Document jNDpzdGRN4RZk9VdLxz9oNQ5p

FILE NAME: National Safety Council (NSC) DATE: 1933 Oct DOC#: NSC184 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION: Transactions of the NSC - 22nd Annual Safety Congress - Presentation - Health Hazards in the Foundry 44 Tzacntx-.sccoud Contjrcss-- National Safety Council W h a t we reallv need is a strengthening of the technical side of the compensation acts to keep pace with the increased tactual understanding regarding the occupational diseases. This does not merely refer to the tjonrts themselves hnt should hein with the prom ulgation of accurately worded compensation aets which clcark define the diseases for which compensation is to he paid. Compensation commissioners should be assisted by boards of technical experts composed of engineers appointed by the deans of the various engineering schools and of physicians appointed by the deans of the recognized medical schools. The engineers selected should have a very com plete knowledge of factory conditions and the held of ventilation, and the physicians should he experts in the field of industrial hygiene and occupational disease. It is otilv with the aid of such highly specialized boards, or their equivalents, that the compensation commissioners may he aide to do complete justice to both sides in these highly technical cases. It is the belief of the speaker that employers and em ployees alike would benefit greatly from the establishment and use of such boards. In order to hasten the establishment of this system employers are justified in ap pealing to their legislatures with this end in view; certainly such a legitimate demand should receive the hearty support of all concerned. Frequently one is asked, what should he done with those claims which are based on little or no real evidence of injury to the worker but which are merely reared bv some very enterprising attorney: Such claims are. I have been told, becoming very common of late and constitute a real problem to industry. It is obvious that the compensation advisory boards suggested earlier will, as soon as they are formed, serve the future as a healthy bulwark against this type of baseless claim and I venture to predict that lew such eases would be tavorably acted upon !>y a board of real experts in this field. At the present time laetorv officials should employ tinvery best legal talent available and should reinforce such legal talent with technical and medical experts thoroughly versed in the held of silicosis. Many eases have been lost by a failure to bring to bear the requisite technical aid required to prove the non-existence of a hazard. Here is an excellent example of a ease in which money may he saved in the end by increased expenditures. W e now arrive at the final steps in the control of this problem, the physical and X -ray examination of the worker. Kvery factory should have pre-employment and routine post-examinations. It seems obvious that the burden of the health of the w orker should not he placed on the plant without the privilege of the prc-emplovmeni examination. How can industry lie legitimately expected to hire a worker "in tinblind" as to his or her physical condition and then a day later he expected to shoulder the burden of the worker's health." By repeated physical examinations it is possible to discern the faint early deviations from normal health if any take place. In this maimer the employer would he forewarned very warty if any workmen showed Ittug changes suggestive of early silicosis. The routine industrial health examination on a broad scale throughout the major portion of American industry would constitute a public health procedure of major significance. I!y its means a very large propor tion of the population would lie aided in the prevention of the degenerative diseases of middle life which today constitutes such a real menace. ADJO U RN M EN T T I V T A' T V - S E C O X l> A X X l ' A I. S A /' li T V C O X ( R T. S S x a r i o x a /. x .i / /:r v c o r x ctt. ) Falls o f Persons THURSDAY AFTERNOON SESSION October 5, 1933 T he special session devoted to discussion of problems arising through falls of persons was called to order by \V. S. Paine, manager, Knginccring and Inspection Department. Aetna Life Insurance Company, Hartford. Connecticut, who presided. Chairman I'aine welcomed the delegates and immediately introduced the first speaker. Ladder Accidents and Their Prevention By F. L. HURLBUTT Manager. Patent Scaffolding Co., Chicago, Illinois T h e speaker said in part: In discussing ladder accidents, let Us divide oiir subject into three divisions: (1) selection; (2) care or maintenance; and (3) proper use. I can think of no piece of plant equipment in which there is the npportuuitv to buy either safety or accidents that there is in ladders. Basically, no ladder is better than the poorest piece of stock used in its construction. Only well seasoned, straight- grained woods should be used. For extension and string ladders, the rails should be of spruce. Douglas fir, Norway pine or long leaf