Failure mapping using FMEA and A3 in engineering to order product development: A case study in the industrial automation sector

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to improve the failure analysis and troubleshooting process in engineering to order (ETO) product development, and reduce the amount of parts with failures. This is important because parts with failures are associated with the additional costs resulting from corrections of the product, reduced productivity due to the time waiting for the corrected part, delays in delivery and harm to the image of the organization. Design/methodology/approach FMEA and A3 are combined in a document for failure analysis and recording of the generated knowledge. The method is applied to an industrial automation company that designs and manufactures ETO products. Initially, the failures identified in mechanical assembly products are mapped, and then FMEA and A3 are combined in a document template, and a checklist for reviewing the detailing is built. Then, the method is applied in the design phase, and also for solving conceptual failures in the mechanical assembly and testing phase and the knowledge generated is recorded. Findings The results show the feasibility of the proposed method for both failure analysis and knowledge generation. Moreover, the adoption of improvement practices in routine activities, for example, the checklist for reviewing the detailing, can reduce up to 10 percent the amount of parts with failures. Practical implications The integration of FMEA and A3 encourages group thinking and monitoring the implemented actions. Since the document contains minor changes in the layout from the design phase to the assembly and testing phase, it contributed to the understanding of the people who participated in performing each phase. It should be ensured that the participation of experienced individuals with a proactive assertiveness who encourage the exchange of knowledge, preventing recurring failures from occurring in the conceptual phase. The approach to ensure quality was well accepted by the personnel in the company, but the implementation requires changing habits and establishing new practices. Originality/value The method proposed in this paper was applied to a company that designs and manufactures ETO industrial automation products. Since such products have high variety, the company has different characteristics compared with the companies that were considered in the few publications that attempted to combine the FMEA and A3 methods for failure analysis. The proposed method provides convenience for queries and updates, since it allows the inclusion of different failures in a single A3 report, reducing the number of separate documents. Also, the method includes a checklist for detailing review, which contributed to the reduction of failures.