Grey speculated that a manufacturing defect could have triggered a physical short-circuit, which caused heating, released oxygen and led to a fire.

WSJ: The Science Behind Dreamliner's Batteries

The sportswear company has issued a recall for seven Omni-Heat electric jacket models, citing a manufacturing defect in the heated inner wrist cuff.

ENGADGET: Columbia recalls Omni-Heat electric jackets due to burn hazard (or, for working too well)

Liao says that's a manufacturing defect, and that MEDL is testing LCD panels from a variety of manufacturers to avoid such mishaps in the final product.

ENGADGET: MEDL Technology's 'The Panel' hands-on Hands-on

The Marine Corps variant (F-35B), a short take-off and vertical landing variant (STOVL), was grounded for nearly a month after a manufacturing defect caused a fuel line to detach just before a training flight in January.

BBC: Grounded US F-35 fighter jet fleet to resume flights

After Monday's fire, the big question for Boeing will be whether the issue is a manufacturing defect, which can be fixed relatively cheaply, or a design flaw, which might require expensive redesign and rework on existing planes, said Citi analyst Jason Gursky.

NPR: Boeing Defends Dreamliner, Safety Questions Remain

But several other possibilities are being explored, including contamination or defect during manufacturing, flaws in the design or construction of the battery, and problems with battery charging.

CNN: Boeing can conduct Dreamliner test flights

It listed among the possibilities a manufacturing flaw, a design defect or problems with external systems that charge and discharge the battery.

CNN: Boeing can conduct Dreamliner test flights

The program--known as the clunky "At the Customer, For the Customer"--taps the parent company's wealth of expertise in the vaunted Six Sigma defect-reduction method, just-in-time manufacturing and such management pursuits as succession planning.

FORBES: Money Machine

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration last month inspected a company manufacturing plant in Minnesota and found no problems that could have caused the defect.

FORBES: Betting On A Boston Scientific Bounce