Lesson 3: The Form: Customer Focus Section

Lesson 3
The Form: Customer Focus Section
3-1
Lesson 3 - Objectives
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:
Recognize the three major sections of the FMEA.
Understand the purpose of the Customer Focus section.
Determine appropriate entries and complete the Customer

Focus section.
July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-2

FMEA Overview
Customer Focus Engineering Focus Issue Resolution
Action Results
Com ponent/
System / Potential
Occurrence
Occurrence
Procss/ Potential Cause(s) / Current Design/ Current Design/
Detection
Detection
Severity
Severity
Operations/ Potential Effect(s) of Mechanism (s) Process Control Process Control Recom m ended Target
Class
SOD
SOD
Index Function Failure Mode Failure of Failure PREVENTION DETECTION Action(s) Responsibility Com pletion Date Actions Taken
The goal of the Customer The goal of the The goal of the Issue
Focus section is to: Engineering Focus Resolution section is to:
• Identify the requirements section is to: • Identify actions to
of the project. • Identify specific causes resolve the critical
of the failure mode. causes of failure modes
• Identify failure modes
and their effect on our • Identify prevention & • Document resolution
customers. evaluations to address
• Determine the severity of cause / failure modes.
the effects. • Determines the criticality
associated with each
cause.

The Customer Focus Overview
The Customer Focus section requires answers to
questions such as:
• What must this design/process do?
• How can the design/process fail to meet the requirements?
• How does the Failure Mode affect customers, trade

partners, manufacturing, the next process step, etc.?

The Customer Focus Overview
How does the failure mode affect Rate the severity of
customers, trade partners, manufacturing, the Effect on the
the next process step, etc? What is their customer.
experience and/or reaction?
The INDEX and/or What must this design or What could go wrong? How might
Component, System, process do? What is the the design / process / process step
Process Step or Station purpose of this fail to meet the function? (Also
Number/Name component, system, consider potential internal/external
process or process step? customer complaint quotes.)

Component/System/Process
Operation/ Index Column
This column serves as an identifier for the row. The
identifier may be expressed as follows:
Component /System under investigation
Process steps under investigation (i.e.

Assembly Station 1, Weld Station 2, etc.)
Major categories of the FMEA may

include performance and environmental
requirements (i.e. Aesthetics, Safety, etc.)

The Function Column
Functions have already been developed in Lesson 2. At this
point, simple copy the Functions into the FMEA form.
Make sure:
Functions reflect the requirements of

the various “customers”.
Functions reflect project objectives

and detailed project requirements.
Functions are clear, actionable and

are specific enough to communicate
intent.

The Function Column
FMEA Form Examples:
Design FMEA Process FMEA

Exercise 4
Complete Index and Function Columns
From the Functions you generated in Lesson 2, select 3 to 5

Functions and enter them into the FMEA form.
How did your team use the Index column?

Potential Failure Modes
Potential Failure Modes express the various ways
the function can fail to be met.
Failure Modes may include the following:
does not do what it is suppose to

does not do it well enough
only does it sometimes, or
does the wrong thing!
On the FMEA form:
There is often more than one Failure

Mode.
Each Failure Mode should be noted
separately (one Failure Mode / box.)

A Design FMEA will address how the design will fail to meet the
design requirements.
A Process FMEA will address how the process will fail to

properly assemble/manufacture the design as specified, as well
as how the process fails to deliver the design requirements.
Failure may be expressed in terms of customer complaint

quotes.
• Explicit description of the Failure Modes is better than masking key
words (i.e. “product ignites resulting in a fire” as opposed to
“exothermic event”)*.
*Note: This guideline applies to FMEAs only. Whirlpool employees must

still use discretion in other forms of safety related correspondence.
FMEAs are unique in that they are intended to help us identify and resolve
potentially serious issues.

FMEA Form Examples:
Picture 1: Hinge halves assembled

backwards
Picture 1: Hinge halves assembled

correctly

Potential Effect(s) of Failure
The Potential Effect(s) of Failure

should be expressed from the
customer’s point of view. Consider
internal and external customers.
There is often more than one Effect per

Failure Mode.
How does the Failure Mode
affect customers, trade
partners, manufacturing, the All Effects for one Failure Mode are
next process step, etc? What is entered in one box.
their experience and/or
reaction?
Be descriptive. For example,
“refrigerator fails to cool” is preferred
over “customer dissatisfaction”.

