Getting Started

Dr . Mahajanam ' s passion for the steel industry stems from his hometown in Jamshedpur , India , also known as The Steel City . After completing his bachelor ' s degree in Metallurgical Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology , he began his career with Tata Motors . A few years later , he accepted admission to The Ohio State University and went on to complete his Master ’ s Degree in Material Science and Engineering . He then enrolled in the Ph . D . program , where he had a chance to work on a multi-university industry project involving aircraft aluminum alloys and a newly developed coating system . “ Once I received my Ph . D ., I began working at Cessna Aircraft in Wichita , Kansas . This is where

I picked up failure analysis ," stated Dr . Mahajanam . “ While it is not something that is necessarily taught in schools , it is essential that analysts and industry professionals understand failure mechanisms in the workplace .”

Even though he enjoyed working on aircraft alloys , Dr . Mahajanam missed focusing on the research aspect of material science . To satisfy this desire , he took a position at the ConocoPhillips Research Center . “ I became involved with the oil & gas industry where I began to further my research in materials utilized in upstream and downstream oil & gas production .” explained Dr . Mahajanam . “ Although 90 % of the material used is carbon steel , critical processes require the use of stainless steels and corrosion resistant alloys .”

A Day in the Life

In his current role , Dr . Mahajanam focuses on material testing and analysis . " My experience is somewhat unique because I have worked for an operator in the field and in a lab . Currently , I work in the lab , collaborating with technicians , technologists , and clients to generate data ."

A typical day for Dr . Mahajanam begins with reaching out to clients for potential projects . Connections with clients are achieved through attendance and presentations at large conferences , or with the assistance of the sales team . When project ideas are received , Dr . Mahajanam creates proposals that identify the project ' s scope . The proposal then gets sent back to the client and once approved the lab receives the material that needs an assessment . Following the data generation and collection , reports are written and given to experts for review and approval . The document is then sent out to the client to make revisions , and to ensure that the intention of the company and the clients are the same . “ The process I follow on a daily basis is directly involved with failure analysis ,” he added .

Breaking Down Failure Analysis

Dr . Sudhakar Mahajanam .

According to the American Society for Metals ( ASM ) Handbook Volume 11 , there are several steps followed to complete a failure analysis correctly . Broadly speaking , a failure investigation sequence involves

two parts : the collection / examination stage ( semi-interpretation ) stage , and the analysis stage ( final interpretation ).

Semi-interpretive stage

This stage begins with data collection , which occurs in the field or a lab :

• The most critical part for this step is the visual and photographic documentation . This information usually becomes the key to solving issues , sometimes even before the failed component comes into the lab .