Garage Mechanics Research Articles

A Lost Museum

A Lost Museum FRED LICHT Had i been any older, I might have felt guilty for falling into a dream job at a time when hundreds of thousands were going hungry and unemployed. What made it even worse is that I got the job not because of any merit, not because I was better suited for the work than any other candidate, but simply because I happened to be in the right place at the right time. Yet even now, the shame I feel at having been happy at a time of widespread misery is dictated by my brain and not by my heart. It was late summer 1945 and I was visiting cousins in Lausanne from whom I had been separated since the beginning of the war. Ostensibly, I had come to Europe to study, although what it was I could study better in Lausanne than in New York was not clear to anyone. One of my cousins owned and ran a prosperous industry that had blossomed throughout the war. Money was no problem and he was a generous man who liked to enjoy his fortune in good company . Hardly a week went by without his inviting his friends and relatives on splendid outings to rarefied restaurants hidden in the Alps, and it was on one of these outings that I happened to be in the right place at the right time. We had been up beyond Rochers de Naye to feast on all sorts of delicacies and were on our way back, just about half way to Lausanne when my cousin’s ancient Packard, a prewar model as were all cars in those days, broke down. In itself it would have been no tragedy. The local automobile club rescued us in no time at all and the Packard was dragged off to the nearest garage, where the blackest diagarion 25.3 winter 2018 nosis was made by two very trustworthy mechanics: the car would never roll again. Under normal circumstances, that, too, would have been no disaster because my cousin could easily afford a new car. The trouble was that the Swiss government , in order to head off a threatening inflation, had promulgated a law that forbade the importation of all imported luxury goods. It was lawful to buy fifty gold and diamond watches which nobody in Switzerland wanted or needed, but in a country gorged with ready cash it was impossible to purchase a new American refrigerator, an air conditioner or a new car. The Packard, cosseted and tended with all the tricks of the best garage mechanics, had lasted through the war and through the first year after the armistice, but now that it had given up the ghost it could not be replaced. Fortunately, my cousin had a wide and well-connected circle of friends, acquaintances and grateful clients. One of them put him in touch with a rather shady gentleman who ran an import-export firm that dealt in unspecified merchandise and this shady gentleman, when consulted by my cousin, came up with an idea that might make it possible to get a new car after all. Ever since the outbreak of the war, the Swiss government had negotiated an extraterritorial dock in the harbor at Genoa. Cargo ships landed regularly at the Swiss pier and there was no reason why they could not unload a car to be signed over to someone willing to drive the car for two thousand kilometers at which point the car was legally “used merchandise” and could be sold in Switzerland without further ado. My cousin still looked disconsolate. “Where am I going to find someone willing to drive the car for two thousand kilometers?” As I said, for once I was in the right place at the right time. Within three weeks a huge black Cadillac with crimson leather upholstery was hoisted out of the hold of the Arosa III onto a dock in Genoa, I was given the keys together with some papers to sign and was off on the happiest adventure 150 a lost museum of my life. Not only did I have a car and the liberty to go wherever I wished for two...

Injuries in marginal workers and social trauma in female: Important cause of the paradigm shift in eye injury over a decade.

Background:Changing profile of work force can give rise different types of injuries.Purpose:To analyse causative factors (Host-Agent-Event) in ocular trauma over last 15 years.Methods:Hospital based prospective study during 1997-2012. Detailed information on nature of trauma; agent and setting were recorded.Results:Cohort included 12365 eye injuries, 1241 serious cases. Prevalence – 0.45 /10000 Mean age 45.8 with bi- modal pattern of incidence, 3:1 male-female ratio. 80% closed globe, 48% workplace injury (90% in marginal labourers with an exponential annual increase). 10% cases from garage mechanics.60% of eye injuries in female were related to “social violence”. Multivariate analysis has detected new causative agents.Conclusion:Significant change in parameters of trauma (Host-Agent-Event) is resulting in paradigm shift in eye injury. Unorganised unaccustomed labour in workplace injury and “social trauma” in females has become an important cause of eye injury.

