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BERTHA ENGINEERING SERVICES
Bertha Engineering provides engineering-related consulting services, primarily in two areas: Engineering Ethics presentations (for PDH credit) and Expert Witness services for engineering ethics-related cases. Bertha-Engineering operates under Bertha Education and Engineering Services, Inc.
CARLOS BERTHA
Engineering Ethics Expert
Dr. Carlos Bertha is a Retired Professor of Philosophy (Tenured) from the US Air Force Academy (USAFA) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He received a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of South Florida (USF) in Tampa, Florida, in 1989. After working at the Savannah District Corps of Engineers for 5 years, he returned to USF, this time to study philosophy. He taught at USAFA from June of 2000 until December 2023. He taught Ethics, Analytic Philosophy, Comparative Religion, Philosophy of Science, among others.
Carlos focuses his research on engineering ethics, particularly on ethics pedagogy: how to teach ethics to an engineer audience. He co-authored “Engineering Ethics: Real World Case Studies” (ASCE Press, 2017) with Drs. Steve Starrett and Amy Lara, and has presented at numerous ASCE and academic conferences on topics ranging from case study methodology to professional obligations of engineers.
Carlos retired from the US Army Reserve in 2019, having achieved the rank of Colonel. He served a combat tour with the US Army Corps of Engineers in Gardez, Afghanistan. Carlos was an instructor for the Command and General Staff Officers Course, focusing on organizational leadership, joint doctrine, and professional ethics. His last assignment was as Deputy Commander of the Army EPLO Group, under the 76th Operational Response Command in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Engineering Ethics:
Holding Each Other Accountable.
How good are engineers at holding each other accountable? Moral theories that underpin professional ethics in engineering will be presented. ASCE’s Code of Ethics will be evaluated as a guide for ethical action, and policing strategies will be analyzed.
What is Morally Required of me?
Many agencies, companies, and professional organizations require that their members attend a yearly “ethics session” (usually for PDH credit) to maintain their good standing. Why? Do these sessions make its attendees “more ethical”? Or is it a paperwork drill to protect against potential liabilities? What are an engineer’s moral obligations? Where do these obligations come from? After framing these questions with a bit of moral philosophy, the ASCE Code of Ethics will be used to discuss how engineers should understand–and grapple with–what is morally required of them.
From Theory to Practice.
Many engineering ethics presentations I see out there consist of a case study followed by an analysis of what went wrong, what should have been done, etc. I will take a different approach. As an engineer-turned-philosopher, I will start with theory and then say something about the application of it. What moral theories underpin the analysis of case studies? What happens when different moral theories recommend different ways to resolve a dilemma? Why is understanding this important to engineers and other professionals?
Developing our Moral (or is it “Ethical”?) Vocabulary.
ASCE’s (relatively new) Code of Ethics encourages engineers to “continue professional development to enhance technical and non-technical competencies.” (3.g) In this session, Carlos Bertha, an engineer-turned-philosopher, will cover a bit of that non-technical stuff: what is the difference between “ethical” and “moral”? What distinguishes a “bribe” from “extortion”? What does “standard of care” mean? You get the picture. Carlos will review some of the vocabulary associated with moral choices that engineers face during their careers. In the process, he will also cover some theoretical language used in engineering ethics, which will (hopefully) enhance those non-technical competencies the Code of Ethics refers to.
