NSPE Code of Ethics Case Study (CERTIFICATION OF WORK PERFORMED BY TECHNICIAN)

FACTS:

Engineer A’s firm is retained by a major fuel company to perform site investigations in connection with certain requirements under state and federal environmental regulations. Under the procedures established by Engineer A’s firm, the site visits will be conducted by engineering technicians under direct supervision of Engineer A who will perform all observations, sampling, and preliminary report preparation. Engineering technicians will also take photographs of the sites. No professional engineers will be present during the site visits. Following site visits, all pertinent information and material will be presented to Engineer A who is competent in this field. Following a careful review, Engineer A will certify that the evaluations were conducted in accordance with engineering principles.

QUESTION:

Is it ethical for Engineer A to certify that the evaluations were conducted in accordance with engineering principles?