Hello from San Diego:
Heber Farnsworth said: > Just to play devil's advocate, suppose I've been selling fairly safe > "widgets" and have 50% of the market. I redesign it to make it > ultra-safe, safer than any other widget on the market. But in doing so > I price my widgets out of the market, and people buy the competitors > widgets which are less safe. As a result, total deaths and injuries due > to widgets increases: my safer design lead to decreased overall safety! At this point, there are two forces at work to reduce deaths and injuries: 1) Government regulation. (Mandated safety standards.) 2) Civil liability. (Sue the manufacturer.) A good example of both of these forces working in the marketplace was the introduction of seatbelts in automobiles. A second reasonable example is the introduction of air bags in automobiles (although it may now appear that the passenger-side airbag is not a safer design). The manufacturer who makes a safer widget will win in the long run. Consider the other side of the proposition. Suppose a manufacturer re-designs the widget to remove existing safety features because he feels the safety features are either not necessary or over-designed. His customers are injured, and both of the above come into action. (I believe there were some serious injuries due to cheap, faulty trouble lights a few years ago; the manufacturer is no longer in business because of lawsuits and CPSC actions.) Best regards, Rich ------------------------------------------------------------- Richard Nute Quality Department Hewlett-Packard Company Product Regulations Group San Diego Division (SDD) Tel : 619 655 3329 16399 West Bernardo Drive FAX : 619 655 4979 San Diego, California 92127 e-mail: [email protected] -------------------------------------------------------------
