Root Cause Failure Analysis Training Course

Duration 10 days 20 modules · 65 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Maintenance Managers, Reliability Engineers and others
Fee from USD 2,200 KSh 190,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 9 Nov 2026 Course code SD-ME-081

Before you join: Participants should have working experience with industrial, utility, transport, facilities or manufacturing equipment, and understand basic maintenance records such as work orders, inspection reports and equipment histories.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Equipment failures consume maintenance capacity, disrupt production, create safety exposure and increase lifecycle cost. Many investigations stop at the failed component or an operator action, producing corrective actions that restore operation but do not prevent recurrence. Effective root cause failure analysis distinguishes the failure event from its physical causes, human factors, latent conditions and management-system contributors. It converts incomplete incident information into evidence-based findings that maintenance, operations, engineering and leadership can act upon.

This course teaches a structured approach to investigating equipment failures, process upsets and repeat defects. Participants define problem statements, preserve evidence, build event and causal-factor charts, test hypotheses, apply Five Whys and cause-and-effect analysis, and use fault tree analysis, barrier analysis and FMEA where appropriate. They examine physical failure mechanisms, maintenance history, operating conditions, procedural controls and human performance without assigning blame. The course also covers corrective-action selection, action verification, failure coding and trend analysis using ISO 14224 principles.

Teaching combines focused instructor briefings with guided analysis of realistic cases from process plants, utilities, transport, manufacturing and facilities operations. Participants work individually and in groups with failure records, photographs, drawings, trend data, work orders and witness accounts. They progressively build an investigation file during the course, then complete a capstone analysis of a significant equipment failure. Each participant leaves with a reusable RCA investigation pack containing a charter, evidence log, causal analysis, findings, corrective-action plan and verification measures.

The course suits professionals who investigate failures, manage maintenance work, approve corrective actions or need to challenge the quality of incident findings. It is particularly relevant where recurring equipment defects, unplanned shutdowns, safety-critical assets or costly production losses require disciplined investigation rather than quick fixes.

What you will be able to do

  • Define investigation scopes, problem statements and evidence requirements for equipment failures
  • Construct event and causal-factor charts from maintenance, operating and witness evidence
  • Apply Five Whys, cause-and-effect diagrams and causal logic to test failure hypotheses
  • Analyse physical failure mechanisms using inspection findings, condition data and maintenance history
  • Evaluate human, procedural and management-system contributors without assigning individual blame
  • Develop fault trees, barrier analyses and FMEA-based controls for selected failure scenarios
  • Specify corrective actions with owners, due dates, effectiveness measures and closure criteria
  • Present a complete root cause failure analysis report and defend its findings

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Lead equipment-failure investigations with a repeatable evidence-based method
  • Distinguish symptoms, causal factors and root causes in incident discussions
  • Write findings that withstand technical and management review
  • Select corrective actions that address failure mechanisms and control weaknesses
  • Build a portfolio-quality RCA report for a workplace failure

For your organisation

  • Reduce repeat failures caused by incomplete or symptom-based investigations
  • Improve quality and traceability of maintenance incident records
  • Target engineering, maintenance and procedural actions at verified causes
  • Strengthen learning from shutdowns, defects and safety-related events
  • Create consistent RCA documentation across sites and asset teams

Course modules

20 modules over 10 days

Participants can frame an equipment-failure investigation with a clear purpose, scope and decision criteria.

  • Failure, defect, incident and consequence definitions used in asset management
  • Business, safety, environmental and production consequences quantified before investigation begins
  • Problem statements separating observed facts from assumed explanations
  • Investigation charters defining scope, exclusions, roles and decision authority
  • Immediate recovery actions distinguished from evidence-preservation requirements
  • RCA triggers based on recurrence, consequence, risk and learning value

Participants can plan evidence collection that protects facts, components and digital records.

