The
Failure Modes and Mechanisms Working Group (FMMWG) of the ERO Event Analysis
Subcommittee (EAS) develops FMM diagrams for impactful substation equipment
types of interest. Copies of completed diagrams are available for use and may
be requested by registered entities through their event analysis contact at
their respective Regional Entity.
The Failure Modes and Mechanisms (FMM) approach is a technique used to identify and map the signatures and paths of equipment failures. The approach consists of observing a signature that something happened to the normal operating state of the equipment and identifying the specific physical path to failure of the equipment. These two steps of the technique are more conveniently thought of as:
· A failure mode is what gets your attention that the equipment is not in a normal state.
· A failure mechanism is the catalyst and physical path to failure.
Improving Equipment Reliability by Learning from Failures is a short video explaining the approach.
