FMEA
Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30
CORE DEFINITION
A systematic method to identify potential failures, evaluating each failure mode on: - Severity (S): How severe are the consequences? - Occurrence (O): How likely is it to happen? - Detection (D): How easily can it be detected? RPN = S × O × D, prioritizing high RPN items.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
Rehearse failure before it happens. Instead of waiting for problems to surface and then fixing them, proactively and systematically ask "What could go wrong?" FMEA structures this anticipatory thinking.
Anchor fast decisions
A systematic preventive quality tool where a team prospectively enumerates possible failure modes, causes, and effects for each component, and scores them on Severity/Occurrence/Detection (SOD) to determine Risk Priority Number (RPN). The mechanism is to defuse mines in advance.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Failure_mode_and_effects_analysisverified
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