Role of Private Garage Mechanics in Influencing Car Purchase

A private garage mechanic is the first level contact point for any car owner, by virtue of his proximity and accessibility in the society. However, the potential car owners (intending buyers of cars) look at these mechanics with mixed opinions. While a set of potential car owners view them as an excellent source of information for taking the purchase decision, there is another set of potential car owners, who don’t trust these mechanics, suspecting them of having vested interest. The car manufacturers too view them with suspicion. However, these mechanics are seen as ‘necessary evils’ due to their ability to spread negative word of mouth and hence, it becomes necessary to nurture them.

Wavelet-based acoustic analysis for determining health condition of motorized two-wheelers

The garage mechanics assess the health condition of a vehicle based on sounds of vehicles. This expert knowledge needs to be stored in repositories and employed for automatic fault diagnosis. In this work, we propose a method to determine the health condition of motorcycles, based on discrete wavelet transform (DWT). The 1D central contour moments and invariant contour moments, of approximation coefficients of DWT form the feature vector. Dynamic time warping (DTW) classifier along with Euclidean distance measure is used for health classification. The results show over 98% classification accuracy for some subbands and some feature sets.

Mass, surface area and number metrics in diesel occupational exposure assessment

While diesel aerosol exposure assessment has traditionally been based on the mass concentration metric, recent studies have suggested that particle number and surface area concentrations may be more health-relevant. In this study, we evaluated the exposures of three occupational groups-bus drivers, parking garage attendants, and bus mechanics-using the mass concentration of elemental carbon (EC) as well as surface area and number concentrations. These occupational groups are exposed to mixtures of diesel and gasoline exhaust on a regular basis in various ratios. The three groups had significantly different exposures to workshift TWA EC with the highest levels observed in the bus garage mechanics and the lowest levels in the parking ramp booth attendants. In terms of surface area, parking ramp attendants had significantly greater exposures than bus garage mechanics, who in turn had significantly greater exposures than bus drivers. In terms of number concentrations, the exposures of garage mechanics exceeded those of ramp booth attendants by a factor of 5-6. Depending on the exposure metric chosen, the three occupational groups had quite different exposure rankings. This illustrates the importance of the choice of exposure metric in epidemiological studies. If these three occupational groups were part of an epidemiological study, depending on the metric used, they may or may not be part of the same similarly exposed group (SEG). The exposure rankings (e.g., low, medium, or high) of the three groups also changes with the metric used. If the incorrect metric is used, significant misclassification errors may occur.

Pulmonary function abnormalities associated with exposure to automobile exhaust in a diesel bus garage and roads.

In Kolkata city the road transports are maintained by private and Government organization. A major work force belonged to the State Transport Corporation (KSTC), Government of West-Bengal. The pollution caused by these vehicles affects the workers health and caused different types of respiratory problems. This study was undertaken to assess the pulmonary function status of these workers. City KSTC garage workers were investigated and categorically divided into two group: garage mechanics and the (2) those transporting the passengers (drivers and conductors). Vital capacity (VC), forced vital capacity (FVC) and peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) were recorded by Spirovit-SP-10 (Schiller Ltd, Switzerland) and Wright's Peak Flow Meter (UK) on 236 workers. The different flow volumes, FEV(1), FEV(1%), and flow rates, FEF(02-121), FEF(25-75%), etc. were calculated. The administrative people had higher PFT than the other categories. Drivers and conductors have almost equal mean PFT values but mechanical workers had slightly higher. PFT values according to different age ranges and duration of exposure showed gradual decrement as age and duration of exposure increased. Non-smokers had higher lung volumes compared to smokers and ex-smokers. Restrictive, obstructive and combined types of impairments were noticed in 28.4%, 1.7% and 2.9%, respectively, workers. The restrictive impairment was found to be 30.4% in conductors; 28.9% in drivers, 27.9% in mechanics and 21.7% in administration people. Obstructive type of impairment was found to be 2.9% in both drivers and conductors. The effect of pollution by dust and fumes may be responsible for these pulmonary function impairments, restrictive impairments being greater.

