Foundry Workers

Foundry workers (mainly die-casters and core makers) have been a high risk group within the West Midlands, UK (and presumably worldwide) for some time. There have been more than 50 reports to the SHIELD scheme in the West Midlands (UK) including at least 6 foundries with more than 1 reported case. The commonest cause is from the fumes during core making, or casting into moulds with cores (the cores provide the "holes" in a casting, for instance for cylinder blocks). Cores are made from sand and bound with a resin, commonly phenol formaldehyde (hot box), or isocyanates (cold box). Other reports have come from aluminium casting without cores when fluoride fluxes are used.

We investigated an outbreak of occupational asthma in a foundry in 2001, probably due to phenol formaldehyde. The workers had been exposed for a maximum of 35 to a minimum of 9 years before their symptoms appeared, suggesting a long latency period. The outbreak started when extraction was moved to allow space for bigger castings. Symptoms improved when the extraction was replaced.

References

	Hannu T, Piipari R, Tuppurainen M, Nordman H, Tuomi T, Occupational asthma caused by stainless steel welding fumes: a clinical study , Eur Respir J, 2007;29:85-90,

	Low I, Mitchell C, Absence and labour turnover in a foundry attributable to respiratory disease, J Soc Occup Med, 1991;41:185-187,

	Symington P, Coggon D, Holgate S, Respiratory symptoms in children at schools near a foundry, Brit J Industr Med, 1991;48:588-591,

	Liss GM, Bernstein DI, Moller DR, Gallagher JS, Stephenson RL, Bernstein IL, Pulmonary and immunologic evaluation of foundry workers exposed to methylene diphenyldiisocyanate (MDI), J Allergy Clin Immunol, 1988;82:55-61,

	Takazakura E, Tsuji H, Makino H, Terada Y, Sugiura H, Kitagawa S, Two cases of hypersensitivity pneumonitis due to isocyanate in foundry castworkers, Jap J Thoracic Dis, 1987;25:924-928,

	Johanson A, ChanYeung M, MacLean L, Atkins E, Dybuncio A, Cheng F, Enarson D, Respiratory abnormalities among workers in an iron and steel foundry, Brit J Industr Med, 1985;42:94-100,

	Low I, Mitchell C, Respiratory disease in foundry workers, Brit J Industr Med, 1985;42:101-105,

	ZammitTabona M, Sherkin M, Kijek K, Chan H, ChanYeung M, Asthma caused by diphenylmethane diisocyanate in foundry workers, Am Rev Respir Dis, 1983;128:226-230,

	Scherrer M, Imhof K, Weickhardt U, Lebek G, Humidifier fever in a group of foundry workers, Schweiz Rundschau Med (Praxis), 1978;67:1855-1861,

Related pages

			Shield
			Isocyanates
			Chrome Fumes

Links

	Foundry Mold and Coremaker information on the Haz-Map Database of Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases
Information on high risk job tasks for foundry mold and coremakers
http://hazmap.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/hazmap_generic?tbl=TblJobs&id=239

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