ETHICS

IN
ENGINEERING
 INTRODUCTION:

• Engineering is a profession.
• This profession plays an important role in our lives.
• Engineering covers a wide variety of areas such as civil, electrical,
mechanical, electronics, robotics, computer engineering, information
technology, textile engineering, aerospace engineering, bioengineering, and
biotechnology.
• It also covers economic activities like manufacturing, construction, fabrication.
• We are going to discuss the role of engineering in our lives and the ethical
problems which arise while engineers perform their functions.
 • Engineering ethics is concerned with
determining right or wrong actions of
engineering professionals based on ethical
principles.
• Some engineers perform their job without caring
much for ethics, while some others face
problems because what they are asked to do may
CONCEPT OF
be against their beliefs.
ENGINEERING
ETHICS: • Engineering ethics consists of the responsibilities
and rights which should be accepted by
engineering professionals.
• Engineering ethics is defined as the study of
the decisions, policies, and values which are
morally desirable in engineering practice and
research.
PURPOSE OF ENGINEERING
ETHICS:
• The purpose of engineering ethics is to contribute safe
and useful technological products.
• Its aim is to increase engineering professional’s ability
to deal effectively with moral issues in engineering.
• Engineering ethics strengthens one’s ability to reason
clearly and carefully about moral questions.
• It helps to increase moral autonomy.
 1. SAFETY AND HEALTH AT WORK:
• It is necessary for the professional engineer to
take care of both work safety and health of his
own and others working under him.
• An engineer should give importance to the
following points to ensure these:
o Strictly adhere to safety and health norms and
FEATURES OF standards set by governmental agencies and
ENGINEERING
the organization itself.
PROFESSION:
o Have a clear understanding of the safety and
health concerns of the project.
o Conduct a safety audit and provide safety
measures for any potential dangers.
o Ensure that people follow safety norms and
provide safety and health training to everyone.
 2. ATTITUDE:
• A positive attitude is important to an engineering
professional for a successful professional life.
• As an engineering professional, one should keep
the following points in mind.
FEATURES OF o One must develop a positive attitude and have self-
ENGINEERING confidence.
PROFESSION
o One should deal with people, problems, and
…
situations honestly, ethically and with integrity.
o One should have self-esteem and the confidence to
deal with any situation.
o One needs to recognize and appreciate the good
work done by others.
 3. ADAPTABILITY AND RESPONSIBILITY:
• An engineering professional should not have a rigid
attitude towards people and situations. Recognizing
merit in others’ points of view is important.
• As an engineer, one has to give the importance to
the following:
o One must learn to work efficiently as an
FEATURES OF independent worker and as a member of the team.
ENGINEERING o One should be creative and resourceful.
PROFESSION
o One should be well skilled and performing multiple
…
tasks.
o One should be ready to learn from mistakes and
have a positive attitude towards feedback given by
others.
o One should have an open mind and respond
positively to suggestions from others.
 o One should have enough knowledge and skills
to suggest alternatives to achieve the goals.
o One must have the ability and confidence to
deal with uncertainties.
• Other features such as innovation, creativity,
FEATURES OF
initiative, and critical thinking, are also
ENGINEERING
important aspects of the engineering
PROFESSION
profession.
…
• One should appreciate the importance of the
above mentioned skills for the successful
completion of projects and for a professional’s
growth.
 4. TRAINING:
• Engineering have a very rigorous training
schedule.
• The training starts with a thorough instruction
in basic sciences, followed by engineering
sciences, and then the applied engineering
FEATURES OF courses.
ENGINEERING • The four-year program also includes
PROFESSION laboratory training, visit to engineering
… industries or construction sites, etc.
• With this basic training, engineering
professionals learn the tricks of the trade.
• If the engineer has had good training as a
student, he will take little time to perform the
job.
 SKILLS OF ENGINEERING PROFESSION….

I. COMMUNICATION SKILLS:
• Communication skills decide the outcome of the activities the professionals undertake.
• Communication skills depend on ability to read, listen, and grasp information.
• Communication is the art and science of exchanging feelings and information with others.
• Communication is not a one-way process.
• The success of communication depends upon what has been grasped by the person receiving
the communication.
 FORMS OF COMMUNICATION:
Different forms of communication are:
1. Verbal communication(This can be in oral or
written from.),
SKILLS OF
ENGINEERING 2. Non-verbal communication(This can be
through gestures, postures, and facial
PROFESSION
expressions.) and
….
3. Silence( Remaining silent also communicates
some message to the receiver.)
A professional should have expertise in all forms
of communication.
SKILLS OF
ENGINEERING BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION:
PROFESSION…. At various stages of communication process,
the following barriers may occur for
effective communication.
a. Physical barriers:
• When the communicator is physically
separated from the receivers.
b. Perceptional barriers:
• By which what is conveyed is understood
differently due to a difference in the
perception of the same ideas.
SKILLS OF ENGINEERING
PROFESSION….