Complementing an Interval Based Diagnosis Method with Sign Reasoning in the Automotive Domain

In the automotive field, the use of an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) to control several functions (such as engine injection or ABS) increases. To diagnose such systems, diagnosis trees are built. These trees allow the garage mechanics to find the faulty component(s) by performing a set of tests (measurements) which has the lowest global cost as possible. Two methods, interval based and sign consistency based, which compute diagnosis of electronic circuits are presented, their different features are outlined and it is shown how they can beneficially complement each other.

Determination of Hemoglobin and Serum Albumin Adducts of Benzo[a]Pyrene by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry in Humans and Their Relation to Exposure and to other Biological Markers

In this study we have examined the relationship of benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) exposure with B[a]P-7,8-diol-9,10-epoxide (BPDE) adduct formation in globin and serum albumin (SA). We also have evaluated the relationship of BPDE-globin and -SA adduct formation with urinary 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OH-pyrene), and bulky DNA adducts in peripheral blood lymphocytes. The study groups consist of male Hungarian garage mechanics (smokers and nonsmokers) exposed to diesel engine exhaust and matched control samples from a blood bank in Budapest. The mean level of BPDE-globin adducts in the garage mechanics (n=15) is 5.9±4.8 fmol/mg globin (ranging from 0.5 to 19.9 fmol/mg globin) and that in controls (n=15), is 2.4±2.5 fmol/mg globin (ranging from ND to 8.5 fmol BPDE/mg globin). The mean of BPDE-SA in garage mechanics is 0.36±0.6 fmol/mg SA (ranging from ND to 2.6 fmol/mg SA) and, in controls it is 0.29±0.3 fmol/mg SA (ranging from ND to 1.3 fmol/mg SA). The results of this study indicate that levels of BPDE-SA adducts are about one order of magnitude lower than levels of globin adducts. The mean of BPDE-globin and -SA adducts in garage mechanics are 2.4-fold (p=0.02) and 1.2-fold (p=0.7) higher than those in controls, respectively. Similarly, levels of urinary 1-OH-pyrene in the exposed group are 2.1-fold higher than those in controls (p=0.03). The correlation coefficients between estimated B[a]P exposure (both ingested and inhaled) and formation of globin adducts and urinary 1-OH-pyrene are γ=0.49 (p=0.06), and γ=0.31 p=0.26), respectively. This study suggests that BPDE-globin adducts and urinary 1-OH-pyrene may be better biomarkers of exposure than BPDE-SA adducts.

Biomonitoring of human genotoxicity induced by complex occupational exposures

Sensitivity, specificity and correlations among several biomarkers for monitoring occupational exposure to complex mixtures of genotoxic agents were assessed in occupational environments in Hungarian study populations. The studies have been focused on DNA adduct formation, urinary metabolites, mutations and micronuclei induced by exposures to complex organic mixtures. In two Hungarian aluminium plants, increased DNA adduct and 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OH-PY) levels were observed in workers as compared to controls. However, no association between the biomarker levels was evident on an individual basis. In Hungarian garage mechanics, DNA adduct determinations did not show increased genotoxic exposure as compared to the controls. However, ambient air measurements, significantly enhanced 1-OH-PY levels, and slightly enhanced frequency of micronuclei indicated increased polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) exposure in the garages, as compared to the general environment. In a Hungarian vulcanizing plant, DNA adduct determinations and 1-OH-PY did not show significantly elevated exposure levels as compared to controls. The glycophorin A (GPA) somatic mutation assay was also negative for this occupational exposure. The results support previous observations of a lack of correlation between DNA adducts detectable by 32 P -postlabelling and those measured by the PAH–DNA immunoassay in the same DNA sample. These studies also demonstrate a lack of close correlation between levels of DNA adducts and urinary 1-OH-PY in the same individual.

