Group 1 – Ethics PresentationHYATT WALKWAY COLLAPSE

The disaster

Hyatt Regency in Kansas City, MO July 17th, 1981 Two walkways suspended over the lobby collapsed during an

event Dance competition, approx. 1600 attendees 114 deaths, 216 injuries

The walkways

Two walkways, 2nd floor and 4th floor Approx. 37m long, 29,000kg weight Vertically aligned Flawed design meant it could not

handle the dead weight Original design: “three pairs of rods

from 2nd floor to ceiling” to support 60% of minimum regulation load

Actual construction: 2 sets of rods, one set between 4th floor and ceiling, the other between 4th and 2nd floor walkways

Flawed design Design was already flawed but the new design was

even worse J. D. Gillum & Associates sent preliminary plans to

Havens Steel Co. These were changed because it required the rod below

4th floor walkway needed to be screwthreaded (rods would have been damaged)

After changes, the second floor walkway now has to support the fourth floor walkway as well

Weakest point in the beams were C-channels, which were connected by a welded joint. New design specified to bolt through C-channels, compromising the structure even further

**Graphic image coming up**

Collapse 4th floor walkway

had between 16 to 20 people

2nd floor walkway ~ 40 people

4th floor walkway fell onto the 2nd floor walkway, bringing the entire mass down to the ground floor lobby onto the spectators

Ethical principles

Public safety is always top priority Constructers needed to make sure the bridges were able to

support at least 100% of the minimum regulated load but the initial design only supported 60%

Comes down to charges: gross negligence, incompetence, misconduct, unprofessional conduct

Big miscommunication between the two firms. Preliminary designs were interpreted as final designs

No double-checking, no thoroughness

Could it have been avoided?

Engineers responsible for final design would be highly incompetent if they didn’t consider load changes on the 2nd floor walkway

Earlier structural flaws before walkways were built: atrium roof structurally week

Should have double-checked all load data after the changes to the design

Cross-section shows poor material choice in combination with the design

Ethical issues with our own project

5 mW, red 620 – 740 nm, green 540 – 560 nm American National Safety Institute: general public may only

purchase laser pointers in Class III (maximum of 5mW power) 2.5 mW/cm-squared requires a “danger” sticker and not a

“caution” sticker Health risks: damage to the retina when exposed to laser beam

for over 2 minutes Pointing laser towards aircraft or airways is illegal Packaging must include ample documentation clearly stating the

warnings and health risks when using this device

Eavesdropping

Use of this device falls under the “wiretapping” category and all wiretapping laws apply

State: WV implemented the “Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Act” that requires only one of the two parties involved to consent to the wiretapping. This makes WV a “one-way state”

This is similar most states. Two-way states: CA, CT, FL, HI, MD, MA, MT, NV, NH, PA, WA – some definitions within laws can cause confusion between notification and consent

FCC uses the word “notification” instead of “consent”

Safety measures

This kind of product can only realistically be targeted towards law enforcement and military

Our goal is to provide a safer means to extract audio that might help with criminal prosecutions, hindering possible terrorist plots, etc.

End-user will be notified of all warnings and health risks in documentation included in the product packaging, as well as the safest ways of operating the device

End-user will also be aware of their full responsibility in abiding by local, state and federal laws

Questions?