c. Emotional barriers:
• Where the emotional state of the receiver does not permit him to receive the communication
effectively.
d. Motivational barriers:
• When the receiver is disinterested at the moment of communication; this makes it important to
find the right time to communicate.
e. Cultural barriers:
• Where the communicator is not able to convey the message effectively because of the cultural
differences in perceiving the ideas conveyed, which may be understood wrongly by the
receiver.
f. Language barriers:
• When the receiver is not familiar with the language of communication.
SKILLS OF
g. Verbosity:
ENGINEERING
PROFESSION…. • Whereby the communicator uses difficult and
verbose language to impress his listeners but is
unable to reach them because of such words.
h. Environmental barriers:
• Such as the noise of machines or any kind of
external noise that may interfere with the
intended communication.
i. Inconsistency in message or conflicting ideas:
• This can also result in a no-communication
situation.
SKILLS OF
Understanding the audience:
ENGINEERING
PROFESSION…. • Some barriers to communication can be
removed if the communicator understands the
persons who are going to receive his message.
• Understanding the audience is an important
step before one decides the mode, encoding,
and channels of communication.
• Mass media, such as newspapers, television
channels, radio and personal communication
channels such as telephones, mobile phones,
and the internet, have revolutionized the way
of communication.
SKILLS OF • For professional engineers, the following skills are
ENGINEERING important to communicate effectively:

PROFESSION a. Listen to understand and appreciate the points of view others;

ask questions to provide feedback and clarify the ideas
…. presented.

b. Read and understand information presented in various forms

such as written, oral, diagrammatic, graphic, pictures,
and charts.

c. Write precisely to communicate your ideas to others.

d. Speak effectively to make others understand your point of

view.

e. Understand efficient and effective ways of presenting

technical information and data.

f. Share and exchange information using variety of

communication channels.
SKILLS OF II. COMPUTATIONAL SKILLS:
ENGINEERING • Computational skills are important for engineering
PROFESSION professional. The familiarity with and use of numbers is
known as numeracy.
…. • Engineers have to take measurements, conduct experiments,
and record data.

• Engineering analysis requires good knowledge and skills in

mathematics.

• Engineers have to learn various mathematical tools to solve

problems.

• They get a thorough knowledge to use mathematical tools

during their training.

• It is necessary for them to keep in touch with developments

in this field.
SKILLS OF III. COMPUTER SKILLS:
ENGINEERING
• Today, one cannot work without the use of
PROFESSION personal computers, laptops, and calculators.
…. • Engineers must be comfortable working in a
networked environment.
• They should be familiar with programming
languages and find solutions to problems
with the aid of computers.
• Engineers also have to be familiar with the
relevant software to make effective use of
such tools.
SKILLS OF • THE USEFULNESS OF COMPUTER FOR AN
ENGINEERING ENGINEERING PROFESSIONAL:

PROFESSION 1. Use simple software for preparation of various documents.

…. 2. Use graphical tools to prepare diagrams, charts, sketches,

graphs, etc.

3. Use software to make computer-based presentations.

4. Be familiar with the use of software for engineering analysis

and design.

5. Be familiar with the use of programming language and create

programmes for various uses.

6. Use internet effectively to gather information and exchange

information with others.

7. Use all means of communication such as e-mail, mobiles.

FEATURES OF IV. PROBLEM-SOLVING SKILLS:
ENGINEERING • Professionals face both technical and non-
PROFESSION technical problems in their career.
…. • Solving such problems require a high level of
skills.
• Technical problems may have straightforward
solution but non-technical problems may relate to
employees, government regulations, productivity,
quality, and many other factors.
• Engineers should have high level of understanding
and skills to solve such problems.
• The following problem solving skills help to
solve problems.
FEATURES OF a. Clearly identify the problem and determine all factors that
ENGINEERING contribute to it.

PROFESSION b. Exchange views with others, assess their views and evaluate
them.
…. c. Recognise the various factors related to the problem, such as
human factors, technical factors, and assess them for
solutions.

d. Use all resources available to find solutions.

e. Find innovative solutions based on the root cause of the

problem.

f. Evaluate alternative solutions and take decision on the best

solution.

g. Implement the solution and evaluate its impact.

