Reliability Lab Testing, Consulting, Training.

Ops a la Carte

Call: (408) 654-0499, x204

Email: info@OPSaLaCarte.com

Engineering Success with Reliable Products.

Reliability Test Plan Development

Reliability Test Plan Development

DEFINITION

A reliability test plan is the high level plan that calls out all of the reliability testing that is to be performed on a product, including Design Verification Tests (DVT), Highly Accelerated Life Tests (HALT), Reliability Demonstration Tests (RDT), Accelerated Life Tests (ALT), and On-Going Reliability Tests (ORT).

SITUATION

With all of the reliability testing that goes on and all of the choices that people have for their testing, many test programs wind up being fragmented and disjointed. A good reliability test plan can tie all of these together.

OBJECTIVES

The objective of a reliability test plan is to tie all of the different reliability test activities together to assure that all of the testing needs are satisfied and that there is no duplication between tests. We will answer your question: “How do I test for reliability”.

VALUE TO YOUR ORGANIZATION

There is tremendous value in developing a comprehensive test plan that outlines all of the reliability testing activities. This can aid in comparing against marketing specs, helps to satisfy customer requirements and expectations, and is helpful for test labs that may be utilized to help perform some of the tests.

Test plans often point out overlooked areas such as how to test a product, how to fixture, what constitutes a failure, and many other contingency plans necessary for successful test activities.

RELIABILITY INTEGRATION

An example of Reliability Integration during Reliability Test Plan Development is as follows:

Reliability Test Plan Development can enhance HALT

Many HALTs begin with just a generic test plan or no test plan at all. The problem we run into here is when issues arise, it is not clear how to deal with them. A comprehensive HALT Plan can be invaluable because in this test plan, we discuss not only the stress conditions to apply but contingencies at times of failure, required test equipment, definitions of failures, and alternative fixtures to use to continue testing after experiencing a failure.

METHODOLOGY

The first step in developing a reliability test plan is to determine the reliability goals of the product and then to choose the tests that will help satisfy these goals. Next, we must look at what industry the product is in and what required tests must be carried out.

CASE STUDIES/OPTIONS

The following case studies and options provide example approaches. We shall tailor our approach to meet your specific situation.

  1. Writing a Test Plan Based on Industry Standards and Marketing Specs

    A Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment company had industry standards specified and marketing specs defined. For them, we wrote a test plan based on these specs, assuring that we covered all requirements called out. We also assured that we removed the duplication of tests, combining these to come up with the smallest subset of tests that satisfied the requirements.

  2. Writing a Plan and Deriving Marketing Specs Based on Industry Standards

    A Networking company had a list of industry standards they needed to comply with but their marketing specs were not defined as to the required testing. In this scenario, we wrote a test plan based on the industry standard, tailored to their specific industry and their specific application.

  3. Writing a Plan in an Industry without Standards

    A Consumer Electronic manufacturer in a non-regulated industry had no specific marketing goals or industry standards to follow. For them, we benchmarked their product against other similar products in the industry to come up with acceptable testing practices for their industry and environment.

Call Us: (408) 654-0499, x204

Email Us: info@OPSaLaCarte.com

Address: 990 Richard Ave, Suite 101, Santa Clara, CA 95050

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Empowering companies to create happy customers, with well-engineered products.

Script

OPS A La Carte, Engineering Success with Reliable Products. We are a leading reliability engineering consulting firm since 2001. We have helped many companies create robust products and elevate them to great success, even become the leader in their industry. We are known for providing the whole gamut of reliability lab testing, consulting, and training. With over 25 reliability engineer-experts around the world, with diverse backgrounds and experience, we serve both domestic and global businesses in all areas of reliability, in depth and width. Hi, my name is Jay Muns, owner and CEO. I have more than 30 years of experience in engineering and business operations.

OPS A La Carte have produced very high-quality results for us, with fast turnaround times. Their engineers are the best in their field, are a pleasure to work with, and their work is of the highest standards available. This has helped us obtain critical product approvals…” We help companies see from outside of their forest and understand what they didn’t know before. Companies come to us out of three scenarios: First, when their products fail. We help put out the fire by identifying problems and providing solutions. Second, after a product is designed, to check the box and move on with getting their product into the marketplace. The best is third: to get engaged early, by including reliability as a part of their initial product design goals. This will save time, money and energy. It is much better to have a worry-free product that addresses reliability issues upfront, than dealing with deficiencies after a product is developed, or worse, already manufactured and sold to the end users. Being proactive with reliability engineering will save a business tons of money and trouble. In all scenarios, you receive professional expertise with integrity and at a fair price. Many of our clients are repeat customers for years because of the value we consistently deliver.

Our ENGINEER-consultants each have over 20 years of experience and perform lab testing, consulting and training based on actual reliability science. They follow well established industry standards, such as “HALT” (highly accelerated life test,) and “HASS” (highly accelerated stress screen.) These engineers evaluate, make recommendations and validate results based on highly relevant lab data, co-relating to real world data. Whether your company has a reliability department or not, you can take advantage of our entire testing-consulting-training package, or any portion of it. We also offer Failure analysis and safety certification services such as UL, CE, and other environmental testing services, like solar, UV, SALT spray testing, ESD (electro-static discharge,) and EMC (electro-magnetic compatibility.)

“Ops A La Carte trained us to use HALT methodology as a proactive tool, to root out key failures in our early and advanced prototypes, and that made it possible for us to deliver dependability that our customers demand, in pilot and production units."“...OPS has played a key role in our evolution from a research company to a manufacturer of ‘mission-critical’ components.” A couple of companies describe our HALT/HASS training as “highly informative, engaging and exciting.” “The benefit far exceeds the price."

Our mission is to enable companies to create their happy customers, with a well-engineered product. By helping our clients understand the real problems and the real solutions, we help improve their careers and reputations. Achieving the win-win-win results for our clients and their customers is our ultimate satisfaction. We have a family-like company culture with positive energy and great teamwork. An improved and reliable product is our own small way to contribute to a better humanity and a slightly better world. Call us at (408) 654-0499, or email us at info@opsalacarte.com, or visit our website www.opsalacarte.com. Thank you!

A couple of our clients' testimonials:

"The expert team at OPS assisted us in evaluating the available reliability testing possibilities, and with their help, we crafted a customized test program precisely sized to meet the needs of our project. The resulting program proved to our team, our customers, and our regulatory auditors that our product was robust, met its reliability goals effectively, and satisfied all safety risk factors."

"...Ops A La Carte worked with us to develop a testing program based on HALT and HASS to effectively assess low-temperature operation capability and screen the boards for assembly and component defects. They then facilitated and supported the HALT and HASS testing effort. It was quicker and more efficient than we had expected. The boards for the first four strings have been delivered. We are looking forward to working with them through completion of the project."