yellow pine. Because the last named is somewhat heavier, it is not as desirable as the others. Rungs ofoak, ash or hickory are by far the best, and here grain is all important. T o assure straight grain, tin- best n u n s are hand split in distinction to the ordinary machine turned rung. The sectional size of side rails must vary with the length of the ladder, and likewise the diameter of the rungs must vary with the width of the ladderbetween the side rads. But in no case should the diameter of the rung he less than L ; inches, nor the tenon less than inches. A genuine safety measure on extension ladders is the use of automatic locks, instead of the old fashioned gravity locks. All hard ware should he of malleable iron or mild steel. No cast iron fittings should he permitted. Much discussion has been indulged in over the question of whether rung tenons should extend fully to the side rails or only to within a quarter of an inch. Mv experience is that where the tenons do not go all the way through the rails, such ladders retain their rigidity better and do not get wobbly as soon as ladders which have the rails completely bored through. Also, moisture is less likely to get at the tenon of the rung and cause rot. 45 320 Twenty-second Cout/rrss--National Safety Council Mem bership Comm ittee Chairman--R. A. Chaffin, Continental Steel Corp., Kokomo, Indiana. Railway Car Builders Committee Chairman-- P. J. Brand. I'tillman t ar it Manu facturing Corp., Pullm an, Chicago, 111. Members at Large-- L. S. A dam s, H u b b ard Steel Foundry. Fast Chicago, Imi. C. M. Allen, T h e American Rolling Mill Co.. Middletown. Ohio. J. A. Coltrili, National Radiator Cor])., Johnstown. Pa. II. M. Croghan, Inland Steel Co., Indiana Harbor. Imi. G. A. Davis, Illinois Steel Co., Chicago, 111. John P . Eib, Illinois Steel Co.. Joliet, 111. F. A. Kllis, Wheeling Steel Corp., Wheeling, W. Va. W . T. Filmer, T h e Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co., Youngstown, Ohio. A. C. Gibson, Spang, Chalfant & Co.. Inc., Pittsburgh. Pa. Charles W . Ilan k o . Pittsburgh Steel Co., Monessen, Pa. S. F. H aw kes. M acW hyte Company, Kenosha. Wis. II. G. Hensel, T h e Youngstown Sheet it Tube Co., Chicago. 111. W. J. Ireland. K ohler Co.. Kohler, Wis. W . A. Jarvis. The Chase Companies. W aterbary. Conn. F. A. l.auerman. Republic Steel Corp.. South Chicago. 111. T. II. Me Kenney. Illinois Steel Co.. Sonili Chicago. 1)1. 1). V. Medalic. Interlake Iron Corp.. Chicago, 111. W. F. Megraw. II. TI. Robert-on Co.. Pittsburgh. P.i. Robert I - Schmitt. Louisville Car Wheel it Railway Supply Co., Louisville, Kv. 1. K. Stafford. Mississippi \ alley Structural Steel Co., Decatur. III. I. M. W oltz. T h e Youngstown Sheet it Tube Co., Youngstown. Ohio. H ealth Hazards in the F oundry By CAREY P. McCORD, M.D. Medical Director, The Industrial Health Conservancy Laboratories, Cincinnati, Ohio The speaker said in p art: Over and over again it seems necessary to restate in many giu.-es such well established foundry fundamentals as the following: I. Excessive heat is a hazard common to all foundries. J. Excessive heat means high loss of valuable chlorides from the body and calls lor replacement. T he use of salinized drinking water is now better established as desirable than ever before. More rather than less salt is advocated for the normal foundry worker exposed to high temperatures. 3. Molten metal emits chemical rays at times harmful to the eyes. Goggles fitted w ith glass barring these rays prove their worth to the workmen in many plants. 4. Metal fume fever fortunately is fleeting in its known effects, but no less is real. It is more often found where zinc enters the metal mix. 5. Sudden and extreme variations in temperature may be the lot of foundry workers--notably so in winter. The body makes adjustments to these quick changes with admirable facility. No less, these burdens are conducive to respiratory diseases, including pneumonia. Pneumonia reaches hiehest frequency am ong foundry men. 6. Lead poisoning is far from rare in the foundry. ( Metals Section 321 7. Carbon monoxide may lie found in harmful quantities. 8. Antimony, nickel, cadmium, manitanc.se, phosphorus, arsenic, and sulphur may on occasion find their way into the crucible and thus make possible the development oi ill health traceable to such causes. 9. In core making, many hinders have led to skin diseases. 10. If metal grinding, polishing and bulling constitute a part of the foundry's activi ties, a long list of additional hazards may be cited, ranging from the action of chrome polishig materials to tenovitis from the drag of the hulling wheel. 