Instructors
The MEng in Advanced Safety Engineering and Management graduate program is taught by a team of practicing safety professionals with Dr. Martha Bidez serving as overall Course Master. Practitioner-Scholars facilitate online discussions on key topics of interest in their industry sector and provide industry-specific case studies.
Faculty
Martha Warren Bidez, PhD, Professor and Graduate Program Director; President & CEO, BioEchoes, Inc.
Jennifer M. Bailey, MSPH, Adjunct Faculty;Safety Manager, American Cast Iron Pipe Company
Edward (Ed) H. Kiessling, III, MSME, MSISE, MSCEE, PE, Adjunct Professor; Manager, Safety, Quality, and Management Services, Marshall Space Flight Center - NASA
Charles Herbert Shivers, PhD, PE, CSP, Adjunct Professor; Deputy Director Safety and Mission Assurance, Marshall Space Flight Center - NASA
Practitioner-Scholars
Lisa Capicik, Regional Safety Director, Brasfield & Gorrie
Augusta Dowd, JD, Partner, White, Arnold & Dowd
Earl R. Foust, Group President, the Valmont Industries Global Utility business and the Americas Lighting and Communications Structures Business
John (Johnny) A. Gerhart, President, 1914 Iron, Inc.
Kimberly Scheibe Greene, MS, MBA, Group President of Strategy & External Relations, Tennessee Valley Authority
Deborah L. Grubbe, PE, CEng, Owner and Principal, Operations and Safety Solutions, LLC
Donna S. Heidel, MS, CIH, Coordinator, Prevention through Design, CDC/NIOSH Education and Information Division
Roy W. Malone, Jr., Director, Deputy Manager, Space Shuttle Propulsion Office, Marshall Space Flight Center - NASA
Fred Manuele, PE, CSP, President, Hazards Ltd and renowned author in safety engineering
Charles S. Peek, Vice President & Works Manager, American Cast Iron Pipe Company
James Pratt, III, JD, Partner, Hare, Wynn, Newell & Newton
Van L. Richey, President and Chief Executive Officer, ACIPCO
Mark L. Rosenberg, MD, MPP, President and CEO of the Task Force for Global Health
Charles A. Shaw, PE, Corporate Safety and Health Manager, Alabama Power Company
Roger Sublett, PhD, President, Union Institute and University
Philip Zicarelli, PE, PLS, Director, Proposals and Sales Administration, KBR Power and Industrial
ASEM Admission Requirements
Admission to the UAB ASEM program requires
- a minimum of 5 years of professional work experience in the safety field, as evidenced by resume and 3 recommendations, one of which can be written and submitted by applicants as a self-recommendation
- a baccalaureate degree with at least a 3.0 GPA
- A degree in engineering is not required.
- Applicants not satisfying the grade point average requirement may receive admission on a provisional basis, subject to assessment and recommendation by the program director.
To apply, go to Apply Yourself and complete and submit your online application. Please refer to the Advanced Safety Engineering and Management Admissions Checklist for detailed information. Acceptance will be determined by the ASEM Selection Committee.
Additional Information
Deadline for Entry Term(s): |
Fall: July 1
Spring: November 1
Summer: April 1
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Deadline for All Application Materials to be in the Graduate School Office:
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Six weeks before term begins
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Number of Evaluation Forms Required:
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Three
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Entrance Tests:
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None
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Comments:
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The ASEM program is totally online. There are no on-campus classes, meetings, or activities.
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For detailed information, contact
Martha Warren Bidez, PhD, Professor and Graduate Program Director
MEng in Advanced Safety Engineering and Management
UAB School of Engineering, HOEN 101
1530 3rd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL 35294-4440
Telephone: 205-934-6528
E-mail: mbidez@uab.edu
Web: http://www.uab.edu/engineering/professional-programs/asem
Course Descriptions
Unless otherwise noted, all courses are for 3 semester hours of credit.
