Engineering work does not always involve engineering alone. Engineering functions have traditionally focused on building something with different mathematical and scientific variants. These efforts have recently turned into a combination of more business functions. In John Hooker's white paper, he said, "Engineers are increasingly involved in startups where they make business decisions and engineering decisions." Cross-functional teams include engineering, sales, manufacturing, marketing, and warranty members. . Today, many engineers wear multiple hats and are even called "project" engineers. Wikipedia defines project engineering as "reducing the boundaries between engineering and project management." As the role of engineering has changed over the years, engineers are facing more and more ethical choices and decisions. Engineers must create designs and services for their customers in an ethical manner.
Engineers have joined many different professional associations. Some of these societies include, but are not limited to, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers [IEEE], the Project Management Institute [PMI], the American Society of Mechanical Engineers [ASME], and the National Association of Professional Engineers [NSPE]. Each of these organizations has a similar code of ethics for its members.
Sample ethics guidelines from the National Association of Professional Engineers [NSPE]:
"Engineers should perform their duties:
1 - Critical to the safety, health and well-being of the public.
2 - Execute the service only within its capabilities.
3 - Publish public statements only in an objective and authentic manner.
4. Act as a loyal agent or trustee for each employer or client.
5 - Avoid cheating.
6- Acting in a glorious, responsible, ethical and legal manner to enhance professional honor, reputation and practicality. "
Once a person joins one of the clubs, oats are used to maintain the code. Members must take the professional, his/her employer, customer, supplier or public seriously.
Another ethical engineering practice is to test against standards that apply to engineering products or services. Underwriters Laboratories [UL], the Canadian Standards Association [CSA] and the European Commission [CE] are standards bodies that provide consumers with product safety standards. The product must be successfully tested against the current standard to apply the agent tag on the product. Engineers must test in an honest and ethical manner. The test data file should be recorded in a manner that can be reviewed after many years. Test data should be honest, accurate, and must not be forged or altered. Recording failed test data is just as important as successful test data. If someone is harmed or killed by a product tagged with an agent, the test data can be used in court. Accurate and comprehensive data is critical to a solid case.
Other ethical principles that engineers may face are related to behavior. Engineers must maintain professional ethics and abide by ethical standards. Suppliers or customers must not be bribed or misled to obtain any monetary value. Test data and other information [such as patent ideas or any other intellectual property rights] must be kept confidential. Customers must be able to trust engineers or engineering services.
Orignal From: Moral engineering practice
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