terry,
would you hire an engineer to design a compelling website?
would you hire an engineer to design the interface of a content analysis software for social scientists?
would you hire an engineer to restructure a corporation to save it from bankruptcy?
would you hire an engineer to design a political campaign?
would you hire an engineer to design a financial product that a bank can offer to its clients?
would you hire an engineer to design legislation that improves the ecology of a lake? .........................
in my experiences, engineers solve individual and social problems by proposing technological solutions. most of the time they either don't work out or once implemented, they soon set in motion other problems in need of a solution. left to engineers, such problems tend to create never ending chains of solutions and problems -- unless a sensible person realizes that these are not engineering problems, crying for solutions that allow people to live with them.
klaus
-----Original Message-----
From: PhD-Design - This list is for discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Terence Love
Sent: Sunday, September 08, 2013 6:42 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Herbert Simon
Hi Klaus,
You wrote 'To me professional design is fundamentally for the benefit of others who have their own conception what an improvement consists of, and must acknowledge that other communities may be harmed. in this sense, professional designers cannot avoid the cultural and economic politics their activity creates. engineers, for whom simon wrote primarily, may be able to isolate themselves from the consequences of their solutions to predefined problems, my conception of professional designers includes care for and accountability to those they affect. it requires a skill set that is different from engineering'
I suggest, the reality is somewhat different. The professional requirements on engineering designers are as far as I can tell leading other designers in the concern for social, environmental and ethical consequences. The obligation on engineering designers is to not only address the social, ethical and environmental consequences of design, but to put them ahead of technical and economic issues, and th is more deeply and formally embedded in the work of engineering designers than most other areas of design.
Engineering designers operate under much stricter professional requirements relating to the effects on others embodied in the conditions of their professional membership concerning all aspects of their behaviour, design output, advice to others, management and personal life. This to the extent that, embodied in the professional codes is that, if necessary, whistleblowing on social, environmental and ethical issues, is obligatory.
Lack of fulfilment of these requirements for placing social, environmental and ethical factors ahead of technical and economic factors results in penalties and loss of registration.
Examples of one such code is from the IMechE at
http://www.imeche.org/docs/default-source/membership/CodeofConductAugust2009
.pdf?sfvrsn=0 other similar codes are found in most engineering professional registration bodies across the world.
Best wishes,
Terry
--
Dr Terence Love
PhD (UWA), B.A. (Hons) Engin, PGCE. FDRS, AMIMechE, PMACM, MISI
Honorary Fellow
IEED, Management School,
Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
Director,
Love Services Pty Ltd
PO Box 226, Quinns Rocks Western Australia 6030
Tel: +61 (0)4 3497 5848
Fax:+61 (0)8 9305 7629
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