  • Evidence preservation priorities following shutdowns, trips, damage and near misses
  • Chain-of-custody records for failed parts, samples, photographs and downloads
  • Investigation plans matching questions, evidence sources, owners and deadlines
  • Photographic evidence captured with scale, orientation, location and timestamps
  • Operating data requests covering process conditions, alarms, trends and overrides
  • Maintenance history assembled from work orders, inspections and material records

Participants can obtain reliable factual accounts and records without leading witnesses.

  • Open-question interview structure for operators, maintainers, supervisors and contractors
  • Cognitive interviewing prompts that recover sequence, conditions, decisions and observations
  • Witness statements separated from interpretations, opinions and post-event knowledge
  • Document reviews covering procedures, permits, shift logs and alarm records
  • Conflicting accounts reconciled through timestamps, physical evidence and independent records
  • Interview notes validated with witnesses before formal investigation reporting

Participants can construct a verified timeline of conditions, actions and equipment responses.

  • Chronology tables linking timestamps, events, sources, confidence and open questions
  • Event and causal-factor chart notation for equipment failure investigations
  • Sequence boundaries set from normal operation through detection and recovery
  • Parallel operating, maintenance and control-system events mapped on one timeline
  • Data gaps identified using timeline inconsistencies and unexplained state changes
  • Facts verified before causal interpretation enters the event map

Participants can distinguish causal relationships from correlation, blame and unsupported assumptions.

  • Necessary, sufficient and contributing causes distinguished through causal logic
  • Proximate causes separated from latent conditions and system weaknesses
  • Counterfactual testing asks whether failure occurs without a proposed cause
  • Causal statements written as condition-action-effect relationships supported by evidence
  • Correlation traps avoided when reviewing trends, alarms and maintenance intervals
  • Root cause criteria tied to recurrence prevention and management control

Participants can use simple causal methods rigorously for bounded technical problems.

  • Five Whys applied to one verified causal chain at a time
  • Cause-and-effect diagrams organised by people, methods, machines, materials and environment
  • Branching causal paths retained when failures have multiple contributing conditions
  • Why questions anchored to evidence rather than assumptions or opinions
  • Cause categories converted into testable investigation hypotheses
  • Stopping rules prevent Five Whys from becoming speculation or blame

Participants can connect observable damage and operating history to plausible physical failure mechanisms.

  • Failure mode, mechanism and cause distinctions used in technical findings
  • Wear, fatigue, corrosion, overload, overheating and contamination signatures
  • Fracture surfaces examined for initiation points, propagation and final rupture
  • Lubrication evidence assessed through oil condition, debris and application records
  • Process conditions compared against design limits, duty cycles and material selection
  • Inspection findings translated into mechanism-based failure hypotheses

Participants can identify maintenance, installation and design conditions that contribute to equipment failure.

  • Work-order quality assessed for task content, tolerances and acceptance criteria
  • Installation errors examined through alignment, torque, fit-up and cleanliness records
  • Maintenance intervals tested against condition data, duty and failure patterns
  • Spare-part specifications checked against approved materials and equipment requirements
  • Design margins reviewed for load, temperature, vibration and maintainability
  • Management-of-change records examined after modifications, substitutions and upgrades

Participants can analyse human and procedural contributors using fair, system-focused investigation methods.

  • Human error classifications distinguish slips, lapses, mistakes and violations
  • Task demands assessed through time pressure, workload, cues and access
  • Procedure usability tested against field conditions, sequence and available tools
  • Pre-job briefings examined for hazards, roles, controls and contingencies
  • Situational awareness gaps traced through information displays, alarms and handovers
  • Just culture principles separate accountability from individual blame

Participants can identify failed, missing and weakened barriers around equipment failure events.

  • Barrier analysis identifies preventive, detective, mitigative and recovery controls
  • Bowtie diagrams connect threats, top events, consequences and barriers
  • Barrier performance standards define function, availability, reliability and survivability
  • Control degradation assessed through testing records, bypasses, alarms and defects
  • Escalation factors linked to barrier weakness and failed control measures
  • Critical controls assigned owners, verification methods and performance indicators

Participants can develop fault trees to test multiple causal paths to a defined top event.

