HW 3: Code of Ethics

A Case Analysis on Problem 1 of Code of Ethics,

The Law on Obligations and Contracts by Hector S. De Leon
May 23, 2016

Ojeno, Carl Anthony I.

Yambao, Karen Alyssa M.

School of Electrical, Electronics, and Computer

Engineering Department, Mapua Institute of Technology
Intramuros, Manila Philippines
ojeno_carl@yahoo.com.ph

School of Electrical, Electronics, and Computer Engineering

Department, Mapua Institute of Technology
Intramuros, Manila Philippines
ayenyambao24@gmail.com

Abstract This document covers the topic regarding

Code of Ethics for Engineering. It aims to educate the
students as to how ethics is applied to certain situations
and how it is conducted.
Keywords ethics, moral judgements, right, wrong, deontological
and teleological, quality control,

I.

Introduction

Ethics encompasses moral judgements as to what is

right and what is wrong. Ethical judgements are affected by
beliefs, assumptions and societal/ cultural values. It has been
influenced by many religious system as well as many
theologians and philosophers. All of their views seek to
define what is right and what is wrong. What is right is
determined by an absolute, widely accepted standard
independent of the doer, regardless of who he or she is this is
commonly referred to as deontological ethics. Also, what is
right is determined by the intentions or motives of the person,
this is teleological ethics, in which the final end or purpose of
the actor is paramount. And lastly, proposed actions that help
to achieve good are right while proposals that hinder it are
wrong.
Engineers are profession that are expected to exhibit high
standards of honesty and integrity. It is very important that an
engineer is aware of the societal needs and the standards that
the engineering profession needs. Moreover, four important
ethical principles are stated in the Code of Ethics of Engineers
that an engineer should observe and apply in their daily lives.

II.

Problem

Clare, as a Quality Assurance Engineer at a large

electronics company is responsible for the final
testing of her companys servers and is part of a team
which decides when new products will be shipped to
distributors for sale.
Clares company has a contract with another
company which makes the chips which are
incorporated into the servers Clares company makes.
The business model for this product is to release a
new generation server approximately every six
months, meaning she has a limited timeframe to
conduct her Quality Control tests. Because there is
such a short amount of time between the release of
each next new product, the Quality and Assurance
department cannot perform every possible test on the
servers to ensure they are defect free. Clare will not
ship a product if there is any possibility that the
server could malfunction and cause physical harm to
the customer. However, she will ship a product that
has a higher likelihood of failure resulting in data
loss for the customer, because she knows that if she
doesn't, her company's competitor will.
Is this an ethical way to conduct business? How
should she determine when to ship a product with
known defects?
III.

ANSWERS TO PROBLEM

No, it is not ethical for Claire to ship a product that

was not tested by the Quality and Assurance department. She
knew that there is a high possibility that the server will fail
and yet she continued to deliver it, the intention of Claire is
bad as it hinders good outcome. She sacrificed the reputation
and dignity of the company just to comply with the delivery.
Poor quality is unethical in many forms: it is unethical because

it involves doing the wrong thing or failing to do the right

thing, what Claire did was obviously wrong because she
delivered a product that is not in good condition, she failed to
comply fully with her obligation because in the first place, it is
her job to assure that the products that she will ship was tested
but because of the thinking that she have to, due to the
competition in the market, she delivered those untested
servers; Poor quality is unethical whenever the situation calls
for quality and the organization fails to produce quality and
poor quality is not only unethical, but also an unwise business
practice, Claire obviously performed unethical way in doing
business since she was not able to check and test the products
before shipping them and this might result bad impression for
their company. When this happens, others might not subscribe
to their service anymore due to lack of quality service. [1]

professional engineer shall admit and accept her own errors

when proven wrong and refrain from distorting or altering the
facts to justify their decisions.

As a professional engineer, Claire should be responsible and

do whatever it takes to provide quality control of her product
for the safety of the customers. She must be aware of
engineering ethic codes that was made for them to observe and
follow. The following are the fundamental principles in Code
of Ethics of Engineers: [2]

[1] Pace, Larry A. (2007). The ethical implications of quality.

Business and Organization Ethics Network. Vol. 12, No. 2
ISSN 1239-2685

Engineers uphold and advance the integrity, honor

and dignity of the engineering profession by:
I. using their knowledge and skill for the enhancement of
human welfare;
II. being honest and impartial, and servicing with fidelity the
public, their employers and clients;
III. striving to increase the competence and prestige of the
engineering profession; and
IV. supporting the professional and technical societies of their
disciplines.
Shipping a product with known defects to distributors
for sale is against the law. If the product is found defective,
Claire will be the one who held liable for the damages caused
to the customers. The products are considered defective if it
does not meet its requirements and it does not provide safety
for the customers. Thats why Claire should fix all the defects
of the product that she wants to ship and make sure that those
products were tested and approved by the Quality and
Assurance department before she could deliver those items.
According to Chapter V article 97 of republic act. no. 7394,
that any Filipino or foreign manufacturer shall be the one
liable for the damages caused to consumers by defects
resulting from design, manufacture, construction, as well as
for the insufficient or inadequate information on the use and
hazards [3]. Also, the customers have the right to know
whether the product was tested and approved by the quality
control or not for their safety. Claire should not have shipped
products that have not tested by the quality and assurance
department because if defects are found customers may ask
for a refund or replacement without a charge for the defective
product and all her efforts will be wasted. Moreover, the
reputation of the company will be damaged. Lastly, Claire as a

IV.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to thank my parents for their unending

support. To the One above who always gives me hope
whenever I feel down and to my friends who continue to help
me understand the topics and give resources on the related
topics.
V.

REFERENCES

[2] ABET. (1997). Code of ethics of engineering. Retrieved

from:
https://engineering.purdue.edu/MSE/Academics/Undergrad/et
hics.pdf
[3] Robles, Chan (2006). The consumer act of the philippines Chan Robles. Chan Robles Publshing. Retrieved from:
http://www.chanrobles.com/republicactno7394.htm#.V0CZ2
Gh97IW