Health Hazard Evaluation Determination Report No. 79-57-642: American Gypsum Company: Albuquerque, New Mexico

Details

• Personal Author:
  Markel, Harry L. Jr.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Environmental and personal air sampling, and employee interviews were conducted at the American Gypsum Company (SIC-3275) in Albuquerque, New Mexico on March 7, 1979, to evaluate fibrous glass exposure. The request was made by a representative of the AFL-CIO United Cement, Lime, and Gypsum International Union on behalf of approximately 45 affected employees. Air samples were collected with battery operated vacuum pumps at a sampling rate of 1.7 to 2.0 liters per minute. Fibers at least 10 microns long and 3.5 microns in diameter were counted. Ventilation was measured at various locations within the gypsum wall board manufacturing area. All fiber concentrations were below the OSHA criteria of 15 milligrams per cubic meter. Exhaust velocities ranged from 200 to 300 feet per minute, and were considered adequate to control airborne fibrous glass particles. Employee interviews failed to identify work related health conditions. The author concludes that no hazard existed at the time of the survey but recommends that exposed workers have comprehensive placement medical examinations with emphasis on skin susceptibility and prior exposures. Subsequent annual examinations should include the skin and respiratory system, with attention to pulmonary function. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Calcium Sulfate Environmental Monitoring Glass Labor Unions Occupational Health Safety Ventilation
• Keywords:
  Air-sampling Exposure-limits Fibrous-glass Fibrous Glass Gypsum-products Gypsum Wall Board Hazard-Unconfirmed HHE-79-57-642 Medical-examinations NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation OSHA Region 6 Preemployment-examinations Unions

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHHE7957642
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  New Mexico ; Albuquerque (NM) ; OSHA Region 6
• 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:
  9 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Flesch, Jerome P. ; Freeman, Jena ; Perkins, James ; Nelson, James H.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00092891
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB80-163280
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HHE 79-57-642, 1979 Dec ; :1-9
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1980
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  3275 - Gypsum products - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:f42107b0dc940446b591870e0728ea8b20790b0c7b468fcc82ab3ec47df9a6649fe7fa57dd89dddf7392ea8a7f2e099719ac4e7eb1816e844a90b4700c1f6b65
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/173720/cdc_173720_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 408.75 KB ]