Assuring The Reliability Of ProductionProcesses Using FMEA Method

Abstract

Today, the economic success of industrial companies is defined by low production costs, short delivery times and reliable product quality. These three factors are included in the integral quality assurance system which primarily takes into account the needs and the requirements of customers, and consequently enables the company to participate efficiently on the competitive market. To this end, preventive quality assurance methods should be used in companies. They serve to anticipate potential failures in time and to prevent their occurrence. This is possible with the known FMEA method (Failure Modes and Effects Analysis). Some requirements of the TQM (Total Quality Management) system are given as well as our computerised solution, i.e. a software package developed at the Faculty of Technical Sciences Department of Mechanical Engineering, Laboratory for Production Systems Planning. The methods presented in this contribution assure the determination of potential risks, and the analysis and the prevention of failure effects or their moderation. The reliability analysis leads to a wide spectrum of technical safety requirements which are used to precisely assess the reliability of production systems. RELIABILITY OF PRODUCTION PROCESSES AND THE PHYLOSOPHY OF TQM To be successful in present concurrent markets, industrial companies must assure short delivery times, low production costs and adequate Transactions on Information and Communications Technologies vol 8, © 1994 WIT Press, www.witpress.com, ISSN 1743-3517 450 Software Quality Management quality of products. Therefore it is of great importance to introduce and apply preventive methods of quality assurance so that potential failures could be predicted in time and their occurence prevented. The level of safety and reliability of production systems is determined by laws, technical rules and standards. Reliability and consequently the quality of production processes are comprehensive terms which exceed the limits of legal, economic and technical regulations, and increasingly reflect the policy, phylosophy and culture of a nation. The goal of Total Quality Management system (TQM) is the overall economic success of the company which depends not only on time and cost factors but also strongly on the reliability of production processes. Figure 1 shows that reliability, which is actually quality in certain time, is twofold: external and internal reliability. EXTERNAL RELIABILITY • quality of products • quality of services INTERNAL RELIABILITY • total quality of the product from its conception to its manufacture • quality of supplies • quality as production phylosophy TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM Figure 1: Role of reliability in quality management system The notion of reliability is not narrowed only to technical development but is broadened to human relations which bring about steady improvements of working efficiency of individuals and working teams. This is precisely the goal of the Total Quality Management system. Man remains the basic creator of quality and directly influences all planned and systems measures for winning customers' confidence and satisfying Transactions on Information and Communications Technologies vol 8, © 1994 WIT Press, www.witpress.com, ISSN 1743-3517