This workshop is designed based on body of knowledge published by ASQ. The course kit includes a copy of Certified Reliability Engineer Handbook published by ASQ, additional training material from Institute of Quality and Reliability and a CD with some useful templates and fully functional trial versions of software. Classroom training is supported with hands on exercises and tutorials. Participants are expected to bring scientific calculators and laptop computers for effective learning. Some of the exercises are designed using reliability analysis software and templates.

• The course is most appropriate for engineers and managers involved in
• Design and/or Development of New Products
• Reliability Testing of Products
• Quality Assurance and improvement of current and new products
• Warranty Data Analysis
• Problem Solving and Quality/Reliability Improvement
• Maintenance Engineers
• Considering the course contents, it is expected that participants should have basic understanding of business processes, should be able to use scientific calculators and computers, and should have knowledge of basic mathematics and science.

This interactive Training will be highly interactive, with opportunities to advance your opinions and ideas and will include;

• Lectures
• Workshop & Work Presentation
• Case Studies and Practical Exercise
• Videos and General Discussions   

Day 1:

• Introduction to Reliability: Definitions: Failure, Reliability, MTTF, MTBF, Failure Rate, Maintainability, Availability etc.
• Product Life Cycle: Bathtub curve, Decreasing Failure Rate (Infant Mortality or Burn-in period), Constant Failure Rate (Useful life), Increasing Failure Rate (Wear-out period)
• Basic Probability and Probability Distributions in Reliability Engineering: Exponential, Weibull, Normal, Lognormal, Examples and illustrations
• Data Collection and Use: Types of data, collection methods, data management and use, Corrective and Preventive Action using failure analysis to find root cause(s)
• Life Data Analysis of Non-repairable Systems: Complete and Censored Data, Identifying distribution, Probability Plotting, Estimating Parameters of the distribution, predicting reliability, Exercises

Day 2:

• Reliability Modeling and Prediction: Reliability Block Diagrams: Series and parallel systems, combined reliability, redundancy: complete and partial, Physics of failure mode, failure mechanisms, S-N Curve, Stress Strength Analysis using distributions, Monte Carlo Simulation, Markov Models
• Reliability in Design: S-N Curve, Stress Strength Analysis using distributions , Tolerance Analysis: Worst Case Analysis, RMS, Use of Monte Carlo Simulation, Redundancy, Design for X, Derating
• FMEA and FMECA: FMEA Basics, Guidelines for Severity, Occurrence and Detection Ranking, RPN and prioritization for corrective action, revised rating, FMEA team dynamics, Developing DVP&R, Small Group Exercise.
• Human Factors and considerations: Relationship between reliability and human factors, consideration of these factors in designs.
• Reliability Testing: Reliability Test strategies and planning, Environmental considerations, Sampling Plans, Success Run Theorem, Probability Ratio Sequential Testing (PRST), Determination of sample size for testing, Degradation Testing, Software Testing, Stress Screening

Day 3:

• Reliability Growth and FRACAS: Duane Model, AMSAA model for reliability growth, Exercise(s), Failure Reporting and Corrective Action System (FRACAS)
• Accelerated Life Tests (ALT): Introduction to ALT, Modeling considerations, Arrhenius and other Models, Step Stress Testing, Illustrations and Exercise(s)
• Availability and Maintainability: Definitions, Maintenance Strategies, Preventive and Corrective Maintenance, Nondestructive evaluation, (Predictive Maintenance), Maintenance Time Distributions, Spare Parts Strategy, Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM).

Day 4:

• Inferential Statistics: Basic concepts: Null & Alternate Hypotheses, Producer's and consumer's risks, confidence level, point and interval estimates Z, t, F, Chi-square etc.
• Design of Experiments: Plan and conduct Full Factorial Experiments, Fractional Factorials, Taguchi Designs with noise factors (robust design)

Day 5:

• Warranty Data Analysis: Warranty terms and conditions, uses and limitations of warranty
• Test of comprehension
• Closing Remarks and Wrap up

To appear for ASQ certification exam, if participants are a graduate, they must have six years of on-the-job experience in one or more of the areas of the Certified Reliability Engineer Body of Knowledge. A minimum of three years of this experience must be in a decision-making position. “Decision-making” is defined as the authority to define, execute, or control projects/processes and to be responsible for the outcome. This may or may not include management or supervisory positions. For more information about ASQ certification, visit website: http://www.asq.org/certification/reliability-engineer/index.html

Complete ASQ CRE Certification brochure can be downloaded from http://www.asq.org/pdf/certification/inserts/cre-insert-2009.pdf.