Manufacturing / Free editable template

Machine downtime fishbone diagram template

A fishbone diagram helps a maintenance and production team list every plausible cause of unplanned downtime before agreeing which to investigate. This example looks at 14 hours of lost time on a CNC line, groups 18 candidate causes under Machine, Method, Material, Man, Measurement and Mother nature, and names the two to test first.

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Machine downtime fishbone diagram example showing 6m fishbone with three causes per bone, downtime effect stated with hours lost, evidence list and next test with an owner
Everything in this example is editable. Replace the labels, move the shapes and adapt the layout to your work.

How to use this template

  1. State the effect with a number

    Replace the effect with your machine, period and hours or stops lost. A measured effect keeps the discussion on one problem and gives you a baseline to check against later.

  2. Ask each shift for causes

    Fill the bones with setters, operators and maintenance from every shift. Night shift often sees causes, such as missing preventive maintenance, that day shift never does.

  3. Test before you fix

    Pick two causes the team suspects most and check them against the downtime log, MTBF and work orders. A cause that is not in the data is probably not your biggest loss.

Questions about this template

Does it work for problems other than downtime?

Yes. Rewrite the effect at the head of the fishbone and replace the causes on each 6M bone; rename a bone if a category does not fit.

Do I need an account to use it?

No. Open the template and edit it in your browser. Your work saves on this device. An account is optional if you want to sync your workspace.

Can I export the finished diagram?

Yes. Use Export in the editor to save a PNG, SVG or PDF, or download an editable .epicdraw backup.

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