Introduction
Engineering ethics focuses on the behavior of the individual - the engineer, and the development of ethical standards governing their professional activities. Engineering ethics has always existed as a set of rules or a system that governs the behavior of an engineer. Among its main provisions, we can attribute such as the need to faithfully perform engineering work that would bring welfare and do not cause harm to people; be accountable for engineering professional activities; a good relationship ( customs and rules governing relations ) with other engineer, etc.
The code says that engineers should always be aware that their first responsibility is to protect public safety, health and welfare. If their judgment is rejected in circumstances where under threat security, health, property or welfare of the people, they must notify the employer or client, and, if necessary, other authorities.
Ethical rules governing the relationship, “the engineer - the employer” and “engineer – client” require diligent performance of business obligations: provide engineering services to a client or employer that promised to produce, finish work at the scheduled time and within budget, and if not possible to achieve, inform a client or employer as soon as possible to prevent delays, so that the corrective action can be taken, and not to disclose information relating to the state of affairs or technical processes of his former or current client or employer without their consent (NSPE 2003, 01). As recorded in the Code of Ethics of the National Society of Professional Engineers – NSPE, “Engineers shall not reveal facts, data, or information without the prior consent of the client or employer except as authorized or required by law or this...
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3. Johns Hopkins University. (2009, March). In disaster-prone areas, construction needs a new approach. Retrieved from http://phys.org/news157051992.html
4. Taher, R. (2011). General recommendations for improved building practices in earthquake and hurricane prone areas. San Francisco, CA: Architecture for Humanity Retrieved from http://sheltercentre.org/sites/default/files/Improved Building Practices for Hurricane and Earthquake Prone Areas.pdf
5. UNEP. (n.d.). Promoting sustainable human settlement development. Retrieved from http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=52&ArticleID=55
6. McLaren, B. (2010, July 22). The ethical responsibility of engineers and the rest of us, too [Web log article]. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brian-d-mclaren/the-ethical-responsibilit_b_653812.html
The National Society of Professional Engineers Code of Ethics lays out guidelines and standards to which all engineers should abide when making professional decisions and communicating with their peers and the public. Ethics and communications played a large role in the cause of the event and the end result of the mission. The following section will discuss the ethics of the events that transpired prior to the launch, the communication of the crews and the NASA public relations office, and the ethics of the actions taken by the engineers after the incident.
Martin, M.W. and Schinzinger, R. (2005) Ethics in Engineering. 4th ed. New York: McGraw Hill.
Hazards pose risk to everyone. Our acceptance of the risks associated with hazards dictates where and how we live. As humans, we accept a certain amount of risk when choosing to live our daily lives. From time to time, a hazard becomes an emergent situation. Tornadoes in the Midwest, hurricanes along the Gulf Coast or earthquakes in California are all hazards that residents in those regions accept and live with. This paper will examine one hazard that caused a disaster requiring a response from emergency management personnel. Specifically, the hazard more closely examined here is an earthquake. With the recent twenty year anniversary covered by many media outlets, the January 17, 1994, Northridge, California earthquake to date is the most expensive earthquake in American history.
An earthquake of magnitude 7.0 hit the island of Haiti on January 12, 2010, killing anywhere from 100,000 to 300,000 people, injuring another 300,000 others, and leaving over 1.5 million without homes (Fleddermann, 2012, p.116). The majority of the destruction and human toll occurred in Port au Prince, the capital city of Haiti, although the effects of the earthquake were spread throughout the island. Aside from the many people who died, were injured, or left homeless, those involved in this disaster are the Haitian government, the United Nations, civil engineers, the press, relief organizations, and the United States. Although initially perceived as simply a natural disaster, it becomes apparent through further research that the degree of loss experienced might have been lessened if certain procedures and codes were in place and followed to increase the safety and integrity of the buildings in Haiti.
The final decision would then be to have the engineers and manufacturers are at the uppermost authority in aerospace decision making with regards to ethics. They should have the primary responsibility to inform the government, at any cost and at any concern as to the safety and well being of passengers who fly. Engineers and manufacturers are the ones who create aerospace vehicles, so they should be the ones to decide on the extent of their safety, and the safety of all who use them.
