Causes strives to break down the complex topic of Lubrication Degradation into its six most common failure mechanisms. It presents the mechanisms as manageable components and then teaches the reader how to identify the typical root causes associated with each failure mechanism. The main aim of this book is to get the audience to look past the physical root causes and really unearth the underlying human and/or systemic roots to prevent recurrence of these types of failures. The book offers a field-proven and practical root cause analysis approach.An ideal practical book for industry professionals involved with Plant Operations, Engineering, Management, Maintenance, Reliability, Quality, and also useful for Technicians.

This book combines the topics of Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and Lubrication Degradation Mechanisms (LDM) with the goal of allowing the reader to develop the disciplined thought process for getting to the root causes of each of the degradation mechanisms. This new way of thinking can be applied to other areas within their facility to mitigate or eliminate any future recurrence. Lubrication Degradation: Getting into the Root Causes strives to break down the complex topic of Lubrication Degradation into its six most common failure mechanisms. It presents the mechanisms as manageable components and then teaches the reader how to identify the typical root causes associated with each failure mechanism. The main aim of this book is to get the audience to look past the physical root causes and really unearth the underlying human and/or systemic roots to prevent recurrence of these types of failures. The book offers a field-proven and practical root cause analysis approach.An ideal practical book for industry professionals involved with Plant Operations, Engineering, Management, Maintenance, Reliability, Quality, and also useful for Technicians.

Nearly all our safety data collection and reporting systems are backwardlooking: incident reports; dashboards; compliance monitoring systems; and so on. This book shows how we can use safety data in a forward-looking, predictive sense.Predictive Safety Analytics: Reducing Risk through Modeling and Machine Learning contains real use cases where organizations have reduced incidents by employing predictive analytics to foresee and mitigate future risks. It discusses how Predictive Safety Analytics is an opportunity to break through the plateau problem where safety rate improvements have stagnated in many organizations. The book presents how the use of data, coupled with advanced analytical techniques, including machine learning, has become a proven and successful innovation. Emphasis is placed on how the book can “meet you where you are” by illuminating a path to get there, starting with simple data the organization likely already has. Highlights of the book are the real examples and case studies that will assist in generating thoughts and ideas for what might work for individual readers and how they can adapt the information to their particular situations.This book is written for professionals and researchers in system reliability, risk and safety assessment, quality control, operational managers in selected industries, data scientists, and ML engineers. Students taking courses in these areas will also find this book of interest to them.

Nearly all our safety data collection and reporting systems are backwardlooking: incident reports; dashboards; compliance monitoring systems; and so on. This book shows how we can use safety data in a forward-looking, predictive sense.Predictive Safety Analytics: Reducing Risk through Modeling and Machine Learning contains real use cases where organizations have reduced incidents by employing predictive analytics to foresee and mitigate future risks. It discusses how Predictive Safety Analytics is an opportunity to break through the plateau problem where safety rate improvements have stagnated in many organizations. The book presents how the use of data, coupled with advanced analytical techniques, including machine learning, has become a proven and successful innovation. Emphasis is placed on how the book can “meet you where you are” by illuminating a path to get there, starting with simple data the organization likely already has. Highlights of the book are the real examples and case studies that will assist in generating thoughts and ideas for what might work for individual readers and how they can adapt the information to their particular situations.This book is written for professionals and researchers in system reliability, risk and safety assessment, quality control, operational managers in selected industries, data scientists, and ML engineers. Students taking courses in these areas will also find this book of interest to them.

This comprehensive guide addresses the critical elements required to achieve reliable centrifugal pump systems in process industries. Moving beyond isolated pump components, the book takes a holistic approach to pump system reliability, examining the entire ecosystem in which pumps operate. The author draws from decades of hands-on experience to provide a practical framework that bridges theoretical knowledge with real-world application, focusing specifically on roto-dynamic (centrifugal) pumps and the complex systems they inhabit.Centrifugal Pump Reliability 101: From Failure to Reliability Through Case Studies distinguishes itself from other technical resources; this book delivers exceptional value through its collection of 60 detailed case studies documenting actual pump failures and their resolutions. These real-world examples illuminate the often-hidden root causes of reliability issues that might otherwise take years to discover. The content follows a full lifecycle approach, covering essential aspects from proper sizing, selection, and installation through operation and maintenance. Readers benefit from accelerated learning as the author distills 10-20 years of professional insights into accessible knowledge, teaching them to identify the few critical factors among many variables that most significantly impact pump reliability.The book serves professionals across the organizational spectrum in process industries—from novice maintenance staff seeking fundamental concepts to experienced reliability engineers hunting for root causes. Project engineers will find crucial guidance on design decisions, while operations managers will understand how their choices affect long-term pump reliability.