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Case Analysis 1 - EG398 - ECEP423

Engineer Joaquin Aragon seals plans prepared by unregistered engineers and graduate engineers working under his supervision, without doing a detailed review. He believes this is acceptable due to his confidence in their abilities. However, codes require engineers to only seal documents they are competent in and have prepared or directed. While chief engineers provide guidance, each technical segment must be sealed by the engineer who prepared it. It is unethical for Aragon to seal plans he did not review in detail or prepare himself.

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Eugene Embalzado Jr.
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570 views

Case Analysis 1 - EG398 - ECEP423

Engineer Joaquin Aragon seals plans prepared by unregistered engineers and graduate engineers working under his supervision, without doing a detailed review. He believes this is acceptable due to his confidence in their abilities. However, codes require engineers to only seal documents they are competent in and have prepared or directed. While chief engineers provide guidance, each technical segment must be sealed by the engineer who prepared it. It is unethical for Aragon to seal plans he did not review in detail or prepare himself.

Uploaded by

Eugene Embalzado Jr.
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Case Analysis 1 – EG398_ECEP423

Engineer Joaquin Aragon is the chief engineer in a large engineering firm and affixes his seal to
some of the plans not prepared by registered engineers working under his general direction who do not
affix their seals to the plans. At times Engineer Joaquin Aragon also seals plans prepared by a non-
registered, graduate engineer working under his general supervision.

Because the size of the organization and the large number of projects being designed at any one
time, Engineer Joaquin Aragon finds it impossible to give a detailed review or check of the designed. He
believes he is ethically and legally correct in not doing so because of his confidence in the ability of those
he has hired and who are working under his general direction and supervision.

By general direction and supervision, Engineer Joaquin Aragon means that he is involved in
helping to establish the concept, the design requirements, and review elements of the design or projects
status as a design progress. Engineer Joaquin Aragon is consulted about technical question and answers
and direction in these matters.

Answer:
References:

Code II.2.a of NSPE

"Engineers shall undertake assignments only when qualified by education or experience in the specific
technical fields involved."

Code II.2.b of NSPE

"Engineers shall not affix their signatures to any plans or documents dealing with subject matter in
which they lack competence, nor to any plan or document not prepared under their direction and
control."

Code II.2.c of NSPE

"Engineers may accept assignments and assume responsibility for coordination of an entire project and
sign and seal the engineering documents for the entire project, provided that each technical segment is
signed and sealed only by the qualified engineers who prepared the segment." 
Analysis and Discussion:
The facts in this case raise some of the most fundamental questions concerning the manner in which
engineering firms engage in the practice of the profession. Probably the best starting point of this
inquiry is an examination of the applicable Code provisions.

Code II.2.a., Code II.2.b., and Code II.2.c. address many of the issues related to the facts of this case.
Code II.2.a. seeks to admonish the engineer to accept work only in those areas of practice in which the
engineer possesses the proper qualifications in order to competently perform the tasks to which he is
assigned. Code II.2.b. examines the issue of ethical responsibility and states that an engineer must sign
and seal documents and assume legal responsibility only for that in which he possesses understanding
and cognizance. Finally, Code II.2.c. establishes a hierarchy of responsibility by which engineers may
coordinate and assume responsibility for entire projects as long as those individuals under the
engineer's responsible control are identified as having prepared each technical segment of the work.
The rationale behind those rules lies in the recognition that while the signature and seal of the engineer
has consequences which go beyond the issue of ethics, the conduct of the engineer in the preparation of
the plans and drawings involves the professional judgment and discretion of the engineer-judgment and
discretion which are shaped by a variety of ethical concerns.

Conclusion:
It is unethical for Engineer A to seal plans that have not been prepared by him, or which he has not
checked and reviewed in detail.

We recognize that the role of the chief engineer in an engineering firm may be that of a "manager who
provides guidance, direction, and counsel to those within his responsible charge." Indeed, in a large
engineering firm this role is crucial to the successful operation of the firm. As in the facts in the instant
case, the chief engineer should be involved at the outset of the project in the establishment of the
design concept and the design requirements, as well as in the review of the various elements of the
design or project status as the project develops. In addition, the chief engineer should be available to
consult on technical questions relating to the project design.

To this end, we reiterate the language contained in Code II.2.c. noting that "each technical segment
[shall be] signed and sealed only by the qualified engineers who prepared the segment." Finally, we
would also note that whereas in the instant case the work is being performed by individuals who are not
licensed professional engineers, the firm has an ethical obligation that this work be performed under the
direct control and personal supervision of registered engineers who would seal the document.

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