The Software FMEA Guide
A practical guide to modern software FMEA using the 6-Dimensional Common Defect Enumeration approach to identify edge cases and failure modes before they become expensive failures.
Read More ›The Reliability Myths: Five Common Practices, Zero Measurable Effect
A 679-factor benchmarking study identifies five widely used practices that show little or no measurable effect on software defect density.
Read More ›What Separates the World’s Most Reliable Software Teams From Everyone Else
149 projects. 679 factors. A 250:1 gap in escaped defect density between the best and worst performers — and it isn’t CMMi. What actually separates the top 3% is requirements for what the software must NOT do, domain experts over language experts…
Read More ›The Blind Spot in Airworthiness Software Standards
Why DO-178C compliance is necessary but not sufficient. Requirements-based testing and MC/DC coverage never ask whether the requirements document itself was complete — and the 737 MAX shows what that gap costs…
Read More ›Why “Check the Box” Safety Compliance is Killing the Auto Industry (And how it can kill other industries too)
“Check-the-box” safety compliance is a silent tax on engineering. It occurs when an organization goes through all the required, bureaucratic…
Read More ›When Assembled Systems Fail
The Hidden Peril: When “Assembled” Systems Fail. In the high-stakes environment of medical and wellness technology, the pursuit of cost-efficiency…
Read More ›STPA or 6D CDE Software FMEA: Which One Is Right for Your Project
Software FMEA and STPA approach safety from opposite directions—one bottom-up, one top-down. Here’s how to tell which technique actually fits the risk you’re trying to find…
Read More ›Why the SAE 1025 FMEA Standard Is Different
“For years, software-intensive systems have been forced into ‘hardware-centric’ FMEA models like…”
Read More ›If you can predict the weather down to the hour, you can predict software defects and failures.
Since the first recorded software failure in 1962, the prevailing approach to deploying software-intensive systems has been to hope for…
Read More ›MBSE and reliable software goes way back
In 1979 I wrote my first Fortran program. We were still using punch cards back then. You had to wait…
Read More ›Stop Wasting Time: The 3 Worst Software FMEA Methods
Are You Wasting Effort on Low-Return Software FMEA Activities? Not all software FMEA approaches deliver the same value. Some methods…
Read More ›Dead on Arrival: Fatal Flaws that Sank an Oracle Project
The Birmingham City Council undertook a project to replace its aging SAP financial and HR system with the Oracle Fusion…
Read More ›The Top 3 Edge Cases You Can't Afford to Miss
Critical software failures that are common, identifiable, and preventable. When developing software, engineers often…
Read More ›Assessing Occurrence and Detectability for Software Failure Modes
Continuing where last month’s newsletter left off—covering the severity assessment involved in merging Software FMEA and Software FTA…
Read More ›Reliable vs Safe Software: Why Reliability and Safety Engineering Should Be Merged
Reliable software analyses aim to ensure a software-intensive system is available, doesn’t cause premature wear out for…
Read More ›Predict Scenarios That Manifest Software Defects Into Failures
A latent defect only becomes a failure once the right scenario triggers it—here’s how to predict which scenarios will do that…
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