The safety issues in the Ford Motor Company Essay

The safety issues in the Ford Motor Company - Essay Example In addition, the company is likely measuring the costs of replacing the part to the amount of money it might cost to pay off those who are injured or die in car accidents. Casualty costs sometimes are less than fixing a problem.  I understand your concerns and I am going to take a look at the issue with what you have told me and consider some of the ethical issues you are facing.  Ã‚   The first issue that we need to discuss is the idea that a cost/benefit analysis is appropriate where safety is concerned. According to the cost/benefit analysis that has been done on this vehicle and its safety issue with the placement of the engine, it is expected that there will be 180 deaths and 180 injured. These deaths are valued at 200,000.00 and the injuries at 67,000.00. Although that seems low, even twice that would equal less than the expected cost of putting in the part that would have saved all those lives and injuries. The question that arises is how a dollar value can be put on a dea th when that death could have been prevented? A death that happens when that is the result of the faulty design, but was not expected nor the system evaluated for that risk may create a dollar value to a jury when taken into a court of law. How should that be valued? Harley, I hate to say this but I believe it is your responsibility to go to the public before the car is released and let the world know that if they buy this piece of machinery they are vulnerable to this design flaw that can easily take their life.... How should that be valued? Harley, I hate to say this but I believe it is your responsibility to go to the public before the car is released and let the world know that if they buy this piece of machinery they are vulnerable to this design flaw that can easily take their life. This car has been rushed into production at a quick pace in order to compete with Volkswagen. In addition, I have already heard that they are lobbying in Congress to make sure that certain government safety standards are not made into regulations, which would affect their design and force them to make the car safe (Dowie, 1977). This vehicle is not meeting any form of reasonable safety standards, let alone expected regulations from the government and even though they are not yet in place, they should be considered when thinking about releasing this care into the public. The ethics of an engineer are important to think about as you face this dilemma. It is your responsibility to create objects that are safe to t he general public. Having knowledge about a vehicle that is not constructed in a safe manner makes you responsible for that knowledge and for whatever else happens if you fail to act. The first code of ethics for an engineer is that it is the responsibility of the engineer to uphold the safety for the public with which they have been entrusted. This would mean that you have an obligation to make sure this vehicle never emerges into the market. The problem with this decision is that it is going to come into conflict with another ethical mandate that you do not reveal information about the products of your clients and that you â€Å"Act as a faithful agent† of your client (Canadian Engineering Qualifications Board, 2012, p. 3). I think that the public safety is going to come before