Industrial Hygiene Report, In-Depth Survey, Solvent Vapor Survey of Screen Printing Operations, Manuscreens, Maspeth, New York

摘要

In order to aid in characterizing the hazards to employees in the screen printing industry (SIC-2751), a walk through survey was conducted. Possible exposures to screen printers included solvents, which presented nervous system and fire and explosion hazards. Ventilation consisted of six ceiling fans, local fans over long printing tables, and a makeup air unit at the side of the building. All personal and area air samples indicated solvent levels well below OSHA and NIOSH standards. The author concludes that further reduction of these levels will decrease any toxic effects. General recommendations are as follows: all inks and solvent containers should be habitually closed when not being used; protective gloves should be used to prevent skin absorption; good working habits are encouraged; proper warning labels should be placed on chemicals used in the work processes; further education should be provided to workers concerning the hazards of materials with which they are dealing; eating and smoking around the work area should be prohibited; and proper work bench height should be utilized.