The consequences of a materials failure can be minor or very significant. At one extreme, materials failures can lead to injury or even fatality. They may also cause unplanned costly maintenance, repairs, or replacement of a component, disruption to production, environmental damage, as well as HSE issues. All of these consequences can potentially cost a plant millions of pounds. Of course, it is equally possible than when a material fails, the consequences are not severe, and the cost not significant. The broken part may be simply replaced, and there is no justification for an extensive (and perhaps costly) failure analysis. The value of failure analysis is therefore determined as part of the overall risk management of a plant. It may also be necessary to understand the cause of failure for commercial reasons, such as product liability, insurance cover, legal claims etc.

When called upon, it is the job of an experienced materials scientist to piece together the trail of evidence left behind by the failed material, with the aim of determining the mode of failure. Once a mode is known it is then possible to explore a probable cause of failure, and thereafter provide a series of recommendations intended to prevent future recurrence. This is what is meant by failure analysis.