In this blog I will give my personal reflection on the Statement of Ethical Principles created by the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Engineering Council in 2005, which was revised in 2017.
The statement of principles has four fundamental principles the first being “Honesty and Integrity”. This is important to have not only in the working environment but in general life as I believe everyone should have an honest mindset. In my opinion I already uphold this principle and will continue to do so throughout my educational, working and general life by telling my colleagues about my work and problems with honesty and treating then the same way I would want to be treated.
Moving on, the second principle is “Respect for Life, Law, the Environment and Public Good”. Again, I agree with this statement as the law brings order and protecting and respecting the living is an essential way of life. I will practise this principle by making sure my projects abide by the conducts of the law and do extensive research on how my projects in both education and in the working field can affect the least number of living beings, whether it is animals, nature or the public good.
Thirdly is “Accuracy and Rigour”. I believe that this principle is the most important to practice because of the fall backs without it. If there is no accuracy or rigour in the workplace especially in the field of engineering someone could get seriously hurt as some engineering professions work with dangerous machinery and materials such as high voltage transformers in terms of electrical engineering or solid reinforced concrete blocks in civil engineering. I will uphold this principle in the educational environment by taking care with my work under competent supervision and present and review theory honestly as well as accurately without any bias.
Finally, the last principle, “Leadership and Communication” is again a very important principle to have as good leadership and communication will not only allow you to be respected in the field you are in but will also allow you to work better in a team and therefore increase working productivity. I will carry out this principle by maintaining a strong link with my colleagues, peers and supervisors and communicating with the respect they deserve and the respect I expect back.
Upon further research in engineering ethics, I had come across the Harvad Business School article titled “Why are Ethics Important in Engineering”. What I liked about this article is that it dwells deeper into the figures of what happens when you do not follow engineering ethics such as, in terms of promoting safety, “employers spend more than $1 billion per week on serious and nonfatal workplace injuries”.
References
Engineering Council, Royal Academy of Engineering, “Statement of Ethical Principles”, 2017 Jul. Avaibale from: https://www.engc.org.uk/standards-guidance/guidance/statement-of-ethical-principles/
E. Han. “Why are Ethics Important in Engineering”, 2023 Feb 16th. Available from: https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/ethics-in-engineering#:~:text=What%20Are%20Engineering%20Ethics%3F,their%20clients%2C%20and%20the%20industry.
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