In every industry, products are increasingly equipped with sensors that can gather far more data than ever before, processors that allow the product to respond to that data without operator intervention, and IoT capabilities that can report data to owners and manufacturers in real time. These changes are radically altering the product safety and liability landscape. When manufacturers become able to detect and address hazardous conditions in ways that were previously impossible, it raises challenging questions about their obligations to do so.

In this new reality – and especially in the hindsight perspective inherent in litigation – design decisions are being freshly scrutinized and re-examined. Manufacturers can expect questions not only about how data was used, but how it could have been used. Our speakers will discuss implications for hazard analysis and risk assessment, approaches to drawing clear lines of responsibility with vendors and customers, and the importance of establishing processes and procedures to monitor and address post-sale hazards.

Join Fox attorneys Douglas Fleming and Laura Hansen, along with Steven Hall, M.S.E., CPSM, Director, Human Factors Practice at Applied Safety and Ergonomics, Inc., a Rimkus Company, for a lively discussion on this new world of challenges for manufacturers.