Root Cause Analysis Software

Why 5-Whys and fishbone aren't enough

5-Whys produces a single linear chain that nearly always terminates at 'human error' or 'lack of training'. Fishbone diagrams are wider but still descriptive — they cluster contributing factors without ranking them or classifying organisational failure modes. Neither answers the question regulators ask: 'what in your management system enabled this to happen, and how do you know it won't happen again?'

Tripod Beta: the methodology RISKOPILOT runs

Tripod Beta, developed by Shell and the University of Leiden in the 1990s, treats every incident as the convergence of three layers: active failure (the unsafe act), preconditions (situational factors that enabled it) and latent failures (organisational weaknesses, classified under eleven GFTs: hardware, design, maintenance management, procedures, error-enforcing conditions, housekeeping, incompatible goals, communication, organisation, training, defences). It is the gold standard for high-hazard industries.

What RISKOPILOT generates

From a single incident narrative: a complete Tripod Beta tree, BowTie diagram with classified barriers, STEP chart, GFT organisational profile across all eleven failure types, prioritised SMART recommendations linked to the highest-impact GFTs, and a 12-section audit-ready PDF report. Total time: under five minutes for analysis, plus 24–72h optional expert review.

How RISKOPILOT delivers

1. 01

   Submit the incident narrative

   Paste or upload the witness statements, control-room logs and any prose describing what happened.

2. 02

   RISKOPILOT extracts the causation graph

   The engine identifies the Top Event and decomposes every contributing thread into agent–hazard–target trios.

3. 03

   Barriers are mapped and classified

   Each trio's preventive and recovery barriers are listed and marked intact, failed or missing.

4. 04

   Latent failures classified by GFT

   Every precondition is assigned to one of the eleven General Failure Types, exposing the organisational pattern.

5. 05

   Recommendations + traceable report

   SMART recommendations targeting the dominant GFTs, plus a 12-section PDF with full evidence traceability.

Frequently Asked Questions