Design for Excellence in Electronics Manufacturing

7Root Cause Problem‐Solving, Failure Analysis, and Continual Improvement Techniques

7.1 Introduction

Root cause analysis (RCA) encompasses a category of problem‐solving methods that focus on identifying the ultimate underlying reason of why an event occurred. Root cause analysis is a generic term for diligent structured problem‐solving. Over the years, various RCA techniques and management methods have been developed. All RCA activities are problem‐solving methods that focus on identifying the underlying reason of why an undesired issue occurred. RCA is based on the belief that problems are most effectively solved by correcting or eliminating the root causes rather than merely addressing the obvious symptoms. The root cause is the trigger point in a causal chain of events. This trigger point may be natural or manmade, active or passive, initiating or permitting, obvious or hidden. Efforts to prevent or mitigate the trigger event are expected to prevent the outcome or at least reduce the potential for problem recurrence.

RCA is a comprehensive analysis method that identifies the chain of physical and human‐related root cause(s) behind an undesirable event. This differs from basic troubleshooting and problem‐solving processes that typically seek solutions to specific, relatively simple difficulties. The undesired event may be a product durability failure, a safety incident, a customer complaint, a quality defect, or a result of human error. RCA focuses the corrective and preventive ...