Engineering ethics and morals

Neeraj Dubey
Ethics is the study of the characteristics of morals and involves the moral choices made by individuals as they interact with other persons. According to Oxford Dictionary, “Ethics means -moral principles that govern a person’s behavior or the conducting of an activity”. Engineers need to be aware of ethics as they make choices during their professional practice of engineering. Engineering ethics will be defined as the rules and standards governing the conduct of engineers in their roles as professionals. Most engineering educational institutions include discussion of ethics in their curriculum; in fact the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET) has mandated that engineering educational programs include ethics in their undergraduate curriculum. It is important for engineering students to study engineering ethics so that they will be prepared to make (sometimes difficult) ethical decisions during their professional careers. Therefore, ethical problems can be similar to open-ended engineering design problems, where multiple solutions exist. Engineering corruption – can be defined as any situation or events of failures and disasters caused by perverted moral or wicked practice in engineering; the opposite of ethical practice. It is important to discuss the role of ethics in engineering since history had proved to us how devastating engineering failures were and how it had affected our lives. We have paid those failures with the deaths of innocents through collapses and accidents and most importantly; environmental (i.e. global warming, climate change) threat to mankind.
Engineering profession:- Engineering practice can be defined as a “profession” as opposed to an “occupation” or “job.” A profession has the following attributes: – ” Work requires sophisticated skills, judgment and exercise of discretion.  ” Membership in the profession requires formal education.  ” Special societies (controlled by members of the profession) establish standards for admission into the profession and conduct of its members ” Significant positive public service results from the practice of the profession.
Code of ethics : – The general principles of the codes of ethics are largely similar across the various engineering societies and chartering authorities of the world, which further extend the code and publish specific guidance. The following ethical principles are :-
a) Engineers shall hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public and shall strive to comply with the principles of sustainable development in the performance of their professional duties.
b) Engineers shall perform services only in areas of their competence.
c) Engineers shall issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner.
d) Engineers shall act in professional matters for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees, and shall avoid conflicts of interest.
e) Engineers shall build their professional reputation on the merit of their services and shall not compete unfairly with others.
f) Engineers shall act in such a manner as to uphold and enhance the honor, integrity, and dignity of the engineering profession and shall act with zero-tolerance for bribery, fraud, and corruption.
Obligation to society : – The paramount value recognized by engineers is the safety and welfare of the public. As demonstrated by the following selected experts, this is the case for professional engineering organizations in nearly every jurisdiction and engineering discipline:- Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers: ” We, the members of the IEEE, – do hereby commit ourselves to the highest ethical and professional conduct and agree: 1. to accept responsibility in making decisions consistent with the safety, health and welfare of the public, and to disclose promptly factors that might endanger the public or the environment;” Institution of Civil Engineers: ” Members of the ICE should always be aware of their overriding responsibility to the public good. A member’s obligations to the client can never override this, and members of the ICE should not enter undertakings which compromise this responsibility. The ‘public good’ encompasses care and respect for the environment, and for humanity’s cultural, historical and archaeological heritage, as well as the primary responsibility members have to protect the health and well being of present and future generations.” National Society of Professional Engineers: “Engineers, in the fulfillment of their professional duties, shall: Hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public.”
Respponsibility of Engineers : – Engineers uphold and advance the integrity, honor and dignity of the engineering profession by: – using their knowledge and skill for the enhancement of human welfare; being honest and impartial, and servicing with fidelity the public, their employers and clients; striving to increase the competence and prestige of the engineering profession; and supporting the professional and technical societies of their disciplines. The engineer recognizes that the greatest merit is the work and exercises his profession committed to serving society, attending to the welfare and progress of the majority. By transforming nature for the benefit of mankind, the engineer must increase his awareness of the world as the abode of man, his interest in the universe as a guarantee of overcoming his spirit, and knowledge of reality to make the world fairer and happier. The engineer should reject any paper that is intended to harm the general interest, thus avoiding a situation that might be hazardous or threatening to the environment, life, health, or other rights of human beings. It is an inescapable duty of the engineer to uphold the prestige of the profession, to ensure its proper discharge, and to maintain a professional demeanor rooted in ability, honesty, fortitude, temperance, magnanimity, modesty, honesty, and justice; with the consciousness of individual well-being subordinate to the social good. It is, therefore, the responsibility of the engineer to carry out his work efficiently and to support the law. The author like to conclude this article through this quotation, “Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skillful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives.”
(The author is Sr. Faculty GCET-Jammu)
feedbackexcelsior@gmail.com

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here