Celebrating 30 Years of "Failures" Failure Analysis Associates, Inc. hosts 30th anniversary celebration on April 11th, 1997.

MENLO PARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 4, 1997--Failure Analysis Associates, Inc. (FaAA) the nation's leading engineering and scientific consulting firm dedicated to the investigation, analysis and prevention of failures is celebrating its 30th anniversary.

For more than a quarter of a century, FaAA has investigated some of the most well-known accidents of our time. Recent examples of the Company's higher-profile efforts include participation in the Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) team involved in the Oklahoma City bombing rescue as well as evaluation of the explosive effects of the fertilizer used in the disaster. In addition, FaAA has investigated the American Eagle ATR crash in Indiana, provided assistance to the City of San Francisco in their investigation of the Sea Cliff incident, testified for the prosecution in the Lyle and Eric Menendez murder trial, and assessed the structural damage to the hull of the Exxon Valdez supertanker.

From a concept developed over lunch at The Oasis Restaurant in Menlo Park, in April 1967, five Ph.D.-level engineers decided to pioneer a new field - investigating how and why things fail and break. Thirty years later, FaAA is a firm with a staff in excess of 300 located in 12 offices nationwide and three abroad.

A celebration is planned for Friday April 11th, from 4:30-7:00 pm at 155 Jefferson, Menlo Park. A retrospective about the firm will begin at approximately 5:30 pm. Members of the press are welcome to attend and several of the founders will be available for interviews.

CONTACT: Failure Analysis Associates, Inc.

Angela A. Meyer, Ph.D., 415/688-6951