Advanced Safety Engineering and Management – ASEM (EGR)
EGR 610 Introduction to System Safety – Prevention through Design. Best practice in any business sector requires the pursuit of a triple bottom line – protecting people, planet, and profit. This course provides an overview of system safety in general and Prevention through Design in particular and explores their efficacy in helping companies achieve a bottom line that is socially, environmentally, and financially rewarding. Topics of inquiry include the processes of hazard analysis and risk assessment, the concept of "acceptable" risk, the safety decision hierarchy, safety standards (the mandatory minimum vs. the voluntary best practice), safety as a cost control strategy, and the critical elements of a comprehensive, advanced safety program. Course content is presented within the framework of real-world case studies from a variety of industry sectors, including, but not limited to, manufacturing, utilities, and health care. Students apply course content to their own business environment. Live participation in a weekly 1.5 hour forum is required. The EGR 610 forum is typically held on Sunday from 1:30-3:00 (Central Time). (The day & time are subject to change.) Note: Students are given some “free” misses, and faculty will work individually with those who have an unavoidable work conflict to find a solution. EGR 610 must be taken during the first semester.
EGR 611 Hazard Analysis and Waste Elimination. Hazards have the potential to cause harm to people, planet, and profits. Hazard analysis is a process that begins with the identification of a hazard and proceeds into an estimate of the severity of harm or damage that could result if the potential is realized and a hazard-related incident occurs (ASSE TR-Z790.001 – 2009). This course examines engineering techniques utilized to systematically and logically identify and analyze hazards in the workplace. These techniques include preliminary hazard list (PHL), preliminary hazard analysis (PHA), system hazard analysis (SHA), subsystem hazard analysis (SSHA) and others. Students work in teams to use these techniques to retrospectively analyze a real-world disaster. They also develop financial models to make the “business case” that system safety eliminates waste. Live participation in a weekly 1.5 hour forum is required. The EGR 611 forum is typically held on Sunday from 1:30-3:00 (Central Time). (The day & time are subject to change.) Note: Students are given some "free" misses, and faculty will work individually with those who have an unavoidable work conflict to find a solution) Prerequisites: EGR 610 & EGR 614.
EGR 612 Engineering Risk: Assessment, Reduction, and Liability. Engineering risk is defined both quantitatively and qualitatively as an estimate of the probability that a hazard-related incident will occur and of the severity of harm or damage that could result. This course provides students with tools to assess and reduce safety risks in their own company. These tools include risk assessment matrices, probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) measures, including fault tree analysis, and prevention through design concepts. The role of a structured, formalized decision analysis process in preventing serious injuries and fatalities is also explored. Guests from industry and the legal profession facilitate online discussions and live classrooms regarding the role of the civil justice system in promoting or discouraging best corporate safety practices. Students engage in a Risk Mitigation Decision Analysis project, which is specific to their company and/or business sector. Live participation in a weekly 1.5 hour forum is required. The EGR 612 forum is typically held on Sunday from 1:30-3:00 (Central Time). (The day & time are subject to change.) Note: Students are given some “free” misses, and faculty will work individually with those who have an unavoidable work conflict to find a solution. Prerequisites: EGR 610, EGR 611, & EGR 614.
EGR 613 Human Performance and Engineering Design. Companies miss important opportunities to eliminate waste if they rely primarily on training to prevent human error. This course explores the historical perspective on human error and serious injury. The appropriate roles of engineers and other safety professionals in redesigning and/or preventing the creation of error-provocative environments, including their participation in safety design reviews, are discussed. Real-world case studies provide for an in-depth treatment of the engineering hierarchy of controls: hazard elimination, hazard substitution, engineering controls, warnings, administrative behavior controls, and personal protective equipment. The course also examines the design aspects of ergonomics, the biomechanical engineering basis of injury prevention, and the long term economic consequences of seemingly minor injuries. In semester projects, students identify and re-design error-provocative environments in their own workplaces. Live participation in a weekly 1.5 hour forum is required. The EGR 613 forum is typically held on Sunday from 1:30-3:00 (Central Time). (The day & time are subject to change.) Note: Students are given some "free" misses, and faculty will work individually with those who have an unavoidable work conflict to find a solution. Prerequisites: EGR 610 & EGR 614.
EGR 614 Cross Road: Engineering Ethics and Acceptable Risk. This course explores the economic, social, and political consequences of safety risk and considers provocative real world dilemmas: What is acceptable risk? Are the fundamental canons of engineering ethics contrary to the concept of acceptable risk? What is the worth of human life? Students will conduct critical reviews of corporate safety and ethics policies from market leaders in all major industries as well as their own company. Real-world case studies provide the framework for exercises in resolving conflicts of interest and avoiding the dilemma of “whistle blowing.” Guest lecturers review current whistleblower protection law and assist students in determining whether or not their own company has ethical and legal procedures in place for transparent reporting of wrongdoing in the safety arena. Live participation in a weekly 1.5 hour forum is required. The EGR 614 forum is typically held on Sunday from 3:00-4:30 (Central Time). (The day & time are subject to change.)Note: Students are given some “free” misses, and faculty will work individually with those who have an unavoidable work conflict to find a solution. Prerequisite: EGR 610 or concurrent enrollment.
