HETA #2005-0361-3005, Buffalo Newspress, Buffalo, New York

Details

• Personal Author:
  Methner, Mark M. ; Tapp, Loren C.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  On October 13, 2005, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) received a confidential employee request to conduct a health hazard evaluation (HHE) at Buffalo Newspress in Buffalo, New York. The request asked NIOSH to evaluate employee exposures to ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), respirable particulate matter, and carbon monoxide (CO). Employee concerns included dermatitis (thought to be caused by contact with the blanket and fountain wash solutions), headaches, burning eyes, and sinus irritation. Results from full-shift personal breathing zone (PBZ) air samples for ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, VOCs, and respirable dust were below occupational exposure criteria. However, dermal contact with these compounds was observed to be a significant route of exposure in press employees. In addition, employee skin examinations revealed that nearly one third of 41 interviewed had a visible hand/arm rash consistent with workplace exposure. Approximately 80% of workers wore wrist-length vinyl gloves during the handling of inks, blanket wash solutions, and other solvents. Barrier creams and gauntlet-type nitrile gloves were available on request, but were not in regular use. General area measurements of CO at various plant locations indicated that sources (ovens, heating units, and propane-powered forklift trucks) increased CO air concentrations above the plant background of 1-2 parts per million (ppm). Although no CO sample result exceeded the NIOSH Ceiling limit of 200 ppm, some press room workers' exposures may exceed the NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limit (REL) of 35 ppm as a time-weighted average. The high prevalence of headache (56%) among press employees suggests a possible relationship between these headaches and CO concentrations. NIOSH investigators conclude that a health hazard existed at the time of the survey from dermal exposure to blanket wash and other solvents. Observations of work practices, glove type, and glove use and availability indicate a significant opportunity for dermal exposure to Rycoline blanket wash and fountain solution and other solvents among press employees. The prevalence of contact dermatitis among these workers indicates that skin exposure to workplace solvents should be minimized. PBZ air sampling in the press room indicated that no exceedence of any occupational airborne exposure criteria occurred during the survey. General area air concentrations of CO above background levels (1-2 ppm) and the occurrence of headache among press employees indicate that actions to decrease CO exposure in the press room are necessary. Recommendations include improving press room ventilation, implementing a personal protective equipment (PPE) program that includes worker training, using less abrasive hand cleaners, and supplying appropriate gloves and barrier creams.
• Subjects:
  Air Pollutants, Occupational Dermatitis Eye Foreign Bodies Headache Ink Irritants Lung Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Printing Protective Clothing Respiratory Protective Devices Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety Skin Skin Absorption Solvents Ventilation

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• Keywords:
  Blanket Wash Carbon Monoxide Color Newspaper Contact Dermatitis Ethylene Glycol Eye-irritants Gloves Hazard-Confirmed Headache Inks Organic-chemicals Organic-compounds Organic-solvents Organic-vapors OSHA Region 2 Personal-protection Personal-protective-equipment Printing Printing-industry Printing-inks Propylene Glycol Protective-clothing Protective-equipment Publishing-and-printing Pulmonary-system-disorders Respirable Dust Respiratory-irritants Respiratory-protective-equipment Respiratory-system-disorders Roller Wash Rycoline Press Wash Solvents Skin-absorption Skin-exposure Skin-irritants Solvent-vapors Upper Respiratory Irritation

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• 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, HETA 2005-0361-3005, 2006 Jun ; :1-17
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA200503613005
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; OSHA Region 2
• 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:
  23 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Durgam, Srinivas ; Galloway, Ellen ; Smith, Robin
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20030343
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2006-112789
• CAS Registry Number:
  Ethylene glycol (CAS RN 107-21-1) ; Propylene glycol (CAS RN 57-55-6) ; Carbon monoxide (CAS RN 630-08-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2006
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  513110 - Newspaper Publishers - (NAICS)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:c4c3563cb848d31d7bc262567ffc5380068a353ee20c916f98a8cf6d7be32ee83f71fef0c264a6cd3bf13719a095a66095772f314badefb3e5ef783a0333b93c
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172630/cdc_172630_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 987.73 KB ]