Survival data contain duration times until the occurrence of a specific event and are sometimes referred to as event-time response data. The event is usually failure, such as the failure of an engine or death of a patient. If the event does not occur before the end of a study for an observation, the observation is said to be censored.

The Reliability and Survival menu includes several types of survival analysis.

This chapter focuses on univariate survival, the Survival item on the Reliability and Survival menu. Survival calculates estimates of survival functions using the product-limit (Kaplan-Meier) method for one or more groups of either right-censored or complete data. (Complete data have no censored values.) This platform gives an overlay plot of the estimated survival function for each group and for the whole sample. JMP also computes the log rank and Wilcoxon statistics to test homogeneity between groups. Diagnostic plots and fitting options are available for exponential, Weibull, and lognormal survival distributions. An analysis of competing causes for the Weibull model is also available. Interval censoring is supported by Turnbull estimates.

Life Distribution, Fit Life by X, and Recurrence Analysis are discussed in the following chapters: Lifetime Distribution, the Lifetime Distribution II, and Recurrence Analysis. The Reliability and Survival Analysis II section gives details of both Fit Parametric Survival and Fit Proportional Hazards.