11. Last, but foremost, is the hazard of dust. At the present moment concern over health hazards in the foundry may be divided in the ratio oi 99 per cent for dusty lung diseases and 1 per cent for all others combined. W hile this disproportion may not be warranted, it appears desirable that I devote the major portion of my comments to selected items related to dusts and the diseases produced by dusts. Confronted with any new and outstanding hazard in industry, the tendency is to exaggerate the requirements for control. This notably w.as true when benzol first came into wide industrial application. Now the conditions under which benzol may with safety be used are so well delineated that where these conditions are provided benzol poisoning is unknown. A similar course is predictable for the silica hazard in foundries. As the major problems connected with dusty lung diseases and their causations be come harnessed by the specialist, opportunity is provided for the consideration of many secondary aspects of dust and dusty lung diseases. I propose now to comment on live of these slightly less significant matters--important in my opinion to the employme::' manager, the safety engineer, and the plant physician. 1. IIow shall the toundry operator protect himself against cases of dusty lung dis eases originating in other plants? Many foundry operators are faced with suits or other form of claims that undoubt edly are related to previous employment in other foundries or other dusty trades. Since silicosis may require and usually does require many years for its development to the point of disability, it naturally follows, by way of example, that 1(> years of previous foundry exposure is more blamable in the causation of silicosis than two years of similar exposure in present employment. Yet the present employer is likely to find himself saddled with full responsibility. Lately I have had opportunity to examine well made film negatives of applicants for work, without admitted previous exposure in industry. These persons were totintl to live and drive on lusty country roads made of Hint. Approximately 50 per cent of these young adults presented sufficient involvement in their films to be rated as "suspicious" in relation to pneumoconiosis. (liven a few months exposure in a foundry anyone might hold himself eligible for claims against his employer alleging dustv lung disease. The answer to the problem is definite, livery prospective employee for any dusty portion of a foundry should be x-rayed by a competent maker and interpreter of chest films. F or the goixl of the prospective workman and for the good of the operator, any applicant exhibiting any x-ray evidences of any degree of involvement resulting from the action of dusts or the presence of other pulmonary pathology in well estab lished degree, should be denied employment in any dusty exposure. Expensive as x-rays may be, they are likely to prove one of the most economic steps that may be taken in these days of wholesale litigation, synthetic testimony, unskilled physicians, and plaintiff-prone juries. 322 Tzi'cutv-sccond Cont/rrss--National Safety Council 2. W h at shall he done with the workers known to possess dusty lungs.' In late months many employers in dusty trades have procured routine x-ray exami nations of all employees. Out of every hundred undisahled men, properly examined, a fair percentage is likely to present some degree of clear-cut pneumoconiosis. What is to he done with such men? Many are not disabled. Some are outstandingly hale and hearty. Shall they he told of their stater Many are likely to develop mental quirks and neuroses. Some will take an unfair advantage of the employer through claims. A small consensus of mature and luir-tnindeil opinions as to appropriate ac tion for this very time may he epitomized as follows: Seek to eliminate further exposure to the dust hazard. Do not apprize any undis ahled workman of his condition. Make repeated x-ray examinations at about six months intervals. If advancement of the condition appears, then take action suited to the individual case. Otherwise keep these men at some work. 3. Are negroes more susceptible to dusty lung diseases than whites? I know of no large series of cases arising under identical conditions in this country am ong whites and negroes that prove the negro to he more readily involved hv dusty lung diseases. T h e negro is more susceptible to tuberculosis than his white fellow workman. His housing is likely to he on a lower plane. His exposure to tuberculosis is prone P> he g reater than in the case of the average white man. On account of this background, the negro at this time is rated as a greater risk in the lnuudry than whites under conditions of equal exposure. 4. How necessary arc dust counts in detecting hazardous work points in a plant? T he dust counter lias established itself as the best available yardstick for the deter mination of different quantities of dust in the atmosphere. I.ike so many instruments in its class, the dust sampler and counter has been glorified far beyond its real merits. Opportunities for errors are legion. I.egal standards based on present dust counting methods are utterly futile. N'otwithstanding many pitfalls, however, the dust counter is a most valuable instrument. Ft finds its greatest usefulness in discriminating between, much dust and little dust: improving the efficacy of preventive measures and devices: in the determination of the carriage of fine dust into nun-dusty departments; in the detection of unsuspected dusty work points. 