Podcast Script11 2

ENGR201 Professional Practice and Responsibility ©
Lesson 11 Podcast Transcript: Issues in Professional

Practice
Safety, Risk, and the Public

In this podcast, we will discuss the considerations of public safety and risk in the
practice of the profession.
In thinking about public safety and risk in professional practice, a few points need to be
born in mind. First, safety (both in terms of workplace safety but also public safety) is a
key responsibility engineers need to take very seriously. Second, a way to consider
safety is to analyze the nature of risk that the public is exposed to from particular
products or processes. We will consider these aspects in more detail below.
Safety and Accidents

Safety is a key responsibility for engineers, both in the workplace as well as for the
public. In an earlier lesson, we discussed the legal implications of workplace safety. So
we will only consider the implications for public safety here. In thinking about public
safety, an engineer needs to bear in mind both product and process safety. Thus, it is
not enough to consider how safe products are, but also how safe industrial processes
are for the public. Issues of safety are particularly important in the context of accidents.
In the industrial environment, accidents can be broadly categorized into three types:
1. Procedural accidents: Such accidents are attributed to operator errors, the failures to
follow regulations or standard operating procedures.
o Solution is to provide better operator training, supervision and regulation.
2. Engineered accidents: Such accidents result from flaws in engineering design or
from sub-optimal performance.
o Solution is to conduct better research and testing of materials and designs.
3. Systemic accidents: These accidents are the ones that are least diagnosable and
predictable. These accidents are the result of complexity and coupling between sub-
systems that lead to unforeseen accident pathways that can have catastrophic
consequences.
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o Solution is to provide multiple redundancies to prevent cascading failures in
industrial systems.
In trying to address these different kinds of accidents, one means engineers have to
improve safety is through design. Designing for safety would require engineers to
consider the following aspects. First, design must comply with applicable legal
standards, in other words, obey legal requirements. Second, design must comply with
accepted engineering practice or keep up with the state of the art in knowledge and
practices. Third, research all possible alternative designs, including discuss design
strategies with other designers. And finally, foresee possible uses and misuses
especially in system design, and then create redundancies or backups to address
system deficiencies.
Risk and Risk Communication

Yet another way to address safety is by analyzing and communicating the risk
associated with a process or product. But what is risk? Risk can be defined as the
probability of an event occurring and of the consequences of that event. Risk, therefore,
combines the probability or chance of an event occurring with the consequences of that
event. Risk assessment is the process by which the risk associated with a process or
product can be characterized. In other words, risk assessment is the determination of
quantitative value of risk related to a recognized threat. There are several existing
methods that attempt to model and assess the risk associated with complex processes.
Some examples of existing methods include Failure Mode, Effects & Criticality Analysis
(FMECA), Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Points, and Failure Tree Analysis. The
objective of these methods is usually to identify, model, and evaluate the unique inter-
relationship of events leading to failure or unintended events. The end goal of this
process being to understand the working of the system better in order to neutralize
known sources of risk. Risk neutralization can be defined as the utilization of safety
measures to reduce the danger potential of a product or process. It must be born in
mind, that while it is possible to reduce risk, it is impossible for a product or process to
have zero risk. Zero risk does not exist.
Once an engineer has assessed the relevant risk, they need to realize that
communicating risks to the public requires a well thought out strategy and it is not
sufficient to tell the public about the risk associated. One factor that needs to be
considered in all efforts to communicate risk is risk perception. Risk perception can be
defined as the degree of sentiment of danger among individuals who are exposed to the
source of risk. Given that the perception of risk is a sentiment or feeling, it varies
depending upon a host of non-technical factors, such as whether the risk is well known,
whether the consequences are short-term or long-term, whether delayed or immediate,

whether it is fair or evenly distributed, whether exposure is voluntary or involuntary, or
whether there is real possibility of catastrophe. For example, if people believe that they
are involuntarily (or not of their choosing) exposed to a risk, they perceive the risk to be
higher. Similarly, if the risk is a near-term risk, the public believes it is higher. Again, if
there is a possibility, however remote, of a catastrophe associated with the process or
product, the perception of risk is always higher.
In this context, the goal of risk communication is to not only inform people and to warn
them of potential risks, but also foster trust in the analysis/assessment of risk. With this
goal in mind, risk communication requires a well thought out strategy that must have the
following elements. Communication must be made by persons in charge and having the
authority to share information. All stakeholders affected must be identified and their
concerns addressed. Otherwise, it will result in distrust; be honest in assessments but
ensure that you do not add to hysteria. Such risk communication is not only important at
times of crisis and emergencies, but more importantly to gain voluntary consent of the
public before introducing processes or products in society. A good example where
voluntary consent is needed to address risk perception would be introducing cutting
edge advances in technology, such as nanotechnology devices or genetically modified
organisms. Voluntary consent by the public is an essential basis of liberal democracy in
a “risk society” – that is a society where products and processes expose citizens to
varying levels of risk. Such voluntary consent requires engineers to provide or disclose
information and then obtain voluntary agreement from concerned stakeholders for
introducing new products or processes.


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ENGR201 Professional Practice and Responsibility ©

Lesson 11 Podcast Transcript: Issues in Professional

Safety, Risk, and the Public

Safety and Accidents

© May not be copied or duplicated

Risk and Risk Communication

© May not be copied or duplicated

© May not be copied or duplicated

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