Engineering Ethics Toolkit: Case studies

Welcome to the case studies pages of the EPC’s Engineering Ethics toolkit, produced in partnership with the Royal Academy of Engineering. Click here for the toolkit homepage.

Case studies are one tool that can be used to address the context and impact of engineering ethics, and have been proven to be an effective teaching and learning method.

These case studies cover a variety of engineering disciplines, professional situations, and personal dilemmas and focuses on several areas of moral pedagogy. They were developed for use in higher education, but may also be of use in other settings.

To accommodate many educational levels, the case studies are divided between Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced cases. They are written in parts so that educators have the flexibility to use them as is best suited to their teaching content and environment, and all cases permit and encourage the integration of technical content. Along with learning and teaching notes, the cases contain suggested questions and activities as well as supplementary materials.

They are aligned to the Engineering Council and Royal Academy of Engineering’s Joint Statement of Ethical Principles and the expectations of the 4th Edition of the Engineering Council’s Accreditation of Higher Education Programmes and are therefore appropriate for UK teaching and learning contexts. They are, however, easily adapted for use in other countries.

Guidance articles are also available to help situate the case studies in an educational context and to signpost to additional research and resources on engineering ethics.

In developing the cases and articles in this resource, the authors and advisory group took into account recent scholarship on best practices in teaching engineering ethics through case studies. They also reviewed existing case study libraries in order to add to the growing body of material available on engineering ethics. 

Case studies

Case study Topic Disciplines Issues Level
Aid vs trade Suitable technology for developing countries

Mechanical engineering
Electrical engineering
Energy

Sustainability
Honesty 
Integrity
Public good


Advanced
Balancing risk and benefits when working with offshore contractors Dealing with contracts or subcontracts with potential slave or forced labour

Manufacturing
Engineering business

Social responsibility
Human rights 
Risk


Beginner
Balancing safety, costs, and the environment in the inspection of wind turbine blades  Maintenance of an offshore wind farm

Mechanical
Energy

Sustainability
Risk


Beginner
Debating the adoption of nuclear energy Participatory approaches for engaging with a local community about the development of risky technologies

Nuclear engineering
Chemical engineering
Energy

Corporate social responsibility
Risk 
Accountability
Respect for the environment


Advanced
Developing a decarbonisation roadmap  A country-wide energy transition plan

Energy
Electrical

Sustainability
Social responsibility
Risk


Beginner
Engineers and public protest Balancing personal values and professional conduct in the climate emergency

Civil engineering
Energy and environmental engineering
Energy

Respect for the environment
Justice 
Accountability
Social responsibility
Risk
Sustainability
Health
Public good
Respect for the law
Future generations
Societal impact


Intermediate
Feasibility of installing heat pumps at scale to reach net zero Home heating in the energy transition

Civil engineering
Chemical engineering
Mechanical engineering
Energy

Sustainability 
Social responsibility


Intermediate
Financially and politically motivated misinformation about STEM research Critical digital literacy

Computer science
Information systems
Biomedical engineering

Cultural context 
Social responsibility
Privacy


Intermediate
Implementing the use of homegrown mass timber for residential housing Sustainable materials  in construction

Civil engineering
Manufacturing
Construction

Sustainability 
Respect for the environment
Future generations
Societal impact
Corporate social responsibility


Intermediate
Microplastics in cosmetics Responsibility for micro- and nano-plastics in the environment and human bodies

Environmental engineering
Chemical engineering
Mechanical engineering
Materials engineering

Respect for the environment 
Corporate social responsibility
Power
Safety


Intermediate
Neuroethics of brain-computer interfaces Data security of smart technologies

Electronics
Data
Biomedical engineering

Autonomy
Dignity 
Privacy
Confidentiality


Advanced
Protecting data in an auto parts production facility Data security of industrial robots

Robotics
Data
Internet of things

Safety
Health
Privacy
Transparency


Intermediate
Recycled materials and the circular economy Materials sourcing and circularity

Materials engineering
Manufacturing
Environmental engineering
Construction

Respect for the environment
Risk


Intermediate
Business growth models in engineering industries within an economic system  Ethical entrepreneurship in engineering industries Mechanical engineering
Electrical and electronic engineering
Chemical engineering
Justice
Corporate social responsibility
Accountability
Beginner
Intermediate
Advanced
Facial recognition for access and monitoring Development and use of a facial recognition system Data
Electronics
Computer science
AI
Diversity
Bias
Privacy
Transparency
Advanced
Choosing a career in climate change geoengineering Soil carbon sequestration and solar geoengineering Chemical engineering
Energy
Environmental engineering
Respect of the environment
Social responsibility Risk.
Beginner
Glass safety in a heritage building conversion Safety of construction materials Mechanical engineering
Materials
Safety
Communication, Whistleblowing
Power
Beginner
Developing an internet constellation   Low earth orbit satellites for internet provision Electronics Mechanical engineering Respect for environment
Public good
Future generations
 Intermediate
Industrial pollution from an ageing pipeline and its impact on local communities Monitoring and resolving industrial pollution Chemical engineering
Civil engineering
Manufacturing
Mechanical engineering
Environment
Health
Public good
Advanced
Power to food technologies Alternative food production Energy
Chemical engineering
Sustainability
Social responsibility
Advanced
Developing a school chatbot for student support services Developing customised algorithms for student support Computing
AI
Data.
Bias
Social responsibility
Risk
Privacy
Beginner
Water wars: managing competing water rights Data centres’ impact on sustainable water resources Civil engineering
Electronic engineering
Sustainability
Respect for environment
Future generations
Risk
Societal impact
Intermediate
Smart homes for older people with disabilities Data security of smart technologies Electronics
Data
Mechatronics
Autonomy
Dignity
Privacy
Confidentiality
Intermediate
Choosing to install a smart meter Smart meters for responsible everyday energy use Electrical engineering Integrity
Transparency
Social responsibility
Respect for the environment
Respect for the law
Beginner
Solar panels in a desert oil field Trade-offs in the energy transition Chemical engineering
Electrical engineering
Energy
Sustainability
Honesty
Respect for the environment
Public good
Intermediate

Most case studies are also available as PDF documents on the RAEng website.

To ensure that everyone can use and adapt these cases in a way that best fits their teaching or purpose, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.  Under this licence, you are free to share and adapt this material, under terms that you must give appropriate credit and attribution to the original material and indicate if any changes are made.

Get involved: These case studies were created as part of the EPC’s Engineering Ethics toolkit that is intended to evolve and grow over time. Further case studies are being developed and will be added in due course, along with additional teaching resources to support individual case studies. We are actively inviting experts to submit case studies for review and possible inclusion in this toolkit. For more information, see our Get involved page.

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