The new AIAG&VDA FMEA handbook has brought a breath of fresh air to FMEA practice: strict structuring, modern eval- uation rules and strong management in- volvement. When the manual was published in 2019, its aim was to encourage the automotive industry to question the status quo and rethink its analyses. This goal was largely achieved in France. The new manual fundamentally changes the previous procedures: it is not possible to start a new study by simply copying and pasting the previous analyses.
Knowllence, Bassetti Group offering software solutions, analyzes the impact and trends of the last five years on the French market.
Following the publication of the first edition of the FMEA manual in June 2019, EURO-SYMBIOSE, official licensee of the VDA in France, soon provided a French translation to facilitate access for French teams.
Thanks to a lead time of several months, the Web-Based Robust Engineering Software published by Knowllence, which specializes in risk management, was already comprehensively updated in summer 2019 so that industrial companies can achieve compliance immediately.
In the French market, the complementary offerings of EURO-SYMBIOSE and KNOWLLENCE ensured continuity and coherence in support: training on the manual, coaching and efficiency through the integration of a web- based software solution. The first in the industry to prepare for the change were the internationally active Tier 1 suppliers, who were already familiar with the structure from the VDA’s FMEA manual.
It took the French manufacturers a few years to adopt the new regulations. After the merger of FIAT CHRYSLER and PSA (PSA had taken over OPEL), the STELLANTIS Group was the first French manufacturer to integrate the AIAG&VDA manual 2021 into its CSR.
Since 2023, IATF auditors have been trained in the use of the AIAG&VDA manual. The general introduction of FMEA requirements in CSR means that Tier 2 and Tier 3 suppliers are also switching to the new standard. The practices are being extended to other industries, such as aviation, or to industries (automotive, medical devices and other industries) that want to standardize their different practices.
Here we provide an overview of the main difficulties, but also opportunities, that have arisen when integrating the specific requirements of the AIAG&VDA FMEA manual.
- First of all, it should be remembered that in France, trainers were generally trained on the basis of the fourth edition of the AIAG manual, which was a cautious evolution of the third edition. There had therefore been no major change for more than 20 years. The introduction of an analytical approach based on the concepts of structure, functional network and error chain, adopted from the VDA manual, forced the trainers or course instructors to design a new training course and rethink its implementation. The possibility of working with nine columns (steps, 2, 3 and 4) in a table, as provided for in the AIAG&VDA manual, led some teams to wrongly assume that it would be sufficient to fill in the new columns retrospectively in order to achieve conformity. Today, IATF auditors are looking at the consistency of the analysis and questioning these practices.
- The AP criterion distorts the evaluation results as it represents a less differentiated summary. It is considered to be more tolerant than the previous RPI thresholds. On the other hand, AIAG-VDA offers a simplification for internationally active companies: one template, one way of working.
As far as design is concerned, French engineers have always emphasized functional analysis as a prerequisite for design. One example of this is the company APTE, which developed an original toolkit in the 1980s to combine and carry out functional analysis methods. In this approach, the function is the origin of the component and not the other way around. Animation and reflection tools such as the “octopus”, the “funcional block block diagram” or the “functional analysis table” are already taught in the first technology courses at French universities and schools. They also represent a preliminary stage in the application of value analysis or innovative design approaches. The role of French teams in the working groups that have developed functional design standards such as ISO 26262 or the functional dimensioning standards ISO 8015 (for dimensional and geometric specifications) should also be emphasized.
It is therefore important to understand the significance of the paradigm shift in the AIAG&VDA FMEA manual, which starts with structural analysis (step 2) and then moves on to functional analysis (step 3). In a time of necessary technological upheaval brought about by electrification, hydrogen, autonomous vehicles or changes in use, the simplified functional analysis approach of the AIAG&VDA manual may frustrate some.
It was therefore necessary to build bridges between the two approaches and demonstrate their compatibility and complementarity. In Knowllence’s software tools, it is therefore possible to start with both the structural and the functional approach: Work by life stages, clear distinction between service functions (external functions), technical functions (internal functions) and features. It is also possible to work with block diagrams by life phases and add a functional level that goes beyond the identification of interfaces.
Thomas Vieille-Petit,
Specialist for FMEA and functional analyses, consultant and training manager
KNOWLLENCE, BASSETTI-Group