For them the issue is to maximize the gains and minimize the losses, stemming from technology. For example, they focus upon the principal practitioners of technology, the engineers, and wish to examine the moral nature of
In today’s world there are many competitors in all fields of work. This is one of the major reasons why bribery occurs next to money. Engineering is no different than any other field but is often associated with having higher standards. This higher standard incorporates honour, respectability and accountability to ones actions. The article that has been discussed in this paper is essential to maintain the professional engineering image. This is not only in the best interest for the engineer but other engineers, companies and most importantly, the public.
...nciples of engineering; in doing so, they will aid in the protection of society by having a high standard of ethics, honesty, and integrity. In order to become a world-class engineering student, I will have to continue to be conscious of academic dishonest behavior, alerting my professors if I am witness to its occurrence and deterring myself from it, in addition to familiarizing myself with the professional ethical codes related to engineering as engineers are expected to exhibit these fundamental principles when fulfilling their professional duties.
Flooding from a natural disaster can cause serious damage to a building or home. Th...
Engineers and computer scientist live by a code of ethics in which they are required to uphold. In almost every code of ethics it is stated that each engineer/computer scientist must uphold the safety, health & welfare of the public which is paramount. So, if we consider the Respect for Persons theory. There is without a doubt an ethical responsibility for engineers/computer scientist that must be addressed over the disparity that exposes environmental toxicants distributed un-equally among the population.
The professional conduct is taken very seriously, with a code of conduct specified in the Engineering Profession Act. There are six main sections that are covered in the Code of conduct, the following is a small summery of these sections. (1)
The role of any employee is to perform their task to the best of their ability, regardless of their occupation. Whether you are behind the tortilla station at Chipotle or behind the vest of a sworn in officer. You are obligated to put forth your best foot forward despite the situations you may encounter. While always putting the health of the person you are serving first. With hierarchy in society this obligation carries more meaning and status depending on one’s profession. The professional role of an engineer is not only to form the pathways to a more productive society by mending the practices of math, science and reason to do so. But to also protect society in every way possible. Every engineer as an unsworn duty to serve and safeguard any form of human life, not just people. The role of any qualified professional is to perform their job with only the intent of a positive outcome. Never cheating, lying or falsifying anything in the process.
In the paragraphs that follow you will be introduced to the Code of Ethics as outlined by IEEE, and what it means to its members. A comprehensive summarization will be provided for each guideline along with examples of how this code has been recently violated. The vast world of technology, as ever-changing as it is, can affect almost everyone in any aspect of life. This being the case it is important that we as students and engineers adhere to the guidelines set forth by the IEEE, and commit to conduct ourselves to act in a professional and ethical manner. While this is the conduct expected to be exemplified by the members of IEEE, many organizations and firms have similar codes to which they too expect their members to follow.
The prevention phase is the most critical phase of emergency management. Although not every disaster can be prevented in whole, measures can be taken including reviewed and practiced evacuation plans and environmental planning aiding in reducing the loss of life and injury (The Five Phases of Emergency Management, 2018). The second most critical phase of emergency management is being prepared. To be prepared, organizations must routinely practice planning and organizing and looking for ways to be more readily prepared in case of disasters and should practice for all hazards, not just limits of one or two (The Five Phases of Emergency Management, 2018). The response phase is just as critical and, in some cases, more critical than being prepared. This reactional phase coordinates and manages all resources available at the time of the disaster where measures are taken for life, property and environmental safety (The Five Phases of Emergency Management, 2018). The fourth phase of emergency management is the recovery phase where stabilization efforts are managed, and critical community functions are beginning to be restored. Once the threat to life and limb has subsided, this phase is immediately started (The Five Phases of Emergency Management, 2018). Finally, the mitigation phase steps up. This is the phase where engineers and developers see changes that need to be made in structural and non-structural measures. Changes may include adding flood gates or changing the type of materials used on buildings or even changing building codes altogether in an effort to limit the impact of the next disaster (The Five Phases of Emergency Management,
In conclusion, civil engineers have a responsibility to deal with current issues in a professional and ethical manner for the benefit of society. The topics discusses included: high energy consumption of buildings, the need for efficient water resources, transportation planning, poor infrastructures doomed to failure, the need to have higher standards to become a licensed professional engineer, how globalization has affected all engineers, and the need to have more professional use advance engineering informatics. All these subjects were pondered about how these challenges can be overcome are there effective methods that engineers can apply today. Unfortunately, not all problems are easy to handle.