Hazards, occupational

Let us now turn our attention briefly to an occupational hazard you may encounter while troubleshooting. The message simply is be prepared don t let this particular hazard change the way you think or analyze a problem. Also, learn from your peers experience it is really not a good idea (in terms of job security) to tom-tom your skills to the top brass of the company This story will help explain why. 

A few years ago, one of my respected colleagues at the Silicon Valley design center of one of the world s biggest power supply manufacturers explained the rather hair-splitting logic 

you may ask, how did Mr. So-So ever become the Applications Manager, and that too in one of the biggest power supply manufacturers of the world Good question. But perhaps even more surprising, I believe that as of today, Mr. So-So still holds a similar position— this time at a well-known MP3 player manufacturer, qualifying (mercifully, not designing any more) the tiny DC-DC converters inside it. Which also means it is probably safe to buy that shiny white player after all. 

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In most situations, adequate, usuaHy forced, ventilation is necessary to prevent excessive exposure. Persons who drink alcohol excessively or have Hver, kidney, or heart diseases should be excluded from any exposure to carbon tetrachloride. AH individuals regularly exposed to carbon tetrachloride should receive periodic examinations by a physician acquainted with the occupational hazard involved. These examinations should include special attention to the kidneys and the Hver. There is no known specific antidote for carbon tetrachloride poisoning. Treatment is symptomatic and supportive. Alcohol, oHs, fats, and epinephrine should not be given to any person who has been exposed to carbon tetrachloride. FoHowing exposure, the individual should be kept under observation long enough to permit the physician to determine whether Hver or kidney injury has occurred. Artificial dialysis may be necessary in cases of severe renal faHure. 

The primary limitation of a HAZOP study is the length of time required to perform it. Because the study is designed to provide a complete analysis, study sessions can be intensive and lii ing. HAZOP studies typically do not look at occupational hazards (e.g., electrical equipment, rotating equipment, hot surfaces) or chronic hazards (e.g., chronic chemical exposure, noise, heat stress). For experience with HAZOP see Swann (1995). 

Occupational Delineating occupational hazards and risks and prevention... 

This section discusses primarily internal sources of contaminants and other occupational hazards related to the process or the building envelope. 

Functions such as industrial hygiene (the protection of worker health against occupational hazards) and hazardous waste mcmagement involve the control of hazards arising from processes. As with process safety, you can attempt to use engineering-based solutions alone, but will find that ongoing control of hazards is difficult to achieve. Designing-in hazard control and... 

Stephen G. Minter, Quality and Safety Unocal s Winning Combination, Occupational Hazards, October 1991. 

Occupational hazards in 19" -century Upper Canada. In Herring, D.A. and Chan, L.,... 

NIOSH. 1978. Special occupational hazard review of trichloroethylene. 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. 

Kehoe was a smooth and practiced expert witness at government and judicial hearings. He opened his testimony by boasting that he knew more about lead than anyone else in the world. He boasted that he had served as the Ethyl Corporation s medical director because I was the only person who was familiar with the toxicology of tetraethyl lead and with the occupational hazards associated with its manufacture and distribution.. . . In developing the information on this subject (lead), I have had a greater responsibility than any other person in this country. Kehoe proudly... 

NIOSH. 1974. Evaluation of behavioral functions in workers exposed to lead. In Xintaras C, Johnson BL, De Groot 1, eds. Behavioral toxicology Early detection of occupational hazards. Cincinnati, OH US. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 248-266. 

Potential hazards to humans may be connected with the use of chlorine-based washing systems. Apart from the direct occupational hazard, there are increasing concerns about the formation of potentially harmful by-products. Chlorine may react with organic compounds on the products and form hazardous organochlorines that are considered to be potential carcinogens (Beuchat, 1998 Betts and Everis, 2005). Betts and Everis (2005) suggest that a ban on the use of hypochlorite systems is likely in the future. 

The carcinogenicity of aromatic amines, such as benzidine and 2-naph-thylamine, was first recognized by Rehn in the 1890s as an occupational hazard in the German dyestuffs industry. Compounds in this class induce... 

Williams, P.L. 1982. Pentachlorophenol, an assessment of the occupational hazard. Amer. Ind. Hyg. Assoc. Jour. 43 799-810. 

HAZOP studies typically do not look at occupational hazards (e.g., electrical equipment, rotating equipment, hot surfaces) or chronic hazards (e.g., chronic chemical exposure, noise, heat stress). 

Crystalline silica, or quartz, is an abundant mineral found in sand, rock, and soil. Respirable silica dust (particles <5pm) is a known occupational hazard of the dusty trades (e.g., pottery or china manufacturing, work involving sandblasting or abrasive grinding, some construction trades). High level exposure to respirable silica can result in the chronic, progressive lung disease silicosis, characterized by inflammation and fibrosis. 

SRI. 1977. Profiles on occupational hazards for criteria document priorities. Menlo Park, CA Stanford Research Institute, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. PB-274 073. 

SieberWK, Sundin DS, Frazier TM, et al. 1991. Development, use, and availability of a job exposure matrix based on national occupational hazard survey data. Amer J Ind Med 20 163-174. 

Occupational exposure to endrin was not evaluated during the National Occupational Exposure Survey (NOES) conducted from 1981 to 1983 or its predecessor, the National Occupational Hazard Survey (NOHS) conducted from 1972 to 1974. The surveys conducted by NIOSH were designed to provide data necessary to describe potential exposure agents and profile health and safety programs in United States... 

The perception that chlorinated solvents and related compounds prior to the 1970s were potential occupational hazards rather than potential groundwater contaminants ... 

The U S. EPA is funding research at Ionedge Corporation, Fort Collins, Colorado, to develop a process for zinc-graphite and zinc-cadmium alloy dry plating as environmentally safer alternatives to cadmium electroplating in cyanide baths. Successful development of these technique could lead to a method which would potentially eliminate the environmental and occupational hazards associated with cadmium electroplating. 

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