Control of Welding Fume in Shipbuilding Confined Spaces

Details

• Personal Author:
  Seixas, Noah S.
• Description:
  Ship construction and repair can require welding in enclosed and confined spaces, leading to high fume exposures for welders. The temporary ventilation of these spaces is often inadequate; it is an extremely challenging task made more difficult by a lack of specific training and barriers such as personal habits, equipment availability, and workplace norms. Observation and air monitoring indicated that welding fume could be controlled more effectively by improving certain aspects of ventilation design, such as raising exhaust ducts and avoiding situations where the airflow does not affect the areas of highest fume concentration. Ventilation recommendations specific to the control of welding fume in these spaces were developed. They emphasized ventilation of the entire workspace because local exhaust ventilation is difficult to use effectively in many shipbuilding situations. The recommendations were made into a graphical training program and presented to 131 welders at two shipyards in Washington State. A survey, completed by participants before and after training, was used to assess the effectiveness of the training. The survey did not indicate that the training was effective in improving the welders' knowledge or behavior regarding ventilation. Further, while controlled tests of the recommendations supported their effectiveness, real-world shipyard tests did not show that they reduced welders' personal exposure. The results reflect the difficulty in effecting behavioral change with a relatively-limited one-time training. The failure of the ventilation adjustments to reduce personal exposure in real-world situations are an important reminder, to both shipyard workers and researchers, of the difficulty in applying valid basic theories to more complex situations. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Confined Spaces Occupational Health Safety Ships Staff Development Ventilation Welding
• Keywords:
  Confined Spaces Shipbuilding Industry Shipyard Workers Training Welders Welding Fumes
• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Final Grant Report
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 10 ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OEP - Office of Extramural Programs
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-38
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20054808
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2019-100569
• Citation:
  Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, R01-OH-009655, 2014 Nov; :1-38
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2015
• NORA Priority Area:
  Manufacturing
• Performing Organization:
  University of Washington, Seattle
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20100901
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20140831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:6c6f15deebf3d6ed0cc5479e17e20279a6b6266063bf6253277970e62d0a28a33992d9afe1af81610cf6c1c5779aad77e7fa82b019b4ccff234a188e1ceaa9c9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/218824/cdc_218824_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 4.18 MB ]