Definition
A failure effect is the consequence a specific failure mode produces (on the immediate component, the larger system, production output, or safety) such as an unplanned stop, a quality defect, or a safety hazard. FMEA uses failure effects, alongside severity and likelihood, to prioritize which failure modes deserve a preventive or detective action.
Key facts
- Describes the downstream consequence of a failure mode, not the failure mode itself or what caused it.
- Assessed at multiple levels: local (on the component), next-level (on the assembly or system), and end (on production, safety, or the customer).
- Combined with likelihood and detectability, failure effect severity drives FMEA prioritization of preventive action.
- The same failure mode can have very different effects depending on the asset's role and redundancy in the system.
What does Failure effect reveal about failures?
A failure effect describes what actually happens as a consequence of a specific failure mode (a line stops, product quality drops, a safety system activates) assessed at the local component level and, further out, at the system or process level.
How do teams use Failure effect in failure analysis?
Failure mode describes how the function fails; failure effect describes the resulting consequence of that failure; failure cause describes why the failure occurred in the first place. FMEA connects all three for each function analyzed: cause leads to mode, mode produces effect.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What consequences does a failure have for function and operation?
The failure effect: the downstream consequence a specific failure mode produces (such as an unplanned stop, a quality defect, or a safety hazard) assessed at both the component and system level.
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