Tutorial 8

Course: GE 105
Instructor :Dr. Raja Rizwan Hussain

ENGINEERING
ETHICS
 Question 1

Write three of the fundamental engineering ethics?

1. Ethical considerations are an integral

part of making engineering decisions.
2. The professional obligations of
engineers go beyond fulfilling a
contract with a client or customer.
3. Codes of ethics can provide guidance
in the decision-making process.
 Question 2

Which of the following situations violates the engineering

ethics (specify the relevant engineering ethics that are being
violated):
•An engineer works as a project management
•An engineer hides a fatal error in his design
•An engineer has registered a patent
•An engineer refused to participate in a strike
AN ENGINEER WORKS AS A PROJECT
MANAGEMENT
AN ENGINEER HIDES A FATAL ERROR
IN HIS DESIGN
AN ENGINEER HAS REGISTERED A
PATENT
AN ENGINEER REFUSED TO
PARTICIPATE IN A STRIKE
Engineers, in the fulfillment of their professional duties, shall:
•Prioritize the safety, health and welfare of the public in
the performance of their professional duties.
•Perform services only in areas of their competence.
 Question 3

Give some examples to indicate how

the engineer can give credit for
engineering work to those to whom
credit is due, and will recognize the
proprietary interests of others.
 Question 3

 To recognize the proprietary interests of others, an

engineer could:
 Join an engineering association (ACI, IEEE, ASME, etc)
 Check and re-check the availability of a patent while
designing something (via internet, handbook, etc)
 Forward the information to colleagues about the patent by
any means (meetings, conferences, internet, etc)
 Persistently firming the engineering ethics. Self-control is
one of the best solution
 Question 4

Suppose you are working in the environmental division of a

computer manufacturing firm.
You learn that your company might be discharging unlawful
amounts of lead and arsenic into the city sewer.
The city processes the sludge into a fertilizer used by local farmers.
To ensure safety, it imposes restrictive laws on the discharge of lead
and arsenic.
Preliminary investigations convince you that the company should
implement stronger pollution controls, but your manager insists the
cost of doing so is prohibitive and that technically the company is in
compliance with the law.

Discuss the ethical issue and state what you should do, giving
reasons for your answer.
 Question 4

Ethical Issue :
Your company discharging unlawful amount of lead and
arsenic to the city sewer and preliminary investigations
showed that the lead and arsenic has been pollute the water
but technically company is not breaking the law.

Make a complete investigation

 Question 5

A County Engineer in Virginia demanded a 25% kickback in

secret payments for highway work contracts he issued. In
1967 he made such an offer to Allan Kammerer, a 32 year
old civil engineer who was vice president of a young and
struggling consulting firm greatly in need of the work.
Kammerer discussed the offer with others in the firm, who
told him it was his decision to make. Finally Kammerer
agreed to the deal, citing as a main reason his concern for
getting sufficient work to retain his current employees.

Discuss the ethical issue of Kammerer's act, giving reasons

for your answer.
 Question 5

Ethical Issues :
To get the project Kammerer is willing to make a collusion with the county
engineer. Even that the over is from the county engineer, this can be include as a
bribery.
ETHICAL ISSUES ARE SELDOM BLACK
AND WHITE
Conflicting demands:
Loyalty to company and colleagues
Concern for public welfare
Personal gain, ambition

Ethical standards are usually relative and personal, there

is seldom an absolute standard
Engineering Codes of Ethics
 Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology
(ABET)
 National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE)
 Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)
 American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
 American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)

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Extract of NSPE Code
General rules: Engineers, in the fulfillment of their
professional duties, shall:
 Hold paramount (vital) the safety, health and
welfare of the public in the performance of their
professional duties
 Perform services only in areas of their competence
 Issue public statements only in an objective and
truthful manner
 Act in professional matters for each employer or
client as faithful agents or trustees
 Avoid deceptive acts* in the solicitation of
professional employment
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