Works Ethics Focusing on Engineering Ethics - Term Paper Example

Works Ethics Focusing on Engineering Ethics Introduction Every vocation is guided upon policies, principles that enable each individual in any given profession to follow certain conducts and codes in order to meet organizational objectives. This paper will analyze engineering ethics at work by emphasizing, the codes of ethics for engineers, and why it is vital for an engineer to be ethical. Engineering ethics at work A professional engineer practices duties that are in accordance to her or him, colleagues, the engineering profession, clients, employers, and the society as a whole. Their duty to the society in regard to public interests is paramount. They need to act as trustees towards their employers and avoid conflicts of interest by keeping their client’s information as a secret between them. As supervisors and co-workers, professional engineers need to be cooperative in the accomplishment of the company’s project work. Professional engineers must at all cost try to avoid malicious injury of the reputation of either the practitioners or the business (Dorf 65). To enhance the effectiveness in engineering work the association has code of ethics that every engineer must follow. First, a professional engineer must follow some fundamental canons in regard to completion of their expertise duties. They are required to perform services in areas within their competence. Safety, welfare, and health of the public should be held paramount. Statement offered by a professional engineer must be released in a truthful and objective manner. Engineers must be trustees or faithful agents for clients or employers. They should conduct themselves responsibly, ethically, honorably, and lawfully in order to enhance the reputation and honor their professional importance. Secondly, professional engineers’ duties are guided by regulations of practice. Regarding their duties towards the society, they need to notify the appropriate authority incase of circumstances endangering property or life of people before they overrule any judgment. Engineers shall not disclose data and facts without the preceding consent of an authorized employer or client according to the law (Davis 34). The only documents engineering shall use will be those in conformity with the standards applicable. They shall not use and allow associates in business or their names to engage in dishonest or fraudulent enterprises. Following their performances in their areas of competency, they also need to act appropriately. Engineers shall only undertake the assignment in line of their experiences and qualifications. They may take the assignment and assume the coordination responsibility of a whole project but provide the appropriate signatures to the documents and seal them (Vincent 47). Engineers shall neither sign documents or plan of which they have no competency nor those prepared by another segment. As the truthful and objective statements issued in the public, engineers shall practice rules recommended. The statements, reports, or testimonies shall include pertinent and relevant information bearing the current date. Public opinions expressed publicly shall lie within facts and knowledge of their subject matter. Engineers shall not speak on behalf of interested parties unless such parties are identified. Concerning their faithfulness and trustees of their employers and clients, engineers also need to practice some rules. Engineers shall provide all potential or known conflicts of interests which could influence their decision. Engineers shall not acknowledge financial, compensation from various parties for services regarding a similar project. Engineers serving publicly as advisors, employees or members of a department shall not give directions with respect to solicited services either provided by themselves or business in public or private engineering practice. In avoiding acts that are deceiving, engineers are required to act within given regulations. Engineers shall not forge their permit or qualification misrepresentation towards their responsibilities in the subject matter of their prior assignments. They shall give valuable considerations like paying a brokerage fee or commissions to enable them secure a contract. Thirdly, engineers shall also perform professional obligations along those rules guiding their duties. Engineers shall be directed by high standards of integrity and honesty. For example, they shall not sponsor personal interests at the expense of the integrity and dignity of the profession (Martin & Ronald 34). Engineers shall at any given time strive to serve the interests of the public. In this case, they shall participate in public affairs that will establish the community’s well-being. Engineers shall also avoid practices and conducts that deceive the society. Their public statements shall avoid errors of omission and maintain the material facts. Concerning information disclosure about the public body they serve, engineers shall not arrange or promote new employment in his field without consent of every interested party member. Professional duties by interests of conflict shall not be influenced by engineers. For that matter, they shall neither indirectly nor directly accept allowances from contractors dealing with employers or client’s engineering work within his or her means (Dorf 78). Ethical Engineering issues Ethicists and engineers took part in a workshop to evaluate the new technological developments. In terms of engineering ethical issues, the approaches used are: conceptual, analyzing facts, moral aspects, and application. In this case, concerning the development of codes of ethics in the engineering profession, ethical engineering issues have been pointed. Examples of ethical engineering issues are the moral or cultural issues (Davis 21). Moral is a term taken generally to refer to accepted standards of wrong or right according to the societal means. In engineering ethics, moral responsibility is a professional responsibility. Moral responsibility requires one to exercise care and judgment to maintain or achieve a desirable state of given affairs. The objective of responsible engineers is to create safe and useful technological products with respect to the public or client’s autonomy. It is a matter of taking risks to fundamentally enhance welfare, public health and safety. Ethical issues in engineering is concerned typically with data integrity, conflicts of interest, loyalty, whistle-blowing, accountability, trade secrets, gift giving and bribes, and giving credit whenever necessary. However, engineers moral responsibilities involves additional honest, truthful, and leading a decent life. Engineers’ moral obligations include good will to engage individuals in tough work of making crucial choices that can tackle a technological society. The culturally embedded practice in engineering is a political and institutional aspect in professional engineering. It is a technology transfer and contracting regulation knowledge. The cultural engineering practice would give engineers the insight to predict safety problems prior to their technological disaster escalations (Davis 23). Importance of engineering ethics Macro ethical issues have been traditionally overlooked such as the overconsumption problem. This problem requires engineers’ immediate attention to respond collectively and perform the role of being consumer-citizens. According to the code of ethics needed to be followed by engineers, they have become ethical within their practices. Engineering ethics have enabled engineers to sustain ethical reputation within their engineering career. The major principles an engineer adheres to should exist within the welfare, health and safety of the society. Services they perform are within their competency areas, avoid acts that deceive, be trustees and faithful to clients among others mentioned earlier. These are principles an engineer should analyze to be guided upon decision making (Martin & Ronald 45). In the changing technological world, engineers have easily created a moral obligation to enable them consider the consequences of choices made. In this case, engineers are in a position to sensitize issues concerning morality at the work place. Engineering professional ethics equips engineers with the knowledge to properly value projects they are to participate. They are able to give a deserved full attention to design implementation for a particular project. In addition, engineers’ decisions have enhanced public safety, and helped them avoid problems for the interest of the society as a whole. In conclusion, this paper has analyzed ethics at work in the engineering profession upon stipulated codes. The importance of engineering ethics has been evaluated and cultural and moral issues have been seen as emerging within the engineering profession. Work cited: Davis, Michael. Thinking Like an Engineer. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. Print. Davis, Michael. Ethics in Engineering. London: Routledge, 1999. Print. Dorf, Richard. The Engineering Hand Book, 2nd Ed. Boca Raton: CRC, 2005. Print. Martin, Mike & Ronald, Schinzinger. Ethics in Engineering, 3rd Ed. New York: Mc Graw-Hill, 1996. Print. Vincent, Walter. What Engineers Know and How They Know it. Hopkins: Hopkins University Press, 1993. Print. Read More