Integrated Reliability and Safety Education Program

The safe operation of technical systems is a mandatory basic requirement for the entire industry. However, there are specific industries where the safety of operation is critical and is considered as a required characteristic. These types of industries include the aerospace, military, civil aviation, nuclear power, as well as chemical and automotive industries. Safety is everyone's responsibility but engineering plays the most important role in the course of achieving a safe product operation. There are two specific phases of the product life cycle where the safety characteristics should be addressed by engineering activities: the design and development and operation phases. Modern engineering education is oriented to provide future engineers with a sufficient background to be able to Conceive-Design-Implement-Operate. The emphasis of this approach is on the achievement of dual objectives; first to teach the students a large spectrum of technologies and second to develop their personal and interpersonal capabilities in order for them to be able to build complex engineering systems. A university-level engineering curriculum very rarely includes topics related to safety and security of technical systems. Engineering programs mainly focus on the product performance knowledge domains and the safety of a product is covered in a somewhat underwhelming way. This paper provides an overview of selected university-level educational programs focusing on the topic of technical systems' safety. The synopsis of the educational safety initiative is described as a combination of university and industry integrated approach to enhance the safety knowledge and to create a safety-oriented culture for the new generation of engineers. A few examples of implemented programs from the aerospace industry are provided.