ASP Product Safety and Safety in Design

Question 1

The 'hierarchy of controls' applied specifically to product safety design places which option as the most preferred method of hazard elimination?

Accepted Answer

Designing out the hazard during the conceptual/design phase (inherently safer design)

Answer

Inherently safer design (designing out the hazard at the source) is the most preferred approach because it eliminates the hazard rather than mitigating it. The hierarchy for product safety mirrors the occupational hierarchy: elimination > engineering controls (guards) > warnings > instructions/training. Warnings and instructions are least effective because they depend on user behavior.

Question 2

Under U.S. product liability law, 'strict liability' in a tort claim means:

Accepted Answer

A manufacturer can be held liable for injuries caused by a defective product even if they were not negligent

Answer

Under strict product liability (established in Restatement Second of Torts §402A), a manufacturer is liable for injuries caused by an unreasonably dangerous defective product regardless of whether they exercised due care. The plaintiff does not need to prove negligence—only that the product was defective and the defect caused harm.

Question 3

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has jurisdiction over which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Children's toys sold in retail stores

Answer

The CPSC regulates consumer products such as toys, household appliances, furniture, and recreational equipment. Motor vehicles fall under NHTSA, pesticides under EPA, and food/drugs under FDA. Understanding which agency has jurisdiction is critical for product safety professionals managing regulatory compliance.

Question 4

A 'failure mode and effects analysis' (FMEA) is conducted during product design primarily to:

Accepted Answer

Identify potential failure modes, assess their severity and likelihood, and prioritize design improvements before production

Answer

FMEA is a proactive design tool used to systematically identify how a product or process might fail, rate the severity, occurrence, and detectability of each failure (yielding a Risk Priority Number), and guide design changes before the product is manufactured. It embodies the principle of designing safety in rather than inspecting it in.

Question 5

Which type of product defect occurs when a product is correctly designed and manufactured but lacks adequate warnings about a known risk?

Accepted Answer

Marketing defect (failure to warn)

Answer

Product liability recognizes three defect categories: (1) Design defects — the design itself is unreasonably dangerous; (2) Manufacturing defects — an individual product deviates from its intended design; (3) Marketing defects (failure to warn) — the product lacks adequate instructions or warnings about known risks. All three can support a strict liability claim.

(ASP) Associate Safety Professional Practice Test

(ASP) Associate Safety Professional Practice Test

ASP Product Safety and Safety in Design