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EDWartens UK

Free course · Condition monitoring

Reliability Engineering: RCM, Root Cause Analysis, Weibull

The reliability engineer's toolkit for plants, utilities and oil and gas: failure rate, MTBF and availability, failure patterns and the P-F curve, criticality, equipment FMECA, the seven questions of reliability-centred maintenance with task selection and failure-finding intervals, root cause analysis with 5 Whys, fishbones, logic trees and fault trees, Weibull analysis by hand and in Python, block diagrams, spares, bad actors, precision maintenance and KPIs.

See the modules

Free to learn. Verifiable certificate £19 when you pass the final exam (optional, VAT included).

Level
Intermediate
Modules
15
Video
17 hours
Price
Free

Outcome

What you will be able to do

Calculate MTBF, failure rate, reliability and availability from plant records; explain the six failure patterns and set inspection intervals from the P-F interval; rank assets by criticality; write an equipment FMECA; run an RCM analysis through the seven questions, choose tasks and default actions and calculate failure-finding intervals; lead a root cause analysis with 5 Whys, a fishbone, a logic tree and a fault tree; fit Weibull distributions with suspensions by hand and in Python and turn them into replacement and spares decisions; calculate system reliability from block diagrams; size spares with the Poisson model; find bad actors; and track a reliability programme with leading and lagging KPIs.

  • Calculate MTBF, MTTR, failure rate, reliability and availability from plant failure records
  • Explain the six failure patterns and set on-condition intervals from the P-F interval
  • Rank assets by criticality and write an equipment FMECA with severity read first
  • Run an RCM analysis through the seven questions and choose tasks and default actions
  • Calculate failure-finding intervals for protective devices from MTBF and tolerable unavailability
  • Lead a root cause analysis with 5 Whys, a fishbone, a logic tree and a fault tree
  • Fit Weibull distributions with suspensions by hand and in Python and pick a replacement age
  • Size spares with the Poisson model, find bad actors and track leading and lagging KPIs

Software

A spreadsheet (LibreOffice Calc is free) for the maths, the FMECA and the RCM worksheets. Python 3 with the free reliability and SciPy libraries for Weibull analysis (Google Colab runs it in a browser with nothing to install). Commercial RCM and life data tools are shown in some lessons but are not needed.

Hardware

None. Any laptop with a browser is enough.

Syllabus

15 modules

Each module has video lessons, notes and a short quiz. The final exam closes the course.

  1. 1What a reliability engineer does: failure, strategy and the numbers that matter3 lessons
  2. 2Reliability maths: failure rate, MTBF, the bathtub and the exponential model4 lessons
  3. 3Failure patterns, the P-F curve and asset criticality5 lessons
  4. 4Equipment FMEA and FMECA4 lessons
  5. 5RCM part 1: functions, functional failures, failure modes and effects4 lessons
  6. 6RCM part 2: consequences, task selection and default actions4 lessons
  7. 7Task intervals, failure-finding and the living RCM programme4 lessons
  8. 8Root cause analysis 1: defining the problem, 5 Whys and the fishbone4 lessons
  9. 9Root cause analysis 2: logic trees, fault trees and the RCA report5 lessons
  10. 10Weibull analysis 1: the distribution, probability plotting and median ranks3 lessons
  11. 11Weibull analysis 2: suspensions, Python and maintenance decisions4 lessons
  12. 12System reliability: block diagrams, redundancy and availability2 lessons
  13. 13Spares optimisation and bad actors3 lessons
  14. 14Precision maintenance, KPIs and running a reliability programme3 lessons
  15. 15Final assessment1 lesson

How it works

How this course works

  1. Watch the video lessonsOne module at a time, at your own pace.
  2. Take the module quizA short quiz at the end of each module shows what stuck.
  3. Keep your notesWrite in My notes beside each module and ask the trainer if you are stuck.
  4. Sit the final examPass it once you have been through the modules.
  5. Certificate, if you want oneOptionalPaid, and only after you pass. Anyone can check it online.

Certificate

An optional certificate when you pass

Learning is free. Pass the final exam and you can have a certificate for £19, including VAT, with a number employers can check online. It records that you completed a free online course; it is not a regulated qualification or a CPD certificate.

  • Your name, the course, its study time and your final exam score
  • A unique certificate number and a QR code to its verification page
  • Issued by Wartens Ltd; add it to your LinkedIn profile in one click
  • Pay now or after you pass: it is issued the moment you pass the final

How the certificate works

Sample certificate for Reliability Engineering: RCM, Root Cause Analysis, Weibull

Credits

Who made the lessons

The video lessons belong to their creators. EDWartens wrote the study plan, notes, quizzes and the final exam.