EGR 615 Leading through Climates of Change. All progressive companies are moving toward greater sustainability – protecting people, planet, and profits. To guide their companies through the technological changes required, engineers must have strong leadership skills. This course explores engineering leadership best practices in planning for and implementing change (physical, functional, and logical). Topics include system life cycle phases, hardware and software life cycles, market pressures vs. technology readiness, safety reviews of engineering change proposals and specification change notices, and resolution of ethical conflicts. Guest lecturers from diverse industries discuss their experiences in managing technological change in today's business environment. Live participation in a weekly 1.5 hour forum is required. The EGR 615 forum is typically held on Sunday from 3:00-4:30 (Central Time). (The day & time are subject to change.)Note: Students are given some “free” misses, and faculty will work individually with those who have an unavoidable work conflict to find a solution. Prerequisites: EGR 610 & EGR 614.
EGR 616 Policy Issues in Prevention through Design. This course provides an overview of best practices in four major policy areas: (1) cost-benefit analysis; (2) corporate culture and the “HR Department”; (3) standards, codes, and regulations; and (4) strategic alliance development. Case studies are used to illuminate both the role of engineers and other safety professionals in shaping public policy on the local, national and international levels and the ethical challenges they encounter. The significance of an organization’s corporate culture in developing and implementing advanced safety management plans is also explored. Students conduct "gap analyses" of their company's policies by comparing them to best practices and identifying unintended consequences of poor safety policy in their own business and industry sector. Students also engage in discussion board/blog posts on contemporary policy issues and participate in exercises related to federal rulemaking. Live participation in a weekly 1.5 hour forum is required. The EGR 616 forum is typically held on Sunday from 3:00-4:30 (Central Time). (The day & time are subject to change.)Note: Students are given some "free" misses, and faculty will work individually with those who have an unavoidable work conflict to find a solution. Prerequisites: EGR 610 & EGR 614.
EGR 617 Crisis Leadership and Safety-Critical Design. Unique technical and leadership skills are required to avert or manage a crisis. This course teaches students those skills in an experiential learning environment. Case studies of real-world industrial and environmental disasters provide the framework for exploring critical human-machine interfaces; technical communications during code red situations; whistleblowers and crisis creation; safety-critical vs. flight-critical vs. mission-critical design; and mishap classes, categories, and costs. Throughout the semester, students participate in role play exercises that simulate engineering crises. Live participation in a weekly 1.5 hour forum is required. The EGR 617 forum is typically held on Sunday from 3:00-4:30 (Central Time). (The day & time are subject to change.)Note: Students are given some "free" misses, and faculty will work individually with those who have an unavoidable work conflict to find a solution. Prerequisites: EGR 610 & EGR 614.
EGR 618 Intrapreneurship and Calculated Risk Taking. Intrapreneurs are innovative change agents inside an existing corporation -- insider entrepreneurs. This course prepares students to become and/or identify effective intrapreneurs within their own business environment. Topics include the history of intrapreneurial success inside technology-based corporations and the fundamentals of recognizing opportunity and launching a new, promising enterprise within an existing business. Students also learn to recognize and effectively manage intrapreneurial risk, including the safety readiness of technology for the market place and the corporate "immune response" to new ideas and inside innovators. Case studies of real-world intrapreneurial success and failure provide a framework for group discussion and student exercises. Live participation in a weekly 1.5 hour forum is required. The EGR 618 forum is typically held on Sunday from 1:30-3:00 (Central Time). (The day & time are subject to change.) Students are given some "free" misses, and faculty will work individually with those who have an unavoidable work conflict to find a solution. Prerequisites: EGR 610 & EGR 614.
EGR 619 Capstone Project: Development of an Advanced Safety Engineering and Management Plan. Students develop a comprehensive, advanced safety engineering and management plan that is consistent with the ANSI Z-10 standard for their individual business unit. 6 hours. EGR 619 must be taken during the final semester.