Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-91-254-2186: Ropes and Gray Photocopy Center; Boston, Massachusetts

Details

• Personal Author:
  Cook, Calvin K. ; Crandall, Michael S.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In response to a request from a group of employees at the Pitney Bowes Management Services, Ropes and Gray Photocopy Center (SIC- 7334), Boston, Massachusetts, an evaluation was undertaken of worker exposures to photocopy emissions. The photocopy center has been in operation for 2 years. Six full time employees worked the day shift operating six photocopiers of various models. Approximately 1 million copies were generated monthly at the site. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of air samples taken for volatile organic carbons revealed trace amounts of 1,1,1-trichloroethane (71556), isooctane (540841), toluene (108883), xylene (1330207), and benzene (71432). Ozone (10028156) concentrations as high as 0.41 parts per million (ppm) were detected at approximately 3 feet from the exhaust of each photocopier. Carbon-dioxide (124389) concentrations ranged from 300 to 825ppm. Respirable dust concentrations ranged from less than 10 to 50 micrograms per cubic meter. Carbon-monoxide (630080) was not detected. The authors conclude that the evaluation did not reveal a hazard to explain the respiratory symptoms experienced by the workers. The finding that the ventilation system moved too small an amount of air in a measured period of time may account for the accumulation of airborne contaminants within the building. Recommendations were made to improve the ventilation.
• Subjects:
  Air Pollution, Indoor Environmental Health Occupational Health Ozone Safety Solvents Ventilation
• Keywords:
  Copy Machines Hazard-Unconfirmed HETA-91-254-2186 Indoor-air-pollution Indoor-environmental-quality Indoor Air Quality NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Office-workers Organic-solvents OSHA Region 1 Photocopier Photocopying Service Ventilation-equipment

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA912542186
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  19 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00206944
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB92-193911
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, Ohio: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 91-254-2186, 1992 Mar ; :1-23
• CAS Registry Number:
  1,1,1-Trichloroethane (CAS RN 71-55-6) ; Isooctane (CAS RN 540-84-1) ; Toluene (CAS RN 108-88-3) ; Xylene (CAS RN 1330-20-7) ; Benzene (CAS RN 71-43-2) ; Ozone (CAS RN 10028-15-6) ; Carbon dioxide (CAS RN 124-38-9) ; Carbon monoxide (CAS RN 630-08-0)
• Editor(s):
  Lykins, Tammy
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1992
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  7334 - Photocopying & duplicating services - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:e406417b629abe4fffbbd170a2a9a62abf387f9fedea9a68cddc42eb7814ec7d5cb8add7c5b860c127e71ed048aef17c19284e82b9a177bd319a6fcb92538202
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/171592/cdc_171592_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 315.89 KB ]