4 ms·

I'm sure the engineers ran the calculations and deemed it 'safe enough'

• jonathankoren 10y ago
  Or some investor did.
  • Gracana 10y ago
    Investors will always want things cheaper, and they don't understand engineering. The responsibility of ensuring that the design is safe falls on the engineer who stamped the drawing. Situations like this are covered in engineering ethics classes, which most civil engineers in the US would have taken.
    • r_smart 10y ago
      Plus, depending on the state, a Professional Engineer (a certification earned) has to sign off on this stuff and is liable in the event of something catastrophic happening, like the building falling over.