After Quote by Henry Petroski
“You can almost say that a design error is a human error because, after all, it's we humans who do the designing.”
About This Quote
Source Book: Why Buildings Fall Down, Henry Petroski, 1995
Design mistakes stem from human fallibility; designers must anticipate errors.
In simple terms: Design errors are human errors.
Key Takeaway
Plan for error and test designs.
Themes
design
human error
engineering
Mood
analytical
thoughtful
Type
technical
inspirational
When to use this quote
- architecture
- product development
- software engineering
- education
Key Concepts
human fallibility
design process
risk management
Questions to Reflect On
- How can teams embed error‑checking?
- What role does humility play in design?
A Different Perspective
Over‑reliance on intuition can miss systemic flaws.
![“Whether or not science can be applied to that mental construct [i.e. the designed entity] is a matter of availability. If there is body of scientific knowledge that can be applied, then it would be foolish not to exploit it. However, if there is none, it does not mean that the thing cannot be…” quote by Henry Petroski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/17d/henry-petroski-10198_availability_whether-or-not-science-can-be-applied-to_341822.jpg)
