Risk and Liability

Dilemmas in Risk Control

• One cannot avoid risk simply by remaining with tried and true designs, but new technologies involves risk that may not be as well understood , potentially increasing the chance of failure or even introducing a previously unknown mode of failure.
• Without technology, there is no progress. But even new hazards can be found in products process, and chemicals that were once thought to be safe.
• Therefore, risk is inherent and dynamic in engineering.

Safety and Risk

• Safety and risk are correlated. Engineers want to make their design to be safe, or less risk-burdened.
• No activity or system is risk free, and making a system safer generally means increasing the costs.
• Cost constraints are real and often central. Too expensive systems are not affordable to consumers or the communities.
• To determine acceptable levels of safety in engineering systems, therefore, we should try to identify the optimal point between cost and safety.
• But safety of human lives and health remains the primary concern in every case.