Root Cause AnalysisRoot Cause Analysis resources
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Root Cause Analysis Article
Root Cause AnalysisWhat is Root Cause Analysis? Root Cause Analysis (RCA) is a management process that seeks to locate the ultimate cause or 80/20 rule causes behind performance or process-related problems in a business or engineering environment, and then proceed to resolve the problem by treating these underlying causes. The advantage of Root Cause Analysis as a failure-management method over troubleshooting, for example, is that the latter is a knee-jerk reaction to the occurrence of some critical problem or failure. Some fire-fighting is carried out in order to handle and recover immediately. Since this expeditious approach deals with the patching up symptoms quickly, the problem seems temporarily solved. Over time, the problem is likely to recur, resulting in a similar knee-jerk troubleshooting process, racking up huge costs along the way. The benefits of Root Cause Analysis, as a result, are the deeper investigation into the reason for the occurrence in the first place. The root cause or causes might be much deeper than outward symptoms reveal, and several layers may have to be pushed aside to reach the "root" cause. So, the focus is on analysis of this fabled "root cause" that propagated forward and manifested in the form of the problem at hand, rather than exclusively treating the symptoms, as troubleshooting does. Having identified the root cause, we then proceed to treat the cause(s) within the organizational perspective, thereby eliminating or reducing the anomalous impact such as maintenance cost. The critical importance of is this prevention of recurring failures. Summarized, the goals of are:
Practical ApplicationsApplications of this method can be found in diverse fields and industries. Examples of positive results from Root Cause Analysis include Chemical, Petroleum, Power generation, Transportation, Healthcare, Construction, et al. TrainingWhile training to perform Root Cause Analysis, the analyst should learn to identify the following causes during their investigations:
RootCause PhasesRoot Cause Analysis training teaches us to phase the analysis process into the following, and this closely matches the goals identified above:
Root Cause Analysis - Phase I, Data collection, should ideally begin as soon as possible after the occurrence of the event or phenomenon. This ensures that no data is lost. If possible, data may be collected even while the event or phenomenon progresses. All information pertaining to the occurrence should get noted - including conditions before, during, and after the occurrence; what current actions were taken by the personnel involved; environmental factors; if any, and so on. While collecting data, it is critical to investigate what actually happened, rather than focusing on what could have happened. To this end, data collection should be a fact-finding investigation, and not a fault-finding mission. Objectivity, as opposed to subjectivity, is critical. Data collection techniques include interviewing personnel most familiar with and directly or indirectly involved in the incident. The first contact with them may be restricted to hearing their perspective on the failure. Records pertaining to the incident are another excellent source for data collection. These may include correspondence between the key players, minutes of meetings, operation logs, maintenance records, equipment history records, and the like. As is obvious from this list, data collection methods may be as varied as the scenarios where the analysis is being performed. Root Cause Analysis Phase II, Event / phenomenon investigation, involves an objective evaluation of the data collected, in order to identify any causal factor chain that may have led to the occurrence of the failure. Usually, one or several of the following categories of causes are involved:
Root Cause Analysis MethodsDepending upon the Root Cause Analysis training path you follow, there are a number of methods available at this stage of analysis. The ultimate Root Cause Analysis training would provide in-depth knowledge and awareness of all root cause analysis methods. This rounded training is critical, so that determination of the root of the failure is quite thorough, leading to the right conclusions being reached. A few popular methods are discussed below: Events and Cause and Effect Analysis:This method is used when the data collected in the investigation phase points to a long chain of causal factors, or when the failure at hand apparently has several dimensions.
Root Cause Analysis Phase III, Occurrence Resolution, is a realistic assessment of the viability of the corrective action that the previous phase has revealed, followed by application of said corrective action. The phenomenon must then be monitored periodically to verify resolution and effective recurrence prevention. Applying RCADetermining the root causes of the Space Shuttle disaster which caused the death of seven astronauts is a classic application of Root Cause Analysis process. Treating the symptoms, such as the falling of foam (so make the foam stronger), or the missing of tiles on the left-wing (so count the tiles before taking them inside the shuttle) - would be suicide from NASA's point-of-view, besides risking the lives of more astronauts. The failure undoubtedly lies in systemic failures that were part of a long and multi-faceted causal factor chain, which ultimately led to the crash. Investigators working on reaching the root cause of the failure are perhaps deploying the Events and Causal Factor method or the Kepner-Tregoe method, or software which delivers a variant of the two methods to get to the bottom of the problem. | ||||||||||||
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