Document BM8KqxM1xMN36xwnZxVj0Nd4

*vi; ,h. A " Th#lnduiMol Commission July 12,1982 Legal Section 'hv; Industrial Commission of Ohio'. ' 246 North High Street Columbus, Ohio 43215 Attention: Judy Spencer OD f 18843-22 Eva M. Dorsey General Motors Corp. Assembly Division Lordstown, Ohio 44482 Dear Ms. Spencer 'V?. /Jy On May 13, 1982, a .visit-was made:.to the. Lordstown Automobile Assembly Plant of General Motors Corporation,;.for: the purposeof determining conditions under.which the^above named claimant has^v ^ worked during two periods^of'employment.'^'During her first employment at General Motors, from. Mayu22,` 1979 until;,November. 26,'1979,. Mrs. Dorsey worked as an'assembler^'and-spot-welder. She was rehired on June 1, 1981 and worked as a MIG welder until November 10, 1981 when she applied for sick-leave.* The claimant, whose total length of employment at General Motors is less than one year, had'not returned to work at the-time of:.the visit. Mrs; Dorsey's condition has been diagnosed as asthmatic bronchitis;Vwhich her doctors feel has been caused by exposure.to welding:fumes^In.addition, although no indication is made in .the^facsimile file;' the claimant is . apparently a cigarette smoker. ^A*.former .fellow worker of the claimant stated that she was-'Mefinitely/a., cigarette smoker," although he could not say how much; she smoked. * ~ An observation of the work area in question indicates that welding fumes which are generated are immediately exhausted or dispersed. Slot type exhaust ..ventilation, approximately three or four feet directly over-the,welding areas, appears to be drawing the fume away from the. work/area:and the welder's breathing zone. Also, considerable dilution.ventilation is- provided in this area. The company-spokesman stated that the company.has never had com plaints of health problems.in this area and .that the claimant, during the six month. period|!she worked as;.a .MIG welder, never' I i. f l ti. OD # 18843-22 Page Two dioxide filler wire for general purpose fabrication of low to medium carbon mild and low alloy steels. In addition to welding fume, possible contaminants from the process include oxides of nitrogen and ozone. Personal breathing zone monitoring for possible exposures to welding fume was conducted with the use of a personal sampling pump equipped with a tared PVC filter. Ozone, nitrogen dioxide and total oxides of nitrogen were monitored near the welder's breathing zone with Draeger length of stain detector tubes. The employee TWA exposure to welding fume was.2.1 rag/M3, well below the suggested TWA exposure limit of 5.0 mg/M , which has been adopted by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH). The possible gases, oxides of nitrogen and ozone were not detected during several checks throughout the day with the Draeger tubes. In summary the testing of the welders' breathing zone for possible contaminants indicates welding fume concentrations at less than one-half the suggested ACGIH threshold limit value (TLV), while the concentrations of gases were below the detectable limits of the Draeger tubes. The test results also add credence to the earlier statements in respect to the removal of contaminants by the ventilation system. '- , .. ;.V -i . In as much as this claimant worked for less than six months as a MIG welder in a well ventilated atmosphere.;with a relatively low contaminant level, it is not likely that her symptoms have been caused by work related conditions. Bronchitis, a form of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, in addition to being caused by industrial irritants, may also result from cigarette smoke. This claimant, according to a fellow worker, is a cigarette smoker, and it has been well documented that cigarette smoke can cause the very same symptoms or act as an additive factor with industrial contami nants in causing bronchitis. Threshold Limit Values refer to airborne concentrations of substances and represent conditions under which it is believed that nearly all workers may be repeatedly exposed day after day without adverse effect. Because of wide variations in individual suscepti bility, however, a small percentage of workers may experience discomfort from some substances at concentrations at or below the threshold limit; a smaller percentage may be affected more seriously by aggravation of a pre-existing condition or by development of an occupational illness. Sincerely, DBM/lek Donald B. Meeker v Industrial Hygienist