  • RCM Training with Nancy Regan

    the RCM in a Nutshell series: the airline origins of RCM, functions and operating context, functional failures and failure modes, failure effects, the decision diagram, consequences, default strategies, the living programme and case studies

  • Engineering Presentations

    the CMRP pillar 3 lessons on system reliability, MTTR, the P-F curve, predictive maintenance, asset criticality, FMEA, the seven RCM questions, fault tree analysis, reliability block diagrams, reliability growth models and lubricant films

  • CQE Academy

    failure rate, MTTF, MTBF, the bathtub curve and the exponential and Weibull distributions

  • eMaint

    MTBF, MTTF and MTTR as maintenance KPIs

  • Noria

    what a criticality analysis is and why it comes first

  • UpKeep

    a step-by-step guide to criticality analysis in maintenance

  • RAMS Ready

    the columns, limits and variants of an FMECA worksheet

  • IsographSoftware

    executing an FMECA inside an RCM study, and the webinar on RCM introduction and cost optimisation

  • Master Reliability - FRAME-D

    a deeper look at failure mode, effects and criticality analysis

  • IBM Technology

    what root cause analysis is and how it is run

  • Lean Enterprise Institute

    how the 5 Whys method is meant to be used

  • EPM

    the fishbone (Ishikawa) diagram with a worked example

  • Skill Torque

    root cause failure analysis in a maintenance setting

  • Reliability Center Inc.

    the PROACT logic tree method: basic failure analysis, solving chronic failures and the boiler feed pump case study

  • Institute of Quality and Reliability

    fault tree analysis, the Weibull distribution, probability plotting with median ranks, right-censored data and free open-source Weibull software

  • Prelical Solutions LLC

    the overview of Weibull analysis that opens the Weibull modules

  • Cristian Rosa

    reliability data analysis in Python

  • PetroSkills

    the webinar on using Weibull analysis to improve equipment reliability

  • Phillip Slater

    how to identify critical spare parts

  • Energy Risk Engineering

    building a critical spare parts management system

  • ARMS Reliability

    predicting optimal spare parts holding levels

  • Maintenologist

    precision maintenance and why it stops installing tomorrow's failures

  • Limble

    the maintenance KPIs that matter

Questions

About this course

What is this reliability engineering course?
It is a free-to-learn, self-paced course in reliability-centred maintenance (RCM), root cause analysis (RCA) and Weibull analysis for industrial plant. It takes you from MTBF and availability through FMECA, the seven RCM questions, failure-finding intervals, logic trees and fault trees, to Weibull fitting in Python, spares sizing and reliability KPIs, with notes, worked problems and a pump case study.
Who is the reliability engineering course for?
It is for maintenance, mechanical, electrical and instrument engineers and senior technicians who want to move into a reliability engineer role in oil and gas, utilities, mining, water, chemicals or manufacturing. Planners and condition monitoring technicians who want to understand why tasks and intervals are chosen will also find it useful.
Do I need any prerequisites or paid software?
No paid software is needed: a spreadsheet such as LibreOffice Calc and Python with the free reliability and SciPy libraries are enough, and Google Colab runs the Python in a browser. You need school algebra and logarithms; the one Python module shows every line, and a year in a maintenance or operations team helps but is not required.
Which standards does the course follow?
The course follows the IEC and ISO reliability standards in our own words: IEC 60300-3-11 for RCM, IEC 60812 for FMEA and FMECA, IEC 61025 for fault trees, IEC 61078 for block diagrams, IEC 61649 for Weibull analysis, ISO 14224 for failure data and ISO 55000 for asset management. It also explains the SAE JA1011 criteria for RCM and the MIL-STD-1629A criticality method; none of their text is reproduced.
How long does the course take?
About 16 hours at your own pace: just under 9 hours of video plus notes, worked problems and practice tasks across 14 modules and a final assessment. The optional pump RCM project takes about 14 hours more.
Is the course free, and what certificate do I get?
The course is free to learn, and you can earn a verifiable certificate of completion by finishing the modules and passing the 15-question final at 60 percent. Each certificate has a unique number, a QR code and a public verification page that shows the course, the modules covered and the final score.
Does this course prepare me for the CMRP exam?
It covers much of the knowledge in the equipment reliability pillar of the SMRP body of knowledge, so it is useful CMRP preparation for that pillar, but it is not the CMRP. The CMRP is a separate professional certification awarded by SMRP after its own exam, and the EDWartens certificate is a certificate of completion.
What job does reliability engineering lead to, and is it in demand in the Gulf?
It leads to reliability engineer, maintenance and reliability engineer and asset integrity roles, and RCM, RCA and Weibull are among the skills those job adverts ask for most. Gas processing, refining, petrochemical, power and water operators in the Gulf and across Africa, Asia and the Americas run RCM and RCA programmes and hire engineers who can do this work.

The Professional Module is five live days of Siemens PLC, HMI and SCADA with an instructor, then a resume session and a CPD certificate.

See the Professional Module