Hematopoietic and Lymphatic Malignancies in Vehicle Mechanics

Although it is generally acknowledged that benzene causes leukemia, especially acute myeloid leukemia, considerable divergences persist in the assessment of the leukemia risk due to occupational low-level benzene exposure. Specifically, the risk for vehicle mechanics is considered by some authors as being nondetectable with epidemiologic methods, whereas others calculated that the incidence rate of leukemia (all types) in vehicle mechanics is increased more than 60 times. The purpose of this review is to examine the publications on this topic in light of criteria for causal inference and to discuss the possible role of bias, confounding factors, and chance. The results of this analysis reveal that there are surprisingly few epidemiologic observations supporting an increased incidence of leukemia in vehicle mechanics. Apparently, publications suggesting a leukemogenic effect of low-level benzene exposure in garage mechanics are more often quoted than their negative counterparts, although they are not better designed.

Haematopoietic cancer mortality among vehicle mechanics.

This historical cohort study investigated causes of death among car and mobile equipment mechanics in the District of Columbia's Department of Public Works. Men who were employed for at least one year between 1977 and 1989 were eligible for inclusion in the cohort; follow up was up to the end of 1991. Three cases of leukaemia (index cases) had been reported among these workers before the inception of this study. This research was undertaken to estimate the relative risk of haematological cancer among mechanics working for the District of Columbia. Among the 335 male fleet maintenance workers, the all cause standardised mortality ratio (SMR) was 0.50 (33 observed deaths, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.35-0.70), and the all cancer SMR was 0.55 (nine deaths, 95% CI 0.25-1.05). Three deaths from lymphatic and haematopoietic cancer were observed; the SMR was 3.63 (95% CI 0.75-10.63). In the subgroup with highest potential for exposure to fuels and solvents, the SMR for leukaemia and aleukaemia was 9.26 (two deaths, 95% CI 1.12-33.43), and the SMR for other lymphatic and haematopoietic neoplasms was 2.57 (one death from malignant lymphoma, 95% CI 0.06-14.27). All three lymphatic and haematopoietic cancer deaths were among car and mobile equipment mechanics (one was an index case). The two additional index cases were a fourth mechanic who died of leukaemia in 1992, after mortality follow up ended, and a fifth mechanic who was diagnosed with leukaemia in 1988 and is still alive. Many garage mechanics in this cohort regularly used petrol to clean parts and to wash their hands; some workers would occasionally siphon petrol by mouth. Benzene, a recognised cause of haematological cancer, is a component of petrol. Previous research indicates that garage mechanics may be at risk of leukaemia and other haematological cancers, presumably due to exposure to petrol; this study supports those findings.

Occupational and Environmental Exposure of Automobile Mechanics and Nonautomotive Workers to Airborne Manganese Arising from the Combustion of Methylcyclopentadienyl Manganese Tricarbonyl (MMT)

Inhalation exposure to manganese (Mn) was measured for a group of garage mechanics and a control group of nonautomotive workers. The airborne Mn exposure of 35 garage mechanics suspected of being relatively highly exposed to Mn from MMT was measured at the workplace over one-week period. It also was measured for 30 nonautomotive workers at the University of Montreal. The environmental exposure also was measured for the two groups, as was the exposure to three other metals, aluminum (Al), iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn). At work the mechanics were exposed to Mn concentrations varying from 0.010 to 6.673 micrograms m-3 with a mean of 0.45 microgram m-5, while the control group was exposed to concentrations varying from 0.011 to 1.862 microgram m-3 with a mean of 0.04 microgram m-3. The mean environmental exposure for the two groups was similar to the Mn concentrations gathered in Montreal in 1992. Workplace concentrations of Al, Fe, and Zn also were higher for the garage mechanics. The results suggest that less than 10% of the Mn exposure of the garage mechanics was due to MMT. The levels of the metals measured were below the established limits for industrial and even environmental exposure.

