Probabalistic failure analysis is certainly something engineers do for determining system risk, else how do you determine how many redundant components to include? I seems like having a higher safety factor just means having a lower probability of failure, and these two concepts are very compatible.
The probabilistic failure analysis (as practiced in LRFD) is essentially a pencil sharpening exercise where the margins can be reduced a bit. For example, some loads are better known than others (e.g., dead load vs live load), some materials have better QC or a more uniform quality than others (think concrete vs steel).
The end result is generally in the ballpark of the old factor of safety, but might be up to 10% less in some cases.