Potential Effect(s) of Failure
FMEA Form Examples:

Potential Effects of Failure
If there are different severities of the Effect of Failure, it may be necessary to add a Failure
Mode that better describes the Effect of Failure.
The more specific Component
System Function
Potential Failure
Mode
Potential
Effects of
S
e
Potential
Cause(s) /
Mechanism(s
O
c
c
Current
Design
D
e
t
R.
P.
Recommen
ded
Responsibility
& Target
Completion Actions
Action Results
S
e
O D
c e
R.
P.
the Functions, the Failure v )
of Failure
u
r
Controls e
c
N. Action(s) Date Taken v c t N.
more specific the Drive

System
Extracts 48-
52% water
Extracts less
than 48%
Clothes are too
dry, wrinkles are
5
Effect can be. during spin

cycle
set
This makes rating Extracts more

than 52% less
Clothes are wet,
takes longer to dry
3
the Severity much than 75% clothes

Does not extract Clothes are wet, 7
easier. water (> 75%) additional
48% (too much) work will need to
be done to clothes
before they can be
48-52% dried
Abnormal Operating Voltage
Drive system Does not Product does not 7
No product Failure
52% (too little)
properly operate properly properly operate,
operates between 105v sevice call Normal
75% (wet clothes) between 105v and 125v Operating
and 125v Voltage
Drives system Requires service Product does not 7
recovers call when properly operate,
105v – 125v
without service voltage is 85v- sevice call
between 85- 104v or between 85v – 105v
104v and 126v- 126v-135v
135v
125v – 135v
Drive system System does not Product is not 9
fails safe when failure safe properly grounded No Unsafe Product Failures
voltage is when voltage is
below 85v or below 85v or
<95v & >135v
above 135v above 135v

Function, Failure Mode,
or Cause ?
Functions, Failure Modes
and Causes can be put in
terms of Y=F(x).
• Y defines the Project

Requirements (Functions)
• -Y defines the Failure Mode
• x defines the technical

details that may Cause the
Failure Mode
Technical Design/Process
details belong on the right of
the Class column.

Failure Mode, Effect or Cause?
Many struggle to categorize Failure Modes, Effects & Causes.
Here is an example that may help:
Your company designs & manufactures ceramic coffee cups.
Your design and process teams are responsible for

designing a new cup that is:
• Stable & robust to impact force.
• Robust to being dropped.
• The cup fails safely.

A possible scenario:
The table is bumped. The cup falls. The cup breaks. Injury due to sharp edges.
Bumping the table The fall causes

Breakage causes sharp
causes the cup to fall. the cup to break. edges which lead to injury.
Each event is effected by the previous event. So, which of these are Failure Modes?
Effects? Causes?

Keep in mind, that Failure Modes are the focus of the FMEA. Technical FMEA
teams should select and focus on the Failure Modes that they can influence.
The table is bumped. Your team can’t influence this.
The cup falls. Your team can influence stability of the cup.
The cup breaks. Your team can influence this with material selection & processing.
Injury due to sharp edges. Your team can influence this with material selection & processing.
Potential Cause(s) C
In our
Occurren
Severity
Potential Effect(s) of / Mechani sm (s) of u
Class
Function Potenti al Fai lure Mode Fai lure Failure r example,
The cup is stable and robust to a 5 The cup falls over too easil y Spills. Cup Breakage. 9 there has
Here is a pound impact force at the rim. (falls w ith <5 pounds of impact at Burns from hot liquid. been no
possible the rim.)
mention of
The cup is robust to being dropped The cup breaks when i t i s Customer demands cup 7
breakdown: on a cement floor cov ered w ith 3mm dropped onto a hard surface replacement. ‘causes’, yet.
of v iny l flooring. (cement floor cov ered w ith 3mm of Remember:
v iny l flooring). ‘Causes’ are
The cup fails safely. The cup breaks in such a way Possible lacerations. 9 technical in
that it presents a cut hazard.
nature.
Note: This example illustrates that the Design/Process team quantified the deliverables (functions).

The Design Team will ask, “What, specifically, in the design could cause
the failure mode?”
Occurren
Severity
Potential Effect(s) of Potential Cause(s) / Current Design/ Process Control
Class
Function Potential Failure Mode Failure Mechanism (s) of Failure PREVENTION
The cup is stable and robust to a 5 The cup falls ov er too easily . Spills. Cup Breakage. 9 The cup's center of
pound impact force at the rim. Burns from hot liquid. gravity abov e the midpont
of the height of the cup.
The cup is robust to being dropped The cup breaks w hen it is dropped Customer demands cup 7 The elasticity of the cup
on a cement floor cov ered w ith 3mm onto a hard surface (cement floor replacement. material is too low .
of v iny l flooring. cov ered w ith 3mm of v iny l
flooring).
The yield point of the cup
is too low .
The cup geometry radii

are too small increasing
liklihood of breakage.
The cup fails safely. The cup breaks in such a w ay that Possible lacerations. 9 Ceram ic tem pering is Control the ceramic tempering process to insure
it presents a cut hazard. improperly specified that w hen the cup breaks it breaks into many
resulting in partial pieces insuring disposal. We do not w ant
breakage consumers using a partially broken cu.

