Engineering Disasters - Lessons to be Learned

Humans, design, build, operate, use, maintain and can wreck engineering products. Humans are fallible. Engineers have to take into account all the potential failures of people, including all other engineers, as well as failures of equipment and materials. Design engineering is a structured process using both art and science to create new or improved products - building on experience, bad as well as good. Failure occurs when something or someone fails to perform to expectations.

Engineering Disasters - Lessons to be Learned shows that there is always something to be learned from disasters. In his practical and highly relevant text, Don Lawson has provided

• Thoroughly researched accounts of well-known disasters and failures worldwide
• Valuable interpretative sections, drawing out the lessons to be learned in each case
• Examples from a wide range of industries
• Background information and views of other experts in the field
• An excellent source of references for further study
• Common threads and conclusions from accident investigations

Don Lawson's premise is that lessons from one failure can prevent others, even in industries apparently unconnected with each other. The problem is that often the real causes of failures are buried in media hype or within detailed but inaccessible investigation reports. The people who should be learning from the mistakes are probably too busy to wade through all this to find the pearls they need.

Engineering Disasters presents facts and lessons in a highly readable and 'digestible' way, so that busy engineers can read and learn from them, and hopefully ensure that mistakes are not repeated.

An engineer in whatever role within the profession needs to know the boundaries of failure. This thought-provoking book is for all executives and professional engineers, undergraduate and post-graduate students, and those responsible for accident-prevention and safety in companies.

Engineering Disasters is an essential read in the unending quest to avoid catastrophic failures.