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Reported industrial hygiene surveys aboard seagoing vessels are few, despite the presence of many potentially hazardous chemical and physical agents aboard ships. This investigation focused on crew noise exposure aboard an oceangoing hopper dredge. Noise exposure criteria were adopted based on the 24-hr equivalent continuous sound level (Leq(24)) because of the absence of standards for U.S. shipboard noise exposure. Personal noise dosimeters were used to measure the noise exposure of watchstanders, whose duties were predictable and repetitive. Watchstanders with high noise doses were asked to estimate their duration of exposure in specific areas of the vessel to enable calculation of noise dose per space. Noise sources within spaces associated with high noise dose were identified by sound pressure and surface vibration analysis in octave bands. Almost all accommodation spaces (cabins, recreation rooms, dining rooms, and hospital) were sufficiently quiet (sound pressure levels [SPLs] less than 65 dBA) to permit hearing threshold recovery. Machinery space SPLs ranged from 85 to 108 dBA, and engineering personnel noise exposure exceeded the selected criterion of Leq(24) = 80 dBA. Selective noise abatement and use of an enclosed operating station in the engine room were recommended to control engineering personnel noise exposure. This approach to noise exposure assessment and reduction should be applicable to other oceangoing ships where personnel may be exposed to noise 24 hr per day for weeks at a time.

The Medical Data Base System provides a mechanism for correlating industrial hygiene survey data with specific jobs and with the medical records of the individual employee. An occupational survey groups jobs by departments or by location according to potential exposures. Results of industrial hygiene surveys are correlated with the occupational survey to assign exposures. Results of pre-placement health examinations, given to every employee and periodic examinations, given to those employees who are potentially exposed to harmful chemical or physical agents in their work environment, form the Medical Records File. Development of the data collection and storage phase of this system was completed in 1972, and the system was implemented at that time. The retrieval/analysis phase of the system is currently under development. Although the present data base does not provide an adequate basis for true epidemiological studies, some trial evaluations have been completed successfully.

An effective strategy to prevent health hazards will utilize industrial hygiene principles in all phases of a project, including process development, the design bases, the final design, during construction, and during and after start-up. The involvement of industrial hygiene in engineering design results in cost-effective minimization of health hazards from toxic chemicals and harmful physical agents. Measurements of post start-up emission levels and employee exposures can be utilized to evaluate the performance of the controls which were implemented in the design. This will aid in the development of future designs and identify where research is needed to develop better controls to prevent health hazards.

Few generally accepted standards for personnel exposure to ultraviolet radiation presently exist. Values which have been used as guide-lines were based either on a single-wavelength effect (253.7 nm) which may be emitted from an essentially monochromatic source, or on data which is somewhat at variance with that obtained in more recent investigations. The Committee on Physical Agents of ACGIH has proposed a tentative TLV for ultraviolet which assumes that a single spectral-effects weighting curve can be made applicable for exposure to both the eyes and the skim. The advantages of this aproach are: (1) Calculations and measurements are simplified. (2) It favors the development of a single direct-readout hazard instrument. It also makes an assumption that the eye is the critical organ and that distinction between eye and skin exposure is not essential; that it is acceptable to apply a large factor of safety to the skin in order to protect the eyes. The biological data which support this synthesized approach...

The following is a commentary on those issues surrounding women in the workplace. Three significant trends have led us to our present discussions, with a call for more research into the reproductive effects of chemical and physical agents.

Industrial hygiene engineering can be utilized most effectively when it is employed in the design or construction phases of new or modified chemical manufacturing processes. Minimization of leaks, spills, fugitive emissions and other releases is the goal. Some chemical and physical agents can still be released during normal or non-normal operations and during plant turnaround procedures and these require continuous industrial hygiene surveillance. It follows that industrial hygiene principles must continue to be applied in all phases of the petrochemical industry from the beginning of the design and throughout the life of the unit.