Engineering Ethics

Engineering Ethics

Abstract

Globally, Design-Product-Concept (DPC) development or deployment is a critical approach used by engineers in designing products through integrative thinking so as to fully fulfill customers’ desires.  This process determines the product features as well as the performance of the product based on the customers’ preferences. Moreover, Montgomery (Pg. 17) affirms that the approach integrates product framing, collection and analysis of data, therefore, engineers should continue using it as well as incorporating technology which comes with it. Besides that, the approach should meet some ethics for the product to be accepted positively into the market since the design of a product should be such that it limits immoral use. Nowadays, engineers are in ethical dilemmas between environmental and economic conflicts in their work. In order to satisfy the engineering code of ethics, DPC development should put the public interests first before business and professional interests. Other forms of the arguments which arise due to DPC development are self-interest, environmental interests, and developmental sustainability.

DPC Background

Basically, before any product is fabricated customers present their ideas before an engineer who empathizes their ideas through design thinking, defines the problem, ideates the ideas, prototypes, and tests the product sample (Wu & Kathryn, Pg. 5). A design is a plan, with less or more details, that an engineer uses in order to come up with a model or prototype through an iterative and systematic manner. In the same context, a concept is a set of engineering ideas used in problem-solving which determines the features that a product should have whereas a product is an assemblage of parts or systems developed and tested in order to solve a problem.

Due to the fast-evolving world, DPC integrates technology in order to keep up with the design, product and concept trends. With the emergence and presence of computers, Computer-Aided Design (CAD) is the major comprehensive technology that engineers use in DPC. This is because of its efficiency and reliability (Montgomery, Pg. 24). For instance, the technology is able to design products in 3D, analyze every aspect of them, if they are fit, and simulate them even before building a prototype of the product. Consequently, as the name suggests, DPC works in an orderly manner. According to Wu & Kathryn (Pg. 2), the process starts when customers present their problems to an engineer who empathizes the problem then comes up with a prototype using engineering concepts to make the most efficient product. Undoubtedly, the engineer is responsible for producing the product in order to fill the desires of the customers using engineering tactics.

Stakeholders

Unquestionably, stakeholders play a huge role in any DPC project. Significantly, they are usually parties who influence a project either negatively or positively directly or indirectly. For instance, direct stakeholders include investors, inventors, stockholders or consumers whereas indirect stakeholders include competitors, communities, business entities or governmental agencies. They are mandated to ensure that a product fits the market strategy, ensure that the DPC project is successful, always take ownership of the appropriate deliverables and outcomes, identify and resolve any product risk or issue among others (Wasson, Pg. 5).

Consequently, stakeholders are affected by a DPC project positively or negatively. Pursuing this further, some of the benefits for stakeholders experienced include entitlement to massive profits when a DPC project becomes successful, increased stakeholder expertise increased innovation drive among others (Montgomery, Pg. 12). However, Wasson (Pg. 6) argues that lack of understanding may occur in stakeholder’s meeting where every member wants to puts personal interests first which is against the engineering ethics as well as sometimes the DPC project fails terribly in the market such that a lot of loses are incurred are some of the drawbacks stakeholders experience.

Ethical and Social Impact Analysis.

Ethical issues face engineers on a daily basis, something which the engineers are trying to cope with so as to abide by the engineering code of ethics both in concepts and designing products. Often are ethical questions being presented to engineers to justify the operationalization of DPC projects if they are ethically fit. Besides that, engineering ethics in DPC concerns those issues which arise from designing of not only products but also systems as well (Borenstein & Ron, Pg. 32). These ethical issues emanate from the technology used and their modes of operation which come with the product. Significantly, scientific research and knowledge, and development in technology have increased awareness in ethical concerns affecting individuals, cultures and the environment which engineers should incorporate in the designing process.

An ethical issue such as safety should be number one priority in a DPC project since the end users should be protected from any harm and danger. In other words, the engineers ought to design and fabricate a product which is safe for operation. Sustainability of the products is another ethical issue which should be looked keenly (Borenstein & Ron, Pg. 37). The products should be able to solve the intended problem at the same time preserving the environment and the future generation. Moreover, the DPC projects should encourage user autonomy.

Weighing on the ethical theories, the utilitarian ethical theory will be the best suited to address the above ethical issues. This is because of its notion to produce great products for a great number. Consequently, it the only moral framework which is focused on accounting for costs and benefits in a DPC project due to its moral reasoning (Mill, Pg.340). Ethically, utilitarianism is a reason-based approach of combating with ethical issues. According to NSPE code of ethics, the fundamental canons, personal obligations, and rules of practice (every engineer should hold paramount safety and welfare of the public) are the most relevant in development or deployment of DPCs since they attach the engineers to the core ethics.

As a product design engineer, one should have numeracy and analytical skills, critical thinking skills, time management skills, ability to critically solve problems, IT and CAD knowledge, technical knowledge and expertise, and be flexible in order to implement the DPC (Wu & Kathryn, Pg. 4). Due to technological evolution firms are now focused on engineers who can handle DPCs using modern corporate design which is as a result of multi-disciplinary collaboration (Wasson, Pg. 3). Some of the perspectives required to effectively implement a DPC are teamwork traits, IT and CAD skills, creativity, problem-solving strategies among others. One of the major aspects of ethics is the culture which majorly plays the key role. For a DPC to be successful and acceptable in the society it should have an oversight of the society’s culture. The product should not go against their believes or taboos since it will experience a negative societal outcome. For instance, red color in China symbolizes good fortune while in South Africa it symbolizes mourning (Wasson, Pg. 4).

Conclusion.

In conclusion, engineers all around the globe should continue using and improving DPC development and deployment mechanisms and techniques as the technology advances. Before initializing or developing any project they ought to review DPC aspects such as the engineering code of ethics and the multi-disciplinary collaborations so as to maximize its outcome (Wu & Kathryn, Pg. 9). Moreover, the approach integrates systematic methods which aid in solving ethical issues based on the utilitarian ethic theory. However, the compelling argument against the approach is that it is complex and requires skilled personnel to operate the CAD software during data analysis.

References

Borenstein, Jason, and Ron Arkin. “Robotic nudges: the ethics of engineering a more socially just human being.” Science and engineering ethics 22.1 (2016): 31-46.

Mill, John Stuart. “Utilitarianism.” Seven Masterpieces of Philosophy. Routledge, 2016. 337-383.

Montgomery, Douglas C. Design and analysis of experiments. John wiley & sons, 2017.

Wasson, Charles S. System engineering analysis, design, and development: Concepts, principles, and practices. John Wiley & Sons, 2015.

Wu, Qiong, and Kathryn Cormican. “Shared leadership and team creativity: a social network analysis in engineering design teams.” Journal of technology management & innovation 11.2 (2016): 2-12.