On 28/8/1996 Art Kampmeier wrote: >- A four year college degree in engineering? > Product Safety is only a very small portion of the > curriculum.
Actually, four years is not enough. Most fresh engineering graduates are quite useless to the company that hires them. It takes another few years of on-the-job specialized training before they are competent enough to handle their own projects. The same can probably be said for all specialized professionals in all fields. A small part of the curriculum? Perhaps, but I should think one would prefer a brain surgeon to have a medical degree first. No, an engineering degree is not mandatory, and it's certainly cheaper to hire someone that doesn't have one. But but it's also much easier to train somebody that has the right kind of background, and their competency is less likely to be questioned by a customer. >- Certified as a PE? > UL uses this to qualify personnel with non-engineering > backgrounds as engineers, but Product Safety is again > only a very small portion... I find it very difficult to believe that many people with non-engineering backgrounds manage to meet the rigorous qualifications and tests required to become a PE in the USA. I suspect that most UL PEs are indeed engineering graduates. It is curious to note that most reputable national safety agencies around the world hire safety personnel that are registered professional engineers (PE, PEng, Dipl Ing, etc.). I suspect this is done to increase their credibility, and to greatly reduce the likelyhood that their competency be questioned when they are being assessed by another party. Some agents (not all!), on the other hand, try to cut costs by hiring cheaper staff. This is not unacceptable, but it should come as no surprise when they find themselves having to defend their competence. Manning Rose is probably right in that using registered professionals may be the best "Certification" we can hope for at this moment. :-) Egon Varju PS: All opinions expressed are strictly personal and rarely, if ever, reflect the opinions of my employer.
