Document ZBVw9jXNbyRwR32zp3JD5meqY

FILE NAME: Owens Illinois (OWILL) DATE: 1936 Dec DOC#: OWILL065 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION: Letters between Mr. G Stover & Vandiver Brown RE Membership Restrictions to The Air Hygiene Foundation .... * y,,J ASBESTOS" C. J . Stover 16th FLOOR. I N Q U I R E R B L D G . u. s. r n i L A D c i r n i A . P e n n s y l v a n i a A. CABLE ADDRESS " ASBESTOS" PHILADELPHIA BENTLEY'S CODE December 8 , 1936 TO MEMBERS ASBESTOS INDUSTRY: Gentlemen: S ilic o s is or asbestosis is a subject of considerable interest to this Industry. The Air Hygiene Foundation of America was formed several years ago by the association of a number of industries interested in this general subject and was fortunate enough to secure the co-operation of the Mellon In stitu te of Indu strial Research at the University of Pittsburgh. While we had an Asbestos Code under N.RA., the Asbestos Industry made a contribution to the Air Hygiene Foundation and received from i t a number of reports. At a recent meeting of the Air Hygiene Foundation, the Asbestos Industry was fortunate in having in attendance Mr. Vandiver Brown, General Attorney for the Johns-Manville Corporation, and I am attaching, hereto, a copy of Mr. Brown1s le t t e r , dated December 4, reporting on the events at the meeting of the Air Hygiene Foundation. I You w ill note that the rules have been changed so that trade associations are no longer admitted to membership, but that Individual corporations are welcome. I a tta ch , hereto, an application blank believing that after you have considered this subject and it s importance to your company and to our industry you w ill desire to support this work. I have before me a l i s t of the o ffice rs and trustees of the Air Hygiene Foundation, and i t certainly is a cross-section of the very fin e st American in d u stries, insurance companies, chemists, attorneys and others interested in the prevention of s ilic o s is and the protection of industries from unreasonable claims of workers. I commend this project to your careful consideration. Yours very tru ly , A ^ i (COPY) December 4, 1936 Mr, C, J . Stover, Inquirer B ld g ., 16th F I ., Philade lp h ia, Pa. Re: Air Hygiene Foundation of America Membership Meeting of Nov. 24th Dear Mr. Stover: I am w riting to report upon the meeting of the members of Air Hygiene Foundation of America, Incorporated whxch was held in Pittsburgh on November 24th. The meeting was attended by a large and most enthusiastic group comprising approximately 200 persons. These consisted of members, guests of the Foundation, and many sp ecialists in the fie ld of a ir hygiene - medical, engineer in g , le g al and governmental. Dr. A. J . Lanza, Medical Director of Metropolitan L ife Insurance Company and Chairman of the Medical Committee of the Foundation, addressed the meeting on behalf of his Committee and gave a b r ie f summary of the i n i t i a l report of the Medical Committee, which has not as yet been published but publication of which is anticipated shortly* I t is my b e lie f that this Medical Committee report w ill constitute a major contribution upon the question of dust diseases from the medi c a l viewpoint. I t w ill contain a summary of the best s c ie n tific opinion upon many of the d if f ic u lt problems involved and its publication is eagerly awaited by a l l industries having an actual or potential dust hazard. Professor Philip Drinker, of the Harvard School of Public Health and Chairman of the Preventive Engineering Committee of the Foundation, discussed the problem from the engineering point of view with special emphasis upon prevention through dust elim inating apparatus and respirators. I have already provided you with a copy of Bulletin No. 1 of the Pre- ,W1 /0"s (% ventive Engineering Series of the Foundation. Further valuable contributions are anticipated from this Committee. r Mr. Alfred C. Hlrth . Chairman of the Legal Committee, summarized the work of his Committee during the f ir s t year of the existence of the Foundation. You have been provided with the seven parts of B ulletin No* 1 of the Legal Committee and, therefore, have some idea of the work performed by this Committee during the fir s t year of it s operation. These Bulletins constitute a compilation of the laws and court decisions of the 48 States and the D istrict of Columbia which have bearing upon the question of employer re sponsibility for occupational disease* They have fille d a lon g-felt want and constitute a unique contribution. Secretary of Labor Perkins has praised these Bulletins in unqualified terms and has asserted that they have proved of great value to her and to the Committees of the Department of Labor which are conducting an in vestigation of dust diseases. Mr. Theodore Waters, a member of the Legal Committee, , read to the meeting excerpts from Bulletin No. 2 of the Legal Series, which is to be published shortly. I t constitutes "a study and criticism of provisions for occupational disease le g isla tio n ". I t is a splendid discussion of this problem and was enthusiastically received. In view of the fact that many state legislatures w ill be considering the adoption or revision of occupational disease le g isla tio n during the next few years, the importance of this \ thorough-going analysis of what dust disease legislatio n should and should not contain cannot be over-emphasized. 1 Although the Air Hygiene Foundation is approaching various problems relatin g to a ir hygiene from an unbiased viewpoint, i t i s , nevertheless, the creature of industry and is the one in s t i tution upon which employers can rely completely for a sympathetic appreciation of their viewpoint. Its aim is to make an honest e ffo rt to appraise the e v il, to advance s c ie n tific knowledge of many of its doubtful aspects and to suggest remedies, both preventa tive and curative. As such, i t deserves and should receive the unqualified support of a l l members of industries faced with a dust disease hazard. ( Membership through trade associations w ill no longer provide employers with the benefits of the Foundation. I am ing herewith a quantity of membership application forms and o schedules of membership charges for 1937. I urge that you pr copies of these applications, together with the scale of charges, to a ll members of the asbestos industry and I hope you w ill see f i t to recommend that they participate, through membership, in the burdens as well as in the benefits to be derived from the continued -3- functioning of this Foundation. As you w ill note, provision is made for membership by "employer associations" Such associations are not required to pay the i n i t i a l $25 "membership fee" and their annual dues are only 50; however, as you w ill note, these members receive only one f i l e copy of publications of the Foundation which they are not permitted to publish or substantially duplicate for use by their constituent companies. I am recommending that Johns-Manvilie. Corporation apply for membership during IQS'? and I sincerely hope that a large proportion of the asbestos industry w ill be likewise represented. The plans of the Foundation for 1937 are ambitious in scope and w ill necessarily c a ll for the expenditure of relatively large sums of money. I t is fortunate in having the whole-hearted co-operation of the Mellon In stitu te , which is providing o ffices and laboratory f a c ilit ie s together with the services of certain members of it3 personnel without expense to the Foundation. You w ill also find enclosed herewith, for your file s and general information, three (3) copies of a l i s t setting forth the names of the o ffic e r s , trustees and various committees. I f you require any further information) please do not hesitate to c a ll upon me. Very truly yours, (Signed) Vandiver Brown General Attorney VB:T Enclosures