Fibrous glass and industrial hygiene survey at Owens Corning, Santa Clara, California.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Dement, John M. ; Johnson W ; Shuler PJ
• Description:
  Worker exposure to fibrous glass and free silica at Owens Corning Fiberglas (SIC-3229) in Santa Clara, California, was assessed from May 17 to 20, 1972. The facility employed 670 workers and employed a nurse, an industrial hygienist and a safety director full time. A corporate physician and a local dermatologist were available for consultation and local internists conducted physical exams at the factory. Preemployment and periodic chest X-rays were provided. Selective audiometry was available. Hooding and venting were provided at the mixing and spray painting areas and local ventilation was provided at the sawing and trimming operations. Air was sampled for silicon-dioxide (60676860) (SiO2) and fibrous glass (14808607) exposure. Fibrous glass concentrations in the wool manufacture and molded pipe manufacture areas ranged from 0.05 to 7.59 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/CuM). One concentration of 14.54mg/CuM was noted when a machine was cleaned during the sampling. Silica dust concentrations in the glass batch and furnace charge areas ranged from 0.07 to 8.40mg/CuM. In shingle production and acoustical tile spray painting SiO2 concentrations ranged from exposures are low throughout the building. The highest concentrations are in handling uncured products or those with no binder. Free SiO2 concentrations in the batch and furnace areas are above the present standards. The highest exposure involves the glassbatch operator. The authors recommend that more effort be made to prevent exposure to uncured resin and fibrous glass. Improved ventilation is necessary, and local exhaust ventilation should be installed. The authors also note that eye and ear protective measures should be strictly enforced.
• Subjects:
  Accidents, Occupational Automobiles Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Transportation
• Keywords:
  Air-contamination Control-methods Field-Study Health-services Health-surveys Industrial-processes IWS-35-18 NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Survey Occupational-health-programs Plastics-industry Region-9 Silicates Workplace-studies

  More +
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Studies ; Industry Wide
• Place as Subject:
  California ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DFSCI - Division of Field Studies and Clinical Investigations
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-20
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00111624
• 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, IWS 35-18, 1972 May; :1-20
• CAS Registry Number:
  Vitreous silica (CAS RN 60676-86-0) ; Quartz (SiO2) (CAS RN 14808-60-7)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1972
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  3229 - Pressed and blown glass, not elsewhere classified - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:b72929dfefd1618e763082f2b0db410820c056fd6de2d8f98d38a744acb4c5ca5be58ead22a9b8e14d393db87eeeb319d6202011a44ac374793276f6e22bffdf
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/179105/cdc_179105_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.03 MB ]