The application of FMEA in defect reduction for the spindle motor assembly process for hard disk drives

At the present time, Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) technique is frequently used in manufacturing industry to deal with undesirable situations. These can occur throughout the various phases of the product life cycle. The objectives of this research are to analyze and identify potential problems in the spindle motor assembly process for 2.5-inch hard disk drives. The process often encounters the problem of hub flange height failure. The result of this research may reveal the failures within five steps of the focusing process. The Risk Priority Number (RPN) of each failure may now be calculated. As a result of this, the five highest RPNs may be selected in order to take corrective action. It could be concluded that, by applying the FMEA technique, all risks in the process have been pinpointed and all recommended corrective actions have been taken. As a final step, the process can be improved by a two-factor factorial experiment with the significant level at 0.05 in order to determine the optimum setup conditions. By implementing FMEA, the defective parts could be reduced from 6,294.36 DPPM to 3,788.27 DPPM.