What Is a Root Cause

The terms root cause or multiple root causes appear several times without a clear definition. When Jack Philley teaches the Investigating Process Safety Incidents course for the AIChE, he offers several clear definitions. He describes a root cause as a prime reason, underlying cause, and most often associated with breakdowns or flaws in the management systems. Furthermore, Philley s class notes point out definitions from the Department of Energy Guidelines in his handout, which states  

A root cause is a cause that would prevent recurrence of this and similar occurrences. The root cause does not apply to this occurrence only, but has generic implications to a broad group of possible occurrences.. . . [Tjhere may be a series of causes that can be identified, one leading to another. Each series should be pursued until the fundamental, correctable cause has been defined. 

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