SHAFT-PLANETARY 5S7944 - Caterpillar

Caterpillar Products: AllIntroduction
The Applied Failure Analysis (AFA) Team at the Caterpillar Product Support Center in Peoria, IL provides the following information to assist with initial assessment of failed parts and collecting information relevant to investigation of part failures. Failure analysis should not be attempted without proper training. Failure analysis training and reference material is available through Caterpillar, Cat Dealers, and the Caterpillar Media system. Assistance with failure analysis is available from trained personnel at Caterpillar Dealers, Caterpillar's Technical Service Reps and the Applied Failure Analysis Team.Failure Analysis Consulting
Assistance with performing failure analysis is available through the Applied Failure Analysis Team at the Caterpillar Product Support Center. Caterpillar personnel can contact the AFA Team directly for help. Cat dealers should work through their Technical Service Representatives for assistance.
Table 1
Consultant Phone Number (US)     Email    
Jim Rickey
309-494-5966     Rickey_Jim_E    The following topics will be covered in this discussion.
The Failure Analysis Process
Disassembly for Failure Analysis
Visual Inspection Methods
Analyzing Fractured Parts
Stress Raisers
Analyzing Worn Parts
Additional InformationThe Failure Analysis Process
Failure analysis is the "thoughtful review of product and environmental facts which leads to the identification of the root cause for product problems." The purpose for performing failure analysis is simply to discover the root cause for a failure so the proper steps can be taken to prevent the failure from happening again.Two key words are highlighted in the definition. The first word is facts. Good failure analysis is based solidly on facts. Facts may be found in many places: the failed parts, application, operation, maintenance records, ECM data, and so on. The second highlighted words are root cause. Working with facts and a defined process allows an investigator to arrive at the most probable root cause for a failure and answer three questions: "What happened?", "How did the failure happen?", and "Who was responsible?". With the answers to these questions, a problem can be fixed so the problem does not happen again.Failure analysis is one of many tools used for problem solving. The appropriate time to use failure analysis is when:
Parts are broken
Parts are worn out early or in an unusual way
Parts are deformed so that the parts can no longer perform the intended functionAdverse indicators such as running hot, unusual noises or odors or other performance problems usually do not call for failure analysis but rather troubleshooting, testing, or adjusting. Use failure analysis at the appropriate time.The AFA Team teaches an Eight Step process for performing failure analysis. The process starts some time before the failure when the part or system was still operating properly and continues through the failure using facts, events, and a time line. The process concludes when the results of the failure analysis have been communicated to the responsible party, the machine has been fixed and a follow-up call or visit is accomplished to reinforce the customer's trust in us.Persons using this information will probably be heavily involved in the fact-finding phase of failure analysis. Facts can be gathered not only from the failed parts, but also from