 V. LEADERSHIP SKILLS:
• According to Peter Drucker, ‘Management is doing
things right; leadership is doing the right things.’
• One can not become a leader overnight . He has to
FEATURES OF acquire the leadership skills after experience.
ENGINEERING • These skills are required to deal with tasks and the
PROFESSION…. people.
• A leader can change the philosophy of a group of
people and bring out more than expected
performances.
FEATURES OF Some of the basic leadership skills are:
ENGINEERING
a. Plan:
PROFESSION
…. • A leader plans out the work for himself and
for others. He allocates tasks. He should
know the people and their strengths.

b. Lead by example:

• A leader should not be an armchair

executive watching his people do the job. He
has to lead the group with setting examples
with his own performance.
FEATURES OF c. Show passion:
ENGINEERING
• A leader should be passionate about his work.
PROFESSION Only a passionate leader can inspire the people
…. to perform. His passion should be visible to the
group in his actions. A leader should guide the
group towards the goal.

d. Be organised:

• A leader should organise his work well. He

should possess the knowledge and skills for the
whole work. This will enable him to monitor
the group’s work, give advice to the people.
FEATURES OF e. Share leadership:
ENGINEERING • Sharing leadership is delegating authority.
PROFESSION
• This is essential to groom talented people who
…. can find out solutions and take decisions.
• A good leader encourages people by
delegation.
f. Communicate well:
• A leader should be a good and effective
communicator. He must be a good listener to
communicate effectively. Clear instructions
based on group discussions will enhance the
performance of the individuals and the group.
FEATURES OF g. Be honest:
ENGINEERING
• A leader must show honesty and courage in
PROFESSION
doing his job. This will enhance his
…. credibility and acceptance as a leader. A
leader should take responsibility for any
decisions he takes.
FEATURES OF h. Know one’s people:
ENGINEERING • A leader must know his people, their strengths and
PROFESSION weaknesses.
…. • This will facilitate allocation of work to people
according to their strengths, help them over come
their weaknesses, and ensure the utilisation of
group resources effectively and efficiently.

i. Counsel:
• Many group members may need counselling to
enhance their performance.
• A leader should act as a counselor to the members
of the group and solve their personal or
professional problems.
FEATURES OF j. Evaluate:
ENGINEERING • A leader must be able to supervise the performance of the
PROFESSION people and evaluate their performance so as to guide them
towards performing better.
…. • He must represent the group members and defend their
actions.

k. Effectively teach:

• A leader should also have the ability to teach his group

members on the various aspects of the task.

• He must clarify the objectives of the group.

• His vision must be shared with them so that they are able to
work as a unified group to achieve the objective.
FEATURES OF VI. GROUP WORK SKILLS:
ENGINEERING • All engineering projects are accomplished by
PROFESSION working in groups.
…. • No individual can claim sole credit for a
successfully accomplished project.
• Working in a group thus becomes very important.

• Important skills pertaining to group work are as

follows:

a. Ensure that the members of the group share a

common objectives and have the same vision.

b. Learn to be flexible and pay respect to the views of

other members.
FEATURES OF c. Listen to the views of others and provide
ENGINEERING constructive feedback.
PROFESSION d. Contribute effectively to the group task by sharing
…. information and expertise with everyone.

e. Recognise and respect individual differences

among the members.

f. Be clear about conflicting views and make efforts to

reach a common solution.

g. Support the group’s effort by motivating other

members.

h. Know the members of the group to extract their

views and ensure their contribution.
FEATURES OF VII. LEARNING TO LEARN SKILLS:
ENGINEERING • When an engineering professional goes from the
PROFESSION environment of a college to the work environment, he will
find a lot of differences.
…. • He will not have a teacher to guide him. He has to
accomplish the task on his own, with some guidance from
his seniors.

• In this situation, learning to learn skills becomes important.

• So far the learning to learn skills are concerned the

following aspects are important:

o Have the urge to learn continuously and grow in the

concerned field.

o Self-analysis to assess someone’s strengths.

FEATURES OF o Set learning for oneself.
ENGINEERING o Scan for and access learning resources from
PROFESSION various sources.
…. o The process of self-learning should be organised
to achieve the goal.
One should not be satisfied with what he knows
and what the organisation demands from him.
Have the urge to learn beyond that.
VIII. SOCIAL SKILLS:
• Social skills are important for success.
• These skills facilitate effective interactions and
communication with others.
FEATURES OF Some of the social skills are discussed below:
ENGINEERING a. Communicate effectively:
PROFESSION o It is important to communicate effectively with the

…. people someone works with.

o It is necessary to know their sensibilities and one has to

moderate his response accordingly.

b. Build Relationships:

o Building relationships is important, both in the career and

life.

o One has to build effective relationships with others to get

support, as well as to support others.

o Relationship should be based on mutual trust and respect.

