Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-81-143-1041: Armco Composites; Hartford City, Indiana

Details

• Personal Author:
  Boiano, James M. ; Habes, Daniel J. ; Watanabe, Arthur S.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Occupational exposures to cured resin particulates, styrene (100425) monomer, and ergonomic stresses at Armco Composites (SIC-3079), Hartford City, Indiana were investigated. About 120 production employees work on site. The study was a result of a confidential request and was performed on March 1 and 12, and July 20 and 21, 1981. Air samples were analyzed, and medical interviews were conducted with 29 workers and an ergonomic study was performed. Personal breathing zone time weighted average concentrations of cured resin particulates peaked at 20.1 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3). Two samples exceeded the OSHA standard of 15mg/m3. Styrene values were all below the OSHA standard of 435mg/m3. Eighteen employees exhibited early signs of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) with symptoms of nocturnal numbness, swelling, and pain. Postures assumed during work included wrist flexion and extension, ulnar and radial deviation of the wrist, and open hand pinch. These postures have been associated with CTS. The authors conclude that a health hazard did exist from tasks involving repetitive hand and wrist movements. Exposures to cured resin particulates exceeded the nuisance dust criteria. Recommendation for decreasing the incidence of CTS and exposure to cured resin dusts are provided.
• Subjects:
  Dust Ergonomics Musculoskeletal Diseases Musculoskeletal System Occupational Health Plastics Safety Styrene
• Keywords:
  Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Cumulative Trauma Cured Resin Particulates Hazards-Confirmed HETA-81-143-1041 Miscellaneous Plastic Products Muscle-stress Musculoskeletal-system-disorders Musculoskeletal Disorders NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Nuisance Dust OSHA Region 5 Plastics-industry Repetitive Hand Tasks Time-weighted-average-exposure Work-practices

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA811431041
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Indiana ; OSHA Region 5
• 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:
  28 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Wilcox, Thomas G.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00127768
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB83-201426
• 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 81-143-1041, 1982 Feb ; :1-26
• CAS Registry Number:
  Styrene (CAS RN 100-42-5)
• Editor(s):
  Hoffmann, Marlene ; Woodruff, Jackie
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1982
• NORA Priority Area:
  Musculoskeletal-system-disorders
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  3079 - Miscellaneous Plastics Products - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:78c875bee2f5d5158611a5c0dbfb5f957cb6fe5ebcb02903a733dd063a2427531a84ac8b53b3a403028a4ff9d8da703e281509bcebefd5e5485392171ecd2985
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/173041/cdc_173041_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.43 MB ]