Occupational Hazards due to Exposures to Welding Fumes and Gases

More than 500,000 workers in a wide variety of industries are exposed to a unique combination of both safety and health risks according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). These workers are involved with the potentially hazardous activities of welding, cutting and brazing.
 
OSHA reports the risk from fatal injuries alone is more than four deaths per thousand workers over a working lifetime. A significant hazard for many of these workers is inhalation exposure to fumes and gases produced during welding activities. In fact, OSHA has developed a fact sheet about welding fumes and gases discussing potential exposures to everything from lead, cadmium and arsenic to nitric oxide, ozone and carbon monoxide to name just a few substances. The health effects of inhaling these fumes and gases range from respiratory irritation and lung damage to various types of cancer. Exposure to some welding gases at high concentrations could also create asphyxiation hazards.
 
“Hot work, such as welding and torch cutting, can produce byproducts containing a mixture of toxic metal fumes and harmful gas by-products,” said Derrick A. Denis, V.P. of Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) at Clark Seif Clark (CSC). “Some of the most severe adult lead poisoning I have encountered has been in industrial welders.  To assist employers in providing a safe work environment for welders and other workers, as required by law, CSC offers industrial hygiene and air testing services to help minimize worker exposure to these and other occupational hazards. In addition, our experts can provide consulting services on respirators, personal protective equipment (PPE), work processes, and ventilation for industrial facilities and other jobsites where hot work activities occur.” 
 
CSC also recently sponsored an educational video about welding fumes and occupational exposure concerns can be seen at: https://youtu.be/IZjJUDMPrrY
 
To learn more about this or other industrial hygiene, occupational, environmental, indoor air quality, health and safety testing services, please visit www.csceng.com, email csc@csceng.com or call (800) 807-1118. 
 
About Clark Seif Clark
CSC was established in 1989 to help clients in both public and private sectors address indoor air quality, occupational, environmental, and health and safety (EH&S) issues.  CSC is a leading provider of these services with multiple offices along the western seaboard and southwest.  The company believes in science-based protocols and has a strong background in engineering, making them the preferred environmental consultants to industrial clients, healthcare facilities, architects, schools, builders, contractors, developers and real estate professionals.
 

Contact Information

Paul Cochrane

President

Cochrane & Associates, LLC

Contact via E-mail