As Confucius noted, failing to correct a mistake is a second error in itself. Failure analysis provides the essential bridge between damage and prevention by tracing progression to identify root causes. By examining physical evidence, engineers can make informed decisions to avert future failure.

Typical techniques such as metallography or fractography reveal microstructure-failure correlations or reflect the actual fracture pattern and existing damage conditions. Beyond these classical methods, further techniques have emerged in recent years, becoming increasingly common and providing valuable new information or making the failure analysis process more effective.

The topics of this session are:

• damage cases from various material categories and applications
• quantitative fractography in Failure Analysis
• microstructure-failure correlations
• introduction of automated procedures and AI support