Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-84-534-1721: Defense Industrial Supply Center; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bennett, Diane E. ; Chrostek, Walter J.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Management of the Defense Industrial Supply Center (SIC-9451), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania requested an evaluation of possible excess cancer deaths and respiratory problems encountered among employees. Measurements were taken for carbon-dioxide (124389), carbon-monoxide (630080), temperature, relative humidity, organic vapors, and airborne dust. Sample materials were taken of insulation, solvent cleaners, and carbonless paper used at the facility. The area of work in which excess cancer related deaths may have occurred involved primarily computer work, central communications and data processing operations. Chemical exposure occurring in the facility included solvent tape drive cleaner in the computer tape library, inks used by printers, and an ammonia based developer fixer used in the microfiche area. The level of outside air being introduced into the building was occasionally in the low range where headaches, and complaints of respiratory and mucous membrane problems could develop, even though levels of carbon- monoxide and carbon-dioxide were within safe limits. Due to limited space available, the building was overcrowded. The authors conclude that there were potential hazards from inadequate ventilation, high temperatures and low humidity. Information was inadequate to determine if the incidence of cancer at this facility was higher than in the general population. The authors recommend improvements in ventilation, and the use of impermeable gloves when using solvents.
• Subjects:
  Irritants Lung Neoplasms Occupational Health Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety
• Keywords:
  Cancer Cancer-rates Carbon Dioxide Hazard-Confirmed HETA-84-534-1721 Indoor Air Pollution NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Office-workers Office Buildings OSHA Region 3 Pulmonary-system-disorders Relative Humidity Respiratory-irritants Temperature

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA845341721
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Pennsylvania ; OSHA Region 3
• 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:
  27 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00165803
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB87-163465
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 84-534-1721, 1986 Aug ; :1-24
• CAS Registry Number:
  Carbon dioxide (CAS RN 124-38-9) ; Carbon monoxide (CAS RN 630-08-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1986
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  9451 - Administration of veterans' affairs - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:f1b69bfc07ab13e1c556dc33113e2bc9150fed2e6dec14d377c71f1f1a8f668a0d90c243dacb438f4b1a44f9f332f25d914ca2b3cbf88989074e53abb91dc365
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172166/cdc_172166_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 6.02 MB ]