The Process Team will ask, “What, specifically, in the process could cause
the failure mode?”
Current Design/
Occurren
Severity
Potential Effect(s) of Potential Cause(s) / Mechanism (s) Process Control
Class
Function Potential Failure Mode Failure of Failure PREVENTION
The cup is stable and robust to a 5 The cup falls ov er too easily . Spills. Cup Breakage. 9 No process related causes.
pound impact force at the rim. Burns from hot liquid.
The cup is robust to being dropped The cup breaks w hen it is dropped Customer demands cup 7 The ceramic bake tem perature /
on a cement floor cov ered w ith 3mm onto a hard surface (cement floor replacement. bake tim e / dwell tim e / cool tim e
of v iny l flooring. cov ered w ith 3mm of v iny l combination promotes brittleness w ithin
flooring). the cup.
The m oisture content within the

ceram ic clay (pre-bake) promotes
pores that w eaken the cup.
The cup fails safely . The cup breaks in such a w ay that Possible lacerations. 9 No process related causes.
it presents a cut hazard.
Note: This example illustrates another important key point: Project deliverables should be listed and analyzed
by our Process personnel as well as Design personnel. The causes listed here will promote important dialogue
between design & process employees, better ensuring a robust design and process.
Severity
Severity is the rating associated with the most serious
Effect for a given Failure Mode.
Severity is rated with a five point scale:
Rate the Severity of 1, 3, 5, 7, 9.
the Effect on the
customer.
Higher Severity equals a higher rating
and a higher priority.
The same scale is used for Process

and Design.
Severity is the rating associated with

the most serious Effect for a given
Failure Mode.

Severity

Severity
Note the following regarding Severity

Ratings:
Rate the Severity of
the Effect on the • If the Effect is that ‘we cannot produce
customer.
product’ the severity is a ‘7’, unless the
reason we can’t produce is safety
related.
• ‘7’ is a product exchange or the

product not providing function.
• A Service Call has a score of ‘5’, which

was once a fairly low severity, but not
anymore.
• Degradation of performance should be

rated a ‘5’. It could result in a Service
Call.

Severity ‘9’
A Severity of ‘9’ is reserved for potential product “safety” issues
or hazards to anyone exposed to the product throughout its
product life.
Non-compliance with government requirements is a ‘9’ if it
results in a safety issue. Otherwise, it is a ‘7’.

Severity ‘9’ & Safety Notes
All Failure Modes identified as potential safety hazards (Severity
‘9’) will follow the Corporate Product Safety System for analysis
and closure.
• The list of hazards are to be shared & reviewed in the Product Safety Audit.

Severity
FMEA Form Examples:

Exercise 5
Complete Failure Mode, Effects & Severity
Using the FMEA form you started in Exercise 4, fill in the Failure
Modes, Effects of the Failure, and the Severity for each Function.
Try to think of multiple Failure Modes for each Function.
How are these Failure Modes, Effects, and Severities different from the ones developed in
Exercise 1?

Customer Focus Summary
Completion of the Customer Focus section provides two
important things:
• A list of project requirements
• An initial prioritization of risk
Once requirements are defined and Failure Modes prioritized, a
concept to meet the requirements can be chosen.
Functions & Failure Modes can be referred to when determining
criteria for your concept selection (for example: Pugh Matrices criteria).

Customer Focus and CSM
At the Concept Selection Milestone (CSM) Tollgate, teams should
have completed the Customer Focus Section of the FMEA.
• Concept Selection Milestone (CSM)
– Demonstrate if and how the DFMEA methodology is being used as

input to the concepts selected. DFMEAs updated through Severity.

Lesson 3 - Summary
In this lesson you learned to:
Recognize the three major sections of the FMEA.

• Customer Focus
• Engineering Focus
• Issue Resolution
Understand the purpose of the Customer Focus section.
Determine appropriate entries and complete the Customer

Focus section.
• Component/System/Process/Operations/Index
• Function
• Potential Failure Mode
• Potential Effect(s) of Failure
• Severity

Lesson 3: The Form: Customer Focus Section

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Lesson 3

The Form: Customer Focus Section

Recognize the three major sections of the FMEA.

Understand the purpose of the Customer Focus section.

Determine appropriate entries and complete the Customer

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-2

Customer Focus Engineering Focus Issue Resolution

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-3

• What must this design/process do?

• How can the design/process fail to meet the requirements?

• How does the Failure Mode affect customers, trade

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-4

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-5

Component /System under investigation

Process steps under investigation (i.e.

Major categories of the FMEA may

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-6

Functions reflect the requirements of

Functions reflect project objectives

Functions are clear, actionable and

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-7

Design FMEA Process FMEA

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-8

From the Functions you generated in Lesson 2, select 3 to 5

How did your team use the Index column?

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-9

does not do what it is suppose to

On the FMEA form:

There is often more than one Failure

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-10

A Process FMEA will address how the process will fail to

Failure may be expressed in terms of customer complaint

*Note: This guideline applies to FMEAs only. Whirlpool employees must

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-11

Design FMEA Process FMEA

Picture 1: Hinge halves assembled

Picture 1: Hinge halves assembled

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-12

The Potential Effect(s) of Failure

There is often more than one Effect per

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-13

Design FMEA Process FMEA

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-14

more specific the Drive

Effect can be. during spin

This makes rating Extracts more

the Severity much than 75% clothes

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-15

• Y defines the Project

• -Y defines the Failure Mode

• x defines the technical

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-16

Your company designs & manufactures ceramic coffee cups.

Your design and process teams are responsible for

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-17

Bumping the table The fall causes

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-18

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-19

The cup geometry radii

July 2006 Version 1.0 Copyright 2005-2006 Whirlpool Corporation 3-20

The m oisture content within the

The same scale is used for Process

Severity is the rating associated with