Evaluation of Nonproduction Area Air and Surface Lead Levels, Employee Blood Lead Levels, and Psychosocial Factors at a Battery Manufacturing Plant

Details

• Personal Author:
  Harney, Joshua M. ; Henn, Scott ; Mueller, Charles A. ; Musolin, Kristin ; Wiegand, Douglas M.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  The Health Hazard Evaluation Program received a management request from a lead-acid battery manufacturing company who wanted assistance in lowering employees' blood lead levels. We focused our environmental sampling on nonproduction plant areas and determining if employees were unknowingly carrying lead dust into areas generally regarded as clean. We evaluated air and surface lead concentrations in nonproduction areas that were generally regarded as "clean," such as the cafeteria, locker rooms, and front office. We reviewed employee blood lead testing results, lead in air sample results, and related company written health and safety programs. We asked employees about their medical and work history, their health concerns about work, and about the lead hazard control program. Surface and hand wipe results and area air sample results showed continued exposure potential in all the nonproduction areas we tested. However, we found only one hand wipe (out of 29) that was positive for lead before the employee exited the plant after the shift
  
  all these employees reported showering and using lead removal soap immediately before exiting. The average blood lead levels of employees' means were >/= 10 micrograms per deciliter, though the overall blood lead level averages declined over the years for which we reviewed data. Some airborne lead exposures in the past exceeded occupational exposure limits in all production departments. The company had longstanding medical surveillance and exposure assessment programs, employee health and safety training, and was aware of primary exposure control challenges in their production areas. Opportunities to minimize lead dust exposure include improving local exhaust and general ventilation, maintaining positive air pressurization in clean nonproduction areas, redesigning the locker rooms to have distinct clean and dirty sides, and potentially requiring respirator use for all employees at a job site where an exposure is above the OSHA action limit (the level at which the company requires respiratory protection). We recommended the employees take the manufacturer's recommended amount of time to walk through the air shower when exiting the production area, and not giving himself or herself any type of synthetic or natural chelation therapy.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Blood Lead Occupational Health Safety Ventilation
• Keywords:
  Battery Manufacturing Industry Blood Lead Level Blood Lead Levels Exhaust Hoods Exhaust Ventilation Focus Group Lead Compounds Lead Dust Lead Fumes OSHA Region 7 Psychosocial Storage Battery Manufacturing Surface Wipe Ventilation Systems

  More +
• Source:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HHE 2013-0226-3314, 2018 Jun ; :1-21
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHHE201302263314
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Missouri ; OSHA Region 7
• 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:
  46 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Booher, Donald E. ; Galloway, Ellen ; Moore, Kevin ; Watts, Shawna
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20051758
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2018-101267
• Citation:
  NIOSH [2018]. Evaluation of nonproduction area air and surface lead levels, employee ; blood lead levels, and psychosocial factors at a battery manufacturing plant. By Harney ; JM, Musolin K, Wiegand D, Mueller C, Henn S. Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department ; of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National ; Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Health Hazard Evaluation Report 2013- ; 0226-3314,
• CAS Registry Number:
  Lead (CAS RN 7439-92-1)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2018
• NORA Priority Area:
  Services
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  335911 - Storage Battery Manufacturing - (NAICS)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:be40c23801fc8cd6c2db5776603d6da7d2d83da574a5f167ba8a75a764079b5bbcbcf8ad86a0bf1becb1a1bd5d09755da73843ce81fdc854e3a1e19084c1352c
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172359/cdc_172359_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.13 MB ]