  • Top events stated as observable equipment or process failure conditions
  • AND and OR gates represent combined and alternative causal pathways
  • Basic events defined at evidence-supported, actionable levels of detail
  • Minimal cut sets identify combinations requiring prevention or detection controls
  • Fault-tree assumptions documented before drawing causal conclusions
  • IEC 61025 principles applied to technical fault-tree structure

Participants can use FMEA to convert investigation findings into preventive asset controls.

  • FMEA functions, failure modes, effects, causes and controls defined
  • Severity, occurrence and detection ratings calibrated using agreed criteria
  • Action priority applied instead of unsupported risk-priority-number comparisons
  • Current controls tested against the investigated failure mechanism
  • Recommended actions assigned to design, operations, maintenance or suppliers
  • IEC 60812 guidance used for consistent FMEA documentation

Participants can structure failure data for comparison, learning and repeat-failure detection.

  • Failure coding taxonomy separates equipment class, component, mechanism and cause
  • ISO 14224 data fields applied to equipment hierarchy and events
  • Bad-actor analysis ranks assets by frequency, downtime, cost and consequence
  • Pareto charts identify recurring failure modes requiring detailed investigation
  • Mean time between failures interpreted with operating-hours and duty context
  • Data-quality checks identify missing codes, duplicate events and inconsistent terminology

Participants can test competing failure explanations and document confidence in their conclusions.

  • Hypothesis registers record proposed causes, evidence, tests and status
  • Confirming and disconfirming evidence evaluated before accepting a causal claim
  • Inspection, testing and data analysis selected to discriminate hypotheses
  • Laboratory analysis requests specify samples, questions, methods and reporting needs
  • Confidence ratings communicate evidential strength, limitations and remaining uncertainty
  • Peer review challenges gaps, assumptions, causal jumps and unsupported recommendations

Participants can specify corrective actions that address verified causes and control weaknesses.

  • Hierarchy of controls guides action selection beyond retraining and reminders
  • Engineering actions address design, materials, monitoring, interlocks and accessibility
  • Maintenance actions specify tasks, frequencies, criteria, skills and spare requirements
  • Procedural actions include clear triggers, decision points and exception handling
  • Action plans assign accountable owners, resources, milestones and dependencies
  • Temporary controls managed until permanent actions are implemented and verified

Participants can verify that corrective actions were implemented and reduced recurrence risk.

  • Completion evidence distinguished from effectiveness evidence for corrective actions
  • Verification plans define performance measures, sampling periods and review dates
  • Leading indicators track inspections, compliance, defects and barrier availability
  • Lagging indicators track recurrence, downtime, losses and incident consequences
  • Management review escalates overdue actions, failed controls and residual risks
  • Lessons learned converted into standards, task plans and design requirements

Participants can write and present an RCA report that supports sound technical decisions.

  • RCA report structure presents event, evidence, analysis, findings and actions
  • Executive summaries state consequence, causal conclusions, risks and decisions required
  • Causal charts and fault trees presented with readable evidence references
  • Recommendations prioritised by risk reduction, feasibility, cost and implementation timing
  • Dissenting views and uncertainties documented without weakening factual findings
  • Management review questions tested against evidence, scope and action ownership

Participants can lead an RCA team through disciplined analysis, challenge and decision-making.

  • Investigation roles defined for sponsor, leader, technical experts and reviewers
  • Team charters establish confidentiality, decision rules and meeting cadence
  • Facilitation techniques surface competing explanations without premature consensus
  • Technical challenge sessions test causal links, evidence and recommended actions
  • Escalation routes address unavailable evidence, conflicts and high-risk findings
  • Investigation closeout criteria confirm approvals, communications and action transfer

Participants can integrate evidence, causal methods and corrective actions for a multi-factor equipment failure.