FEATURES OF c. Interact productively:
ENGINEERING o One should possess the skill to make productive

PROFESSION interactions.

…. o This will contribute to the development of self and others.

d. Emotional Intelligence:

It is a very important part of social skills which refers to the

ability to monitor one’s own and other’s feelings and
emotions to guide one’s thinking and actions.

e. Resolve Conflicts:

o Conflict resolution skills are important in social

interactions.
TECHNOLOGY
• Society has benefitted from the technology
AND SOCIETY: in many ways.
• Technology has made life easier and
pleasant, and has helped to bring people
together.
• Technology has also brought many ill effects
like drugs and their effects on the human
body.
• Development in science and technology is
like a double-edged sword.
• While it benefits the society in many ways,
it is also responsible for potential dangers.
TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY…

• For example, nuclear energy can satisfy the power needs of the
society; the same technology becomes very dangerous as a
weapon of war.
• Use of technology is not without potential dangers.
• Technology should have a humanitarian side and cater to the
needs of a majority of the people.
• Technology wish list has been discussed below:
ENQUIRY:

• Professional ethics is concerned with our lives and the correct

moral stand that we have to take.
• There is an ongoing search for the ethically correct action to be
taken in a given situation in professional practices.
• This search will continue as the society changes continuously.
• Such enquiries can be categorised into the following three groups.
1. DESCRIPTIVE/FACTUAL
ENQUIRY:
• This enquiry is related to collect information on different aspects of the profession.
• Through descriptive enquiry we try to find answers to following questions:
I. How have the practices in the particular profession developed over the years?
II. What are the basic concepts and principles that guide the current practices in the
profession?
III. What is the ethical and psychological profile of the professionals in the system?
IV. Do the professionals have enough guidelines to analyse the safety and risk
factors in the practice of the profession?
2. CONCEPTUAL ENQUIRY:

• This enquiry helps us to understand the profession and its implications from
an ethical point of view.
• It helps a professional to understand the concepts and principles associated
with the profession, as they come up as duties and rights of a professional.
• Some questions which may be answered by such enquiries are as follows:
I. What is a profession?
II. Who is a professional?
III. What is meant by professionalism?
CONCEPTUAL ENQUIRY…

IV. What are the concepts and principles having a bearing on

professional ethics that need to be defined and clarified?
V. What kind of control mechanism should be there to ensure
ethical conduct by professionals?
• The concepts and principles evolve and get clarified over a
period of time with the experience from dealing with moral
issues related to the profession.
• The ideas get fine-tuned with experience.
3. NORMATIVE ENQUIRY:

• This enquiry deals with developing norms for professional

conduct.
• Such enquiry must be supported by the clarity of concepts and
principles related to a profession.
• Normative enquiry tries to answer questions about what should
be a good professional practice.
NORMATIVE ENQUIRY…

• Normative enquiry deals with following questions:

I. What are the rights and responsibilities of a professional?
II. When and how should a professional exercise his rights?
III. What are the obligations of professionals to the public?
IV. What rules, regulations and procedures can be called morally right in a
professional organisation?
All the three types of enquiries are important and interrelated
which help the professional in performing his duties ethically.
ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS:

• Engineers face the following ethical issues when they perform their functions:
1. CONCEPTUALISATION:
• This is the stage when a project or product is conceived for realization.
• This stage involves with developing an idea.
• For example, an idea to construct a dam for generating power or irrigating
land.
• It is a creative stage and the full consequences of the project may not be
known.
ISSUES IN • However, the idea can be discarded
ENGINEERING even at this stage if there are lot of
ETHICS…
obstacles or cost-benefit factors
which make it unviable.
• The following ethical questions
may arise at this stage:
o Is the project or product useful?
o Does it satisfy a felt need?