Occupational and Environmental Exposure of Automobile Mechanics and Nonautomotive Workers to Airborne Manganese Arising from the Combustion of Methylcyclopentadienyl Manganese Tricarbonyl (MMT)

Inhalation exposure to manganese (Mn) was measured for a group of garage mechanics and a control group of nonautomotive workers. The airborne Mn exposure of 35 garage mechanics suspected of being relatively highly exposed to Mn from MMT was measured at the workplace over a one-week period. It also was measured for 30 nonautomotive workers at the University of Montreal. The environmental exposure also was measured for the two groups, as was the exposure to three other metals, aluminum (Al), iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn). At work the mechanics were exposed to Mn concentrations varying from 0.010 to 6.673 µg m−3 with a mean of 0.45 µg m−3, while the control group was exposed to concentrations varying from 0.011 to 1.862 µg m−3 with a mean of 0.04 µg m−3. The mean environmental exposure for the two groups was similar to the Mn concentrations gathered in Montreal in 1992. Workplace concentrations of Al, Fe, and Zn also were higher for the garage mechanics. The results suggest that less than 10% of the Mn exposure of the garage mechanics was due to MMT. The levels of the metals measured were below the established limits for industrial and even environmental exposure.

Environmental and occupational exposure to manganese: a multimedia assessment

Methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl (MMT) is an organic additive used in Canada since 1976 as an anti-knock agent in unleaded gasoline. Its combustion leads to the emission of Mn oxides, especially Mn3O4. Since no study has assessed the potential risk of chronic exposure to low concentrations resulting from these emissions, the present investigation was undertaken to assess the level of environmental and occupational exposure of the human population. The multimedia exposure of two groups of workers (garage mechanics and blue-collar workers) potentially exposed to different levels of Mn from the combustion of MMT was assessed using personal air samplers, a dietary compilation, water samples at their places of residence, an epidemiological questionnaire and blood and hair samples. Results show that garage mechanics were exposed on average to higher atmospheric Mn at work (0.42 microgram/m3) than the blue-collar workers (0.04 microgram/m3). However, the contribution of atmospheric Mn to the total absorbed dose was less than 1%, and well below the standards established for occupational or environmental exposure; food contributes more than 95% of the multimedia dose. The average whole blood Mn concentrations were similar for the two groups (0.67-0.76 microgram/100 ml) and fall within the normal adult range. The average hair Mn concentrations were significantly higher for the garage mechanics (0.66 microgram/g) than for the blue-collar workers (0.39 microgram/g). The contribution of exogenous Mn versus endogenous Mn is questioned. As judged by the governmental standards or criteria for occupational and non-occupational environments, the current Mn levels in food, water and air may not cause any problems for the workers.

Detection of Occupational Lead Nephropathy Using Early Renal Markers

Automotive use of leaded gasoline continues to be an important source of occupational exposure to lead in India and other countries. The present study assessed the renal function and markers of early renal damage of 22 mechanics at three automobile garages. Urinary N-acetyl-3-D-glucosaminidase activity and beta-2-microglobulin levels were significantly increased in auto garage mechanics with blood leads of 30-69 micrograms/dL. A significant correlation was observed between blood lead levels and urinary N-acetyl-3-D-glucosaminidase activity but not with urine beta-2-microglobulin levels. A marginal impairment in creatinine clearance was not statistically significant. Urinary N-acetyl-3-D-glucosaminidase activity offers a sensitive monitor of blood lead and renal tubular injury.

Occupational and environmental exposure of garage workers and taxi drivers to airborne manganese arising from the use of methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl in unleaded gasoline.

Occupational and environmental exposure to airborne manganese has been measured for two groups of workers in Montreal, taxi drivers and garage mechanics. In Canada methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl (MMT) has replaced lead as an anti-knock agent in gasoline and represents a potentially important source of manganese contamination for the population in general and for the two chosen groups of workers in particular. Twenty workers (10 taxi drivers and 10 garage mechanics) wore a personal air sampler for five consecutive working days and two off-work periods. The amount of total Mn on each filter was determined by neutron activation analysis and then converted to atmospheric Mn concentrations. The values obtained varied from 0.004 microgram m-3 to 2.067 micrograms m-3. At work the garage mechanics were exposed to an average of 0.250 microgram m-3 and the taxi drivers to 0.024 microgram m-3. Off-work, the two groups were exposed respectively to an average of 0.007 microgram m-3 and 0.011 microgram m-3. In the garages there was twice as much Mn in the air on days when the doors were closed compared to days when they were left opened (0.314 micrograms m-3/0.152 microgram m-3). The levels found in this study remain well below the established limits for occupational and environmental airborne exposure. These results will lead to further studies to positively identify the source of Mn as MMT and to explore other pathways leading to the contamination of the general population.

