A recent survey conducted by visiting thirty motor vehicle repair body shops and telephonically interviewing 500 body shops has revealed that many sprayers and body shop managers are unaware of the association between paint containing isocyanates and asthma. Such workers are exposed to a high risk of developing occupational asthma as they are likely to breathe in the invisible mist containing isocyanates which can cause asthma.
The focus of the study was the usage of two pack paints containing isocyanates. The results indicate that the awareness of the fore said risk has vastly improved amongst the sprayers and body shop managers. But still a vast majority fails to take the required precautions and hence such workers are 80 times more prone to develop occupational asthma than workers in other fields.
A couple of areas of concern, as indicated by the study are as follows. Firstly, most body shop managers do not know about booth clearance timings. Hence they enter the booth before the prescribed safe time gap and hence breathe in the isocyanate containing mist. Secondly, although 85% of the workers do wear the prescribed air-fed apparatus, they do not take proper precautions and lift up their visor to check the paint even before the paint is completely dry. This, too, exposes them to the harmful isocyanates. Hence after study, measures are being taken to promote greater awareness amongst body shop managers and sprayers so that they take the proper precautions while working with the spray paints.
HSE executive Louise Rice commented that although the awareness of protective measures to be taken while spray painting has greatly improved amongst workers but situation still demands more efforts in this direction.
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