> leads to more efficient use of materials and hence lower cost.

I know that isn't always a bad thing, but this is the kind of sentence that always gives me pause. In the case were over-engineering something to 10x minimum tolerance can be re-configured to be only be 8x minimum, then sure, that sounds like there's some room to safely redesign for efficiency/cost sake.

My pessimism for the world today tends to make my first impression the "lower cost" phrase being used is always the "cheap bastards looking to cut corners at the expense of safety".