5. In litigation what medical defense may he involved? W ithout presuming any qualifications in the domain of law. the plant physician, the safety riigine- r or the employment manager may he called upon to furnish attorneys all possible information in preparation for trials. F'.elow I am listing a number of items that are in prospective use or have been used in various instances: ta ) Denial of the existence of dusty lung disease: Recently in the examination of a > a r' f 203 films of men exposed and imexposed to dust, one was singled out as except:' nan* `Tee of even usual amounts of fibrosis. This film was examined as an unknown, as were dl others. Later it was pointed out that the workman from whom this film was mad: was a litigant demanding a large sum of money on account of an alleged sdicosi'--. Similarly, about four out of every five litigants alleging ilusty 1ting disease are in fact free of such diseases. The claims are spurious and may he proved so by appropriate examinations carried out by qualified investigators. (b) The denial of disability or prospective disability: A large number of work men whose lungs show some signs of dusty action are not incapacitated and no proof exists that teal disability is an early prospect. (c) The denial of neglect: Many of the true cases of dusty lung disease have been developing over long periods ot years such as 15, 5 or 40. Since the medicai pro- f Metals Section fessiott lias professed scant knowledge of these diseases during these periods, it is unreasonable to believe that the industrialists could have possessed more. Inevitably it follow that operators of dusty industries may not he presumed to have possessed earlier and greater information of these occupational diseases than physicians, indus trial hygienists, state health departments, state factory inspectors, and other agencies devoted to health conservation. No industrialist may be charged with neglect for failure to supply protection against an insidious disease unknown or little known to the medical protessioii. Keen at this time the average physician possesses the most meager information as to these conditions. (d) The origin of the dusty lung disease in previous employment: Manifesting it is unjust that a few weeks of employment in some one foundry should be held re sponsible for a well established dusty lung disease when antedating this employment, there have been years of exposure to similar work in other plants. fc) The origin of the dusty lung disease front causes other than industrial em ployment: In some localities over the country it seems probable that sufficient dust may arise from roads, farm work, etc., to induce characteristic, involvement ot' the lungs. ( f ) T he actual (piantity of dust present in an industry is below any reasonable threshold of probable production ot damage: The mere fact that an industry >>r de partment is classified as a dusty operation is not in itself proof of the possibility of development of pneumoconiosis. The nature and extent of protective devices may fully exculpate the plant as a practical hazard. Dust count methods have certain un deniable limitations, hut this form of testing along with tests of the eliicacv of ven tilating apparatus may he utilized on occasion wholly to eliminate any justification for contention that the air dustiness prevails. <g) Diseases other than pneumoconiosis fully may account for abnormal state in the lungs, or other chest contents: At least ten other diseases may so stimulate pneu moconiosis as to permit contusion and error. Among others tire fungus diseases, tuberculosis, especially disseminated tuberculosis, cancer, syphilis, pleurisy with calci fications. certain types of unresolved pneumonia. In addition, claims tiro known t" have arisen alleging pneumoconiosis when in fact the pathology centered about such unrelated conditions as aneurysm, mediastinal tumor, anaphylactic asthma, valvular heart disease, etc. fill Siliea is not a poison: fn some states claims at law must he based upon acts applicable only to poisonous substances. W h a t constitutes a poison is a matter of definition. At the present time, the best thought as to the action of silica within the lungs is unfavorable to acceptation of it as a poison. Primarily, siliea action is physical rather than chemical. fk ) Pneumoconiosis docs not constitute an accidental injury: fn some instances it has been contended that dusty lung states are accidental injuries. Such specious arguments ordinarily arc put forth in effort to obtain compensation in political states where no provisions are made for occupational diseases. T o the contrary, every valid concept prompts a recognition of the pneumoconiosis and occupational diseases. These several defense items are of course not set out as having any element ot the panacea. However, on occasion some one or more may play a helpful part in de feating some of the cases now pending, richly deserving defeat.