Cost-Cutting

 

DuPont Automotive released a survey at the 1998 Society of Automotive Engineers International Congress and Expo (SAE) indicating that the number one concern of automotive engineers is staying within budget targets while meeting consumer demand for technological improvements. At the SAE meeting, interior trim design engineer Paul Steele said that at Chivas Products Ltd. when they are a new project, they are also given a target price, and "we meet the target or else." Esma Elmaz, engineer in ford’s power train quality department said that many engineers pin lists of quality and cost goals on their office walls: "We ask, ‘What’s the minimum we can spend on a car that people will want to buy?’"

What special ethical challenges does having to keep costs within tight budget targets pose for automotive engineers?