Risk and hazard analysis can be effectively used during design reviews to provide valuable feedback to the design to avoid failures. This article discusses the types of risks, namely, real risk, statistical risk, predicted risk, and perceived risk. It describes the principle and technical methods of risk/hazard analysis practiced in the industry to identify possible hazards and the resources necessary to avoid or reduce risks. These methods include the failure mode and effect analysis, fault tree analysis, event tree analysis, risk/benefit analysis, safety analysis, and probabilistic estimates.

The purpose of this article is to assist the reader in understanding the role that an engineering expert witness plays in evaluating incidents related to product liability, so that he or she may become better acquainted with the role that an engineer plays in such litigation. The topics covered are admissibility of expert opinions, how to evaluate data, factual evidence, mandatory and voluntary standards, physical evidence, medical records, scientific literature, design decisions evaluation, environment of use, user's contribution, reports of opposing experts, report of findings, and deposition and trial testimonies.

Materials selection is closely related to the objectives of failure analysis and prevention. This article briefly reviews the general aspects of materials selection as a concern in both proactive failure prevention during design and as a possible root cause of failed parts. Coverage is more conceptual, with general discussions on the following topics: design and failure prevention, materials selection in design, materials selection for failure prevention, and materials selection and failure analysis. Because materials selection is just one part of the design process, the overall concept of design is discussed. The article also describes the role of the materials engineer in the design and materials selection process. It provides information on the significance of materials selection in both the prevention and analysis of failures.

Materials selection is an important engineering function in both the design and failure analysis of components. This article briefly reviews the general aspects of materials selection as a concern in proactive failure prevention during design and as a possible root cause of failed parts. It discusses the overall concept of design and describes the role of the materials engineer in the design and materials selection process. The article highlights the significance of materials selection in both the prevention and analysis of failures.

Environmental and worker health regulations have increased the costs associated with cadmium coating application and cadmium-beating waste disposal, thus creating economic incentives for industrial users to seek cadmium plating replacements. This article presents a cadmium replacement identification matrix that includes information on the specifications, corrosion control performance, environment-assisted cracking, coating lubricity, environmental and worker health regulations, and cost and performance factors for various replacement processes.

Products liability is a legal term for the action whereby an injured party (plaintiff) seeks to recover damages for personal injury or property loss from a producer and/or seller when the plaintiff alleges that a defective product caused the injury or loss. This article provides information on the legal bases for products liability and definitions for two types of defects: manufacturing defects and design defects. It summarizes other possible defects in design as well as preventive measures.

External corrosion direct assessment (ECDA) is a structured process intended for use by pipeline operators to assess and manage the impact of external corrosion on the integrity of underground pipelines. This article focuses on four steps of ECDA, namely, preassessment, indirect examinations, direct examination, and post assessment. The ECDA tool selection matrix used to determine the tool choices is also presented.

Any threat to personal safety should be regarded as a hazard and treated as such. This article discusses threats from several sources, such as kinematic/mechanical hazards, electrical hazards, energy hazards, human factors/ergonomic hazards, and environmental hazards. It describes hazard analysis in terms of failure modes and effects analysis, failure modes and criticality analysis, fault tree analysis, fault hazard analysis, and operating hazards analysis. The article examines fail-safe designs, such as fail-passive designs, fail-active designs, and fail-operational designs. It also provides information on various types of warnings, such as visual warning, auditory warnings, olfactory warnings, tactile warnings, and tastable warnings.

This article provides a detailed discussion on the corrosion of steel and stainless steel under insulation. Stress corrosion cracking mechanism, types of alloys susceptible to corrosion, factors influencing corrosion, and corrosion prevention methods, are also discussed.

This article provides an overview of the concepts of environmental, health, and safety (EH&S) risk incidents, then discusses these concepts relative to additive manufacturing (AM): the multiple intrants, process parameters, and equipment, as well as the resulting products and wastes. The article discusses additive manufacturing hazards, which are broken down into material hazards, equipment/process hazards, and facility hazards. The environmental impact of AM and the development of EH&S standards for AM also are covered in the article.