• At this stage, it is essential to look

at the utility factor of the project or
product.
ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

2. INVESTIGATION:
• One should be satisfied that there is nothing evident to discard the idea.
• For this, investigation is required to collect data.
• For a dam, one has to study the topography, geology, best location, social and
environmental impact, etc.
• For a road, traffic studies, topography, bridges, drainage, route analysis, etc.,
will be required.
• For a product, one conducts a market survey and analyse the product in terms
of utility and cost.
ISSUESS IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

• The following ethical questions arise here:

o Has a thorough and unbiased study been conducted?
o Have all data and observations been reported fully?
o If it is a product, has the market survey been thorough and
the utility and safety of the product covered in the study?
 ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

3. PRODUCT SPECIFICATION AND COSTING:

• Once the investigation is favorable, one goes into more details of the project
like its size, materials to be used, organization to form, and other
specifications.
• Cost estimation can be prepared at this stage for the purpose of approvals
and sanctions.
• Time frame will also be decided for realization of the product or project
based on reports and past experiences.
ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

• At this stage, the following questions may arise:

o Have the specifications been drawn as per established
norms and current standards?
o Has the material selection been done without compromising
safety norms?
o Can the product with the specifications be produced in
time?
 ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

4. ANALYSIS AND DESIGN:

• Analysis and design are process mechanism.
• Designs are based on certain assumptions but can be verified by various methods.
• The following ethical questions are related to analysis and design:
o Has the design based on the latest technology?
o Have the assumptions made for the design been clearly mentioned?
o Have appropriate procedures been followed for the verification of the designs?

o Have all conditions been taken into account in the design?

ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

5. BIDDING AND CONTRACTING:

• In bidding and contracting processes a lot of
unethical practices are reported.

• The contracting process is for the procurement of

materials, spare parts and even for the
implementation of the whole project.
 ISSUESS IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

There are two types of bids - technical bid and financial bid.
• In both the bids, one should ask the following questions to find the ethicality of the
process:
I. Has the bidding process been fair and the principle of equal opportunity
maintained?
II. Have the contract documents been prepared fairly both for the client and the service
provider?
III. Have the analysis and award of bids been fair?
IV. In rejecting any bid has appropriate reasons been given for rejection?
ISSUESS IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

6. IMPLEMENTATION OF DESIGN:
• This refers to the realization of the product in the
physical form.
• Implementation requires complete observance to the
specifications and design data.
• It also involves good supervision of work, safety at the
work place, communication with the designers in case of
difficulties, and sticking to time frames.
 ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…
• Ethical questions related to implementation of design are:

I. Has the quality of materials been checked before use?

II. Is the time frame for implementation adequate, without compromising the quality?
III. Are appropriate quality tests strictly observed?
IV. Has work place safety been taken care of for workers? Are the workers provided with
adequate safety gadgets?
V. Have the test results been reported faithfully and interpreted fairly?
VI. In case of an accident, are there minimum health care kits available? Is adequate
compensation given to the workers for any damage to them? Are attempts made to
suppress accidents and not report them?
ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

7. INSTALLATION AND USE:

• In case of engineering products, the product has to be
installed, commissioned, and made fit for use at the
customer’s premises.
• The customer has to be informed about the details of the
product.
• Documentation must be carried out for its use, indicating
the likely drawbacks and probable misuse.
ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

• The following ethical questions arise here:

I. Is the advertisement for the sale of the product fair,
mentioning all facts and without making false claims?
II. Is the documentation of the product meticulous and
complete?
III. Has the user been provided adequate training for use?
IV. Has the user been told about precautions to avoid any
harm during use?
ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

8. MAINTENANCE:
• The responsibility of the engineer does not end with the
supply of the product.
• It has to be maintained in good condition during its
lifetime.
• Sometimes, annual maintenance contracts are available
and sometimes only warranty period maintenance is done
free.
ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

• This leads to the following ethical questions:

I. Is there adequate cover for the consumer for maintenance
and repair?
II. Is the maintenance contract fairly drawn or is it made vague
for innocent customers who cannot read the fine print?
III. Is there any mechanism ready for timely maintenance and
repair?
IV. Is there a safe exit in case of emergency?
 ISSUES IN ENGINEERING ETHICS…

9. PRODUCT RECALL AND DECOMMISSIONING:

• In some cases engineering products are recalled because all the components may not
be made by the same company.
• The company subcontracts the production of some components to another company.
• When this procedure is adopted, the company cannot ensure that these parts maintain
the same standards of quality all the time.
• The recalling of cars or mobile phones by the manufacturers are the examples.
 ISSUES IN ENGINEERING
ETHICS…
• Decommissioning is another important aspect, while dealing with toxic and dangerous
wastes such as nuclear material or chemical factories.
• The following ethical questions may arise here:
o Does the company have a policy of product recall in case common defects are noticed in
the products?
o Is there any provision for safe disposal of toxic materials when the product is of no use?
o Is there any provision for recycling the product?
• These are sample questions one should ask oneself for ensuring that ethical practices are
followed.