Susie McCartt

Design Engineer Code of Ethics

 Design Engineers must not design, conceptualize, or manufacture a product with the intent of
causing harm to humanity.
o Purpose of design is to better the welfare of humanity.
o Designs must be a reflection of the needs of humanity.
o If an engineer realizes that they have been working unethically or condoning unethical
acts, responsibility must be taken, a superior must be informed, and actions to reverse
the unethical acts must be taken.
 Design engineers must not sacrifice and/or overlook ethics for the sake of a better position
within a company.
o Must disregard the advice of a superior if forced to act unethically.
o Must not negatively exploit knowledge about a product or confidential information.
o Must not tolerate any unethical actions by other members within a design team or
company.
 Design engineers must accept the responsibility of all design ideas and projects no matter the
outcome.
o Must work ethically to improve and fix designs that have the potential to have a
negative impact on society.
 Design engineers must practice safety when manufacturing while ensuring high quality
production.
o Human safety is not sacrificed for cost or efficiency.
o Must ensure safety in acquiring raw materials for a project.
o Practice safe machining processes.
 Design engineers must not plagiarize the intellectual property of another engineer; this includes
but is not limited to…
o Concept sketches and designs
o Product dimensions, design functions, and attributes
o Manufacturing processes and materials
o Processes in regards to successfully moving this product from assembly to market
 Design engineers must have the utmost respect for people and their ideas.
o No idea is worthless.
o All ideas hold relevancy as they may bring up issues that were not thought of before.
o Must be tolerant of other cultures and have respect for unfamiliar ideas and traditions.
o Must not practice any form of harassment or discrimination because of a person and
their idea(s)
 Design engineers must maintain the honor, integrity, and confidentiality of the
company/business employed at or has previously been employed at.
o Design engineers must not be disrespectful to industry leaders or large corporations
including those where there is a previous professional relationship.
o Must uphold a company’s confidentiality when changing jobs
o Must disclose all potential conflicts of interest to employer(s)
 Design engineers must consult with other engineers in their respective fields about the project
and its components if the field is one unfamiliar to them.
o Example: A design engineer is not expected to have the same knowledge in the field of
biomedical science as a biomedical engineer, so when creating products for use in this
field, a field specialist must be consulted.
 Design engineers must be communicative to clients and consumers about issues in regards to
projects that have made their way from conception to market.
o Complete transparency and honesty between companies and their consumers in
regards to large, impactful decisions and changes.
o Design engineers must not exploit consumers in regards to cost of a design.