This article describes design factors for products used in engineering applications. The article groups these factors into three categories: functional requirements, analysis of total life cycle, and other major factors. These categories intersect and overlap, constituting a major challenge in engineering design. Performance specifications, risk and hazard analysis, design process, design for manufacture and assembly, design for quality, reliability in design, and redesign are considered for functional requirements. Life-cycle analysis considers raw-material extraction from the earth and product manufacture, use, recycling (including design for recycling), and disposal. The other major factors considered include evaluation of the current state of the art for a given design, designing to codes and standards, and human factors/ergonomics.

This article discusses the three legal theories on which a products liability lawsuit is based and the issues of hazard, risk, and danger in the context of liability. It describes manufacturing and design defects of various products. The article explains a design that is analyzed from the human factors viewpoint and details the preventive measures of the defects, with examples. It presents four paramount questions relating to the probability of injury which are asked even when one executes all possible preventive measures carefully and thoroughly.

A detailed fracture mechanics evaluation is the most accurate and reliable prediction of process equipment susceptibility to brittle fracture. This article provides an overview and discussion on brittle fracture. The discussion covers the reasons to evaluate brittle fracture, provides a brief summary of historical failures that were found to be a result of brittle fracture, and describes key components that drive susceptibility to a brittle fracture failure, namely stress, material toughness, and cracklike defect. It also presents industry codes and standards that assess susceptibility to brittle fracture. Additionally, a series of case study examples are presented that demonstrate assessment procedures used to mitigate the risk of brittle fracture in process equipment.

The intent of this article is to assist the failure analyst in understanding the underlying engineering design process embodied in a failed component or system. It begins with a description of the mode of failure. This is followed by a section providing information on the root cause of failure. Next, the article discusses the steps involved in the engineering design process and explains the importance of considering the engineering design process. Information on failure modes and effects analysis is also provided. The article ends with a discussion on the consequence of management actions on failures.

This article discusses the occupational health hazards related to industrial protective coating application and removal. It explains the health hazards associated with coating constituents such as lead, cadmium, chromium, arsenic, silica, and asbestos. The article also discusses hazard evaluation, hazard controls, Occupational Safety and Health Administration standards, and industry consensus standards. It concludes with a description of containment systems to prevent environmental exposures from industrial paint removal projects.

Health and safety are critically important issues, and there are numerous aspects of the production and use of metal powders that may entail exposure to hazardous conditions. This article provides a discussion on the issues associated with the safe production and handling of metal powders and the safe operation of continuous mesh belt sintering furnaces with combustible atmospheres. It also provides a comprehensive high-level overview of the safety-related issues and concerns related to the use of compacting presses in the manufacturing sector.

During metal powder production, powder and/or dust handling, compaction, and part finishing operations, many safety and environmental risks exist. This article is a detailed account of the types of safety hazards that can exist and the issues that occur during metal powder handling, as well as recommendations and strategies that can be employed to both prevent and protect against damaging effects from powder exposure, fire and/or explosions, or environmental impact events.

Aging is a process where the structural and/or functional integrity of components will be continuously degraded by exposure to the environmental conditions under which they are operated. This article discusses aging mechanisms in various components of military systems such as structural parts, engines, and subsystems. It describes the aging management processes such as full-scale structural testing and practical life-enhancement methods. The article reviews control and prevention systems such as usage and health monitoring systems necessary to provide effective corrosion maintenance on military systems. Failure prediction techniques, namely, the equivalent pre-crack size approach, life-cycle cost modeling and simulation, and holistic life-prediction methodology are also discussed.

This article provides a summary of the biocompatibility or biological response of metals, ceramics, and polymers used in medical implants, along with their clinical issues. The polymers include ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene, nonresorbable polymer, and resorbable polymers.

This article provides an overview of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) and discusses their direct and indirect effects on human health. It provides a detailed description of the exposure levels of EMFs in residential and work environments. The article examines the international and European standards and regulations regarding occupational exposure to EMFs encountered in industrial activities. It discusses the categories of work equipment or activities that may expose the worker above and under the orientation value. The article also describes the main principles underlying the protection system adopted for the frequency range of 50 Hz to 10 MHz.