Silicosis – Working with Cement Roofing Tiles: A Silica Hazard

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Although respirable silica is a recognized health hazard in the construction industry, only recently has this exposure been documented in roofers. NIOSH has measured respirable silica levels up to four times the recommended exposure limit around roofers cutting cement products such as when roofing tiles are cut during the installation process. This cutting generates clouds of silica-containing dust. Respirable silica exposure may also occur when blowers or dry sweeping methods are used to clean the roof. This practice can produce large silica-containing dust clouds. NIOSH does not recommend this practice. Anyone who inhales dust generated by cutting cement tiles or cleaning the residue will be exposed to respirable silica, placing them at risk for developing silicosis. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Construction Industry Construction Materials Dust Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Quartz Respiratory Protective Devices Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety Silicon Dioxide
• Keywords:
  Construction-industry Construction-materials Construction-workers Dust-control Dust-particles Dust-suppression Dusts Pulmonary-system-disorders Quartz-dust Respirable-dust Respirators Respiratory-protective-equipment Respiratory-system-disorders Roofers Roofing-industry Silica-dusts Silicosis

  More +
• Series:
  NIOSH Numbered Publications
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHPUB2006110
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Guidance
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; 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:
  1-6
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20028820
• Citation:
  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, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2006-110, 2005 Oct; :1-6
• CAS Registry Number:
  Quartz (SiO2) (CAS RN 14808-60-7)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2006
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:11a9edcd7da61d57edac8fcdff8edbf16e5b8211c501580df1414f04feb2a5a638fabb15b19daa5eefbeb24e06375f48361cebe4b969e7d9169751a598816de1
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/209874/cdc_209874_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 364.37 KB ]