Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Page 11 Clinton Complies With Cotton Dust Standards David Pugh of Texcon checks the operation of a vertical elutriator to be certain the dust levels throughout Clinton Mills are accurately measured. In recent years Clinton Mills, the textile industry and the government have become increasingly concerned about occupational exposure to various kinds of dust. The exist ence of respiratory problems associated with the processing of natural fibers was first noted in flax mills in Europe about 200 years ago. In fact, it was during this period that the word "byssinosis” or “flax disease” was first used to describe the respiratory ailment associated with long-term exposure to dust. The cotton dust standard defines cotton dust as any dust present in the air during the handling or processing of cotton, including ground-up leaves, stems, bract, soil and other organic substances. What we are con cerned with, however, is that dust which is respirable, or small enough to enter the lungs since it is trapped by the nasal pas sages. It was not until the early 1970s that scien tists confirmed the existence of a link be tween cotton dust and respiratory problems among some textile workers. While little is known about the active substance or subst ances that may cause byssinosis, most sci entists believe that tiny particles of the leaf like trash from the cotton plant contain the 'harmful agents. It is known that the cotton fiber itself is not harmful. The majority of people exposed to cotton dust do not show any reaction at all. While the exact number is unknown, studies con ducted since the 1970s show that less than five percent of the people tested react abnor mally to cotton dust exposure. These same tests show that almost all persons who react are smokers. This is an important point to remember if you smoke since it is well documented that smoking makes any respiratory problem more severe. To provide for uniform methods of measuring and controlling employee expo sure, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has established standards for textiles that process cotton. A copy of the standard which went into effect March 27, 1980, is available from Mack Parsons in our main office for refer ence at any time. The standard provides for specific mea sures to be taken in seven areas as follows. Exposure Monitoring Exposure monitoring determines the level of dust exposure in each processing area of the plant. Dust levels at Clinton Mills are monitored by an instrument known as a vertical elut riator. This instrument collects and mea sures respirable cotton dust over a six-hour period to determine eight-hour, time- weighted exposure. Measurements of dust levels throughout the plants are taken every six months. Each employee is advised of the dust levels to which he is exposed and the results of the tests in each work area is available in writing. Engineering Controls Engineering controls to collect the dust before it can escape into the work area are important. The purpose of the engineering controls is to collect the dust at the point where it is generated and then filter the dust out of the air so that the air returned to the work area is clean and dust-free, x Work Practices Work practices have been implemented to insure that generation of dust is minimized when handling the cotton. This part of our compliance plan to reduce exposure to cotton dust is the part that in volves each employee directly. A written work practices manual is avail able outlining specific work rules and proce dures applicable to each employee’s indi vidual work areas. These are simply a set of common sense rules which minimize your exposure to cotton dust. A few of these rules, written in general terms are: 1. Compressed air cleaning of machinery will be prohibited where alternative means are feasible. 2. Where compressed air cleaning is the only alternative, respirators are to be worn by those employees performing the “blow down.” All other employees not involved in the cleaning operation will be required to leave the work area. Cleaning of floors or clothing with com pressed air is also prohibited. Floor sweeping will be done with brooms in a way that minimizes stirring up dust that may be settled on the floor. 5. When cleaning lint traps, waste should be kept as far away from the face as possible. 6. Where feasible, vacuum collecting of waste may be done to avoid excessive hand ling of lint. 7. Another key part of work practices in volves routine maintenance to assure that all dust collection and ventilation systems are in proper working order. Your assistant de partmental superintendent will be pleased to review the work practices for each work area. Respirators Respirators are to be used in areas where it is not possible to reduce the dust level below permissible levels and when using compressed air. Persons required to wear respirators will be given a choice of type, and will be proper ly instructed in their use by their assistant departmental superintendent. If you have any problems wearing a respirator, consult your assistant departmental superinten dent. Employee Education and Training Employeefeducation and training provides employees with information about the stan dard and what is being done to reduce expo sure to cotton dust. This is repeated annual ly or more often by supervision. The Cloth- maker will publish periodically educational material for all employees. Medical Surveillance Our medical surveillance identifies those persons wo react to cotton dust and provides corrective measures where necessary. Medical surveillance, or lung function testing, is available to all covered employees exposed to cotton dust. The purpose of these tests is to identify those persons who react to cotton dust so that protective measures can be taken. The tests are conducted at the beginning of the work week—depending on shift schedule. Employees are asked to blow into a machine called a spirometer to determine lung capacity and how much air one can exhale in one second. The test is done before going on the shift. After a minimum of four hours has elapsed, the employee is tested again. Results of the first test will be mea sured against standards to see how the em ployee compares to an average person of similar age, height and sex. The purpose of the second test is to detect any change in your lung function during the shift. The breathing test will be repeated at least annually. You will be advised if Clinton Mills detects any change in respiratory func tion. In some instances test results may re quire the employee to have a more detailed examination by a doctor. A medical questionnaire is completed annually or more often for each employee exposed to cotton dust. This questionnaire, along with your pulmonary function tests, will aid in detecting any abnormal breathing or respiratory problems. Employees have the privilege of seeing your medical or test records at any time, but they are otherwise confidential, except for authorized persons who have responsibility for administering the program. Warning Signals important Warning signals designate those areas of the plant where the dust levels exceed the permissible exposure level, PEL for short. This is simply the maximum amount of cot ton dust that employees can be exposed to over a specified period of time without harm ful side effects. Three exposure levels or PEL’S have been established in the standards to cover all faci lities where cotton dust may be found. The first category is for yarn manufacturing which includes operations from the opening of a bale of cotton through winding. The PEL for manufacturing is two-tenths milligram per cubic meter of air. The second category is slashing and weav ing. The PEL is seventy-five hundredths mil ligram per cubic meter of air. Finally in non-textile operations such as waste processing and warehousing, the PEL is five-tenths milligram per cubic meter of air. To get some idea of what these measure ments mean, consider a typical home re frigerator that is empty. If we place two grains of salt on the shelf, that equates roughly with two-tenths milligram of dust per cubic meter. Our cotton dust monitoring is conducted by Texcon, a leading consul tant in this field. Texcon is located in Green ville, S.C. The success of our cotton dust control program depends on all employees working together. We will do our part, but we are going to need your help and full cooperation to make the program effective. TOGETHER, WE’LL CONQUER COHON DUST! / Vu.s>' BUY AMERICAN CRAFTSMANSHIP FROM CLINTON MILLS CLINTON MILLS SALES CO. Ill W. 40th St.. N.Y.C. -(212) 391-0270