  • Case evidence reviewed from alarms, work orders, photographs and interviews
  • Investigation scope refined after identifying consequence, uncertainty and decision needs
  • Chronology, causal chart and barrier analysis developed from verified facts
  • Physical, human and management contributors tested through competing hypotheses
  • Corrective actions selected against causes, barriers, feasibility and ownership
  • Draft findings reviewed against evidence quality and recurrence-prevention criteria

Participants can build, review and present a complete root cause failure analysis for a significant equipment failure.

  • Investigation charter defines failure event, consequences, scope and stakeholders
  • Evidence log records sources, reliability, gaps and preservation status
  • Event and causal-factor chart demonstrates verified sequence and causal links
  • Root causes supported through physical evidence, records and hypothesis testing
  • Corrective-action plan assigns controls, owners, dates, measures and verification
  • Peer review tests report clarity, evidence sufficiency and practical actionability

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. RCA investigation charter template
  2. Evidence preservation and chain-of-custody checklist
  3. Event and causal-factor chart template
  4. Equipment failure hypothesis register
  5. Corrective-action verification plan
  6. Complete root cause failure analysis report

Who should attend

  • Maintenance Managers — reduce recurring failures and improve corrective-action quality
  • Reliability Engineers — investigate asset defects using consistent causal methods
  • Maintenance Engineers — connect failure evidence to repair, inspection and design actions
  • Operations Supervisors — contribute operating evidence and implement practical controls
  • Process Safety Professionals — examine barrier failures following safety-related equipment events
  • Project Engineers — prevent repeat failures through design and commissioning improvements

Skills and tools covered

Failure investigation planningCausal factor analysisPhysical failure analysisBarrier managementCorrective action designRCA report writing

Tools and standards

ISO 14224, IEC 60812, IEC 61025, Apollo Root Cause Analysis

How the course runs

Training methodology

Instruction uses short technical briefings followed by case analysis, facilitated group work and individual application planning. Participants examine realistic failure evidence including work orders, photographs, trend data, operating logs, drawings and witness accounts. Trainers demonstrate each RCA method, then guide teams through problem definition, causal analysis, hypothesis testing and corrective-action design. Simulated review meetings develop questioning, challenge and presentation skills. Participants apply the methods to a relevant workplace failure or a supplied technical case, subject to confidentiality requirements.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have working experience with industrial, utility, transport, facilities or manufacturing equipment, and understand basic maintenance records such as work orders, inspection reports and equipment histories. Familiarity with common asset types, operating procedures and maintenance planning is useful. Participants should be comfortable reading simple technical drawings, trend charts and incident descriptions. Prior RCA training, statistical analysis, vibration analysis, metallurgy, reliability certification or specialist software experience is not required. The course explains each investigation method before it is applied.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants need practical familiarity with equipment, maintenance work, operations or engineering records. Previous RCA training and specialist reliability qualifications are not required.

Participants may bring a de-identified failure case, work-order extracts, trend charts or photographs for application planning. No proprietary data is required; supplied cases are available for all activities.

The course is designed for maintenance, reliability, operations, engineering and process safety professionals who investigate failures or approve corrective actions. It also suits technical managers seeking a common investigation standard across teams.

This course focuses on physical equipment failures and the evidence used to explain them. It covers failure mechanisms, maintenance history, barrier controls, fault trees, FMEA and corrective-action verification rather than general business process improvement.

Participants receive templates for investigation planning, causal analysis, evidence logging and action verification. They can use these materials for repeat equipment defects, shutdown investigations, safety-related asset events and post-maintenance failures.

The first part establishes investigation discipline, evidence handling and core causal methods. The later modules apply advanced analysis, corrective-action design, reporting and a capstone failure investigation; each training day runs 08:30 to 16:30 with about 6.5 contact hours.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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