Materials Forensics: Driving Faster and Reliable Product Development

It’s estimated that 50% of development projects run over time or budget. With advancements in electronics such as medical devices, photonics and power electronics so costly, delays come with staggering price tags.

At Forensic Eyes, we believe there’s a better way. By using the untapped information within the materials we design and build with, we can predict failures before they happen. Think of your development project as a ship navigating risky waters—materials forensics is the sonar that spots hidden icebergs before disaster strikes.

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From Fixing Failures to Preventing Them

My journey into materials forensics began with failure analysis. My physics and engineering background gave me a knack for digging to the root cause of problems in electronics, suggesting design, materials, and manufacturing solutions to prevent repeat failures. I loved solving complex puzzles, but over time, I started questioning the impact of my work.

One day, it hit me. After delivering a thorough investigation that revealed a simple technical fix, I noticed something—instead of relief on my customer’s face, I saw panic and dread. While I’d solved the mystery, the reality of fixing the problem was a logistical and financial nightmare. A fix that would have cost pennies early in development had now snowballed into recalls, production delays, and reputational risk.

The truth is failure analysis often comes too late. The real opportunity lies in proactive materials forensics to catch issues early, when they’re still minor hiccups, not multimillion-pound disasters.

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The True Cost of Poor Quality

A faulty 1p electronic component can spiral into a ￡5M problem when it’s embedded in complex assemblies—and that’s without considering the damage to customer trust or safety risks in critical applications. Big issues often aren’t what we routinely test for; they’re hidden "unknown unknowns."

Materials forensics works like a health check for your product, catching warning signs early and turning unknown risks into actionable tasks. It uses the microstructural and crystallographic information in materials to predict how, where, and why failures might occur, enabling targeted solutions during development.

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What Materials Forensics Can Do for You

By understanding material properties—like grain boundaries, phases, defects, and crystal structures—we can:

• Tailor materials and manufacturing processes to improve reliability
• Identify and mitigate small imperfections early
• Improve FEA and reliability models with real-world data, not idealised conditions
• Confirm that accelerated aging tests replicate real-life failure modes, ensuring reliable lifetime predictions
• Ensure end of line testing and quality inspection is appropriate and able to flag manufacturing drift that may lead to failure in field

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Accelerating Innovation with Confidence

Reliability and lifetime modelling are critical when launching innovative products. Accelerated aging tests condense years of wear and tear into weeks or months, but they only work if the right failure modes are triggered. With new materials, miniaturized designs, and extreme environments, traditional models can miss critical issues.

Materials forensics identifies those hidden risks, giving reliability engineers the insights they need to set accurate acceleration factors to activate real-world failures. The result? Confidence that your product will perform as expected—without surprises in the field.

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Forensic Eyes’ Vision

I founded Forensic Eyes in December 2023 with a clear goal: to embed materials forensics into product development from the start. By proactively analysing materials at each stage gate, we help teams:

• Mitigate risk and prevent costly late-stage failures.
• Accelerate development timelines with fewer delays.
• Build confidence in product reliability and quality.

Materials forensics isn’t just about avoiding failure—it’s about enabling faster, smarter innovation. Like sonar guiding ships safely through treacherous waters, it helps you navigate complex projects with clarity and confidence.

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How We Help

Forensic Eyes supports companies in four key ways:

1.????? Cost Savings through Early Detection

·?????? We help detect and address problems during product development when fixes are easier, faster, and far less costly.

·?????? Avoid unplanned, expensive failure analysis and redesign at qualification, during reliability testing or post-launch.

·?????? Direct cost savings and improved financial predictability.

2.????? Reduced Time-to-Market

·?????? Identifying and resolving small issues early reduces delays in development cycles, ensuring projects stay on schedule.

·?????? Faster product development with fewer unforeseen disruptions.

·?????? Improved time-to-market gives a competitive advantage.

3.????? Data-Driven Design & Accurate Lifetime Predictions

·?????? We provide real-world data to refine your Finite Element Analysis (FEA), Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA), reliability and lifetime models.

·?????? Models are more accurate and based on actual manufacturing conditions, not theoretical ideals.

·?????? Better engineering models through machine learning based on real results.

4.????? Risk Mitigation

·?????? With continuous support, we act as your "early warning system" to spot unknown issues before they escalate into critical failures.

·?????? Mitigate risks during development, ensuring product reliability and protecting your reputation.

·?????? Lower overall risk exposure, reduced chances of costly product recalls or damage to brand reputation.

Summary

When materials forensics is built into development, it allows us to make changes earlier in development when it is most cost effective. It feeds into models enabling faster, more accurate course corrections. With a budget assigned upfront, risks are managed proactively, keeping projects on time and within budget. The result? Faster commercialisation of innovative products with peace of mind.

At Forensic Eyes, we don’t just fix problems—we prevent them. We can help make materials forensics a strategic part of your development process and accelerate your next breakthrough.

Get in touch to learn how materials forensics can save you time, money, and worry.

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Designers and manufacturers are experts in so many aspects that are critical to successful, reliable products. However, they often do not have the materials knowledge or experience to interpret the evidence that failure investigations liberate. If you would like support through services, consultancy or training, get in touch. To book a free consultation with me, click here: https://calendly.com/suzanne-be0a/meeting-with-suzanne-costello

For more information, contact Suzanne Costello on [email protected]

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