Occupational and Environmental Exposure of Garage Workers and Taxi Drivers to Airborne Manganese Arising from the Use of Methylcyclopentadienyl Manganese Tricarbonyl in Unleaded Gasoline

Occupational and environmental exposure to airborne manganese has been measured for two groups of workers in Montreal, taxi drivers and garage mechanics. In Canada methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl (MMT) has replaced lead as an anti-knock agent in gasoline and represents a potentially important source of manganese contamination for the population in general and for the two chosen groups of workers in particular. Twenty workers (10 taxi drivers and 10 garage mechanics) wore a personal air sampler for five consecutive working days and two off-work periods. The amount of total Mn on each filter was determined by neutron activation analysis and then converted to atmospheric Mn concentrations. The values obtained varied from 0.004 µg m−3 to 2.067 µg m−3. At work the garage mechanics were exposed to an average of 0.250 µg m−3 and the taxi drivers to 0.024 µg m−3. Off-work, the two groups were exposed respectively to an average of 0.007 µm−3 and 0.011 µg m−3 In the garages there was twice as much Mn in the air on days when the doors were closed compared to days when they were left opened (0.314 µg m−3/0.152 µg m−3). The levels found in this study remain well below the established limits for occupational and environmental airborne exposure. These results will lead to further studies to positively identify the source of Mn as MMT and to explore other pathways leading to the contamination of the general population.

Continuous measurement of lumbar posture using flexible electrogoniometers.

Continuous measurement of changing limb segment angle is possible using a recently introduced flexible electrogoniometer but, unfortunately, the magnitude of linear displacements occurring during flexion and extension of the trunk has prevented its use as a measure of spinal mobility and posture. To overcome this limitation, a specially constructed, lightweight, aluminium carriage has been developed to allow free linear travel of the electrogoniometer, while maintaining the angle recorded between the thoracolumbar junction and the sacrum. The reliability and practicability of this new approach for recording changes in lumbar posture have been investigated. Following bench tests and operator training, measurements of maximal flexion and extension of the lumbar spine were repeated on 12 subjects. The extent of sagittal mobility was compared with measures from a fluid-filled inclinometer and a flexicurve. Analysis of the data showed that the use of the aluminium carriage did not markedly influence the accuracy of the electrogoniometer, and the technique as modified was found to be comparable with standard techniques for estimating the extent of lumbar sagittal flexibility. A field based study, involving four garage mechanics, was undertaken to examine the usability and acceptability of the electrogoniometer technique for continuous measurements. Lumbar curvature was monitored continuously for a two hour period during the course of the mechanics' working day. Dedicated software provided angle-time plots from which it was established that extreme flexed or extended postures were maintained only for relatively short periods; projection to an eight hour shift would indicate that a total of approximately 40 min is spent in extension beyond 10 degrees and flexion beyond 50 degrees. The technique has the potential to provide quantitative information on lumbar posture necessary for non-invasive, biomechanical investigations of spinal loading. It will be particularly useful for both sporting and occupational ergonomics field-studies.

Chrysotile asbestos, mesothelioma and garage mechanics: Response to Dr. Wong

Chrysotile asbestos, mesothelioma and garage mechanics: Response to Dr. Wong

Asbestos exposure during brake lining maintenance and repair

Data obtained on asbestos exposure of garage mechanics during brake lining maintenance and repair work show that fiber concentrations frequently in excess of regulated limits are common. The presence of chrysotile, ranging from 2 to 15%, in brake drum dusts, was demonstrated by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, selected area electron diffraction, and electron microprobe analyses. Unaltered chrysotile was found, both in fiber and fibril form, in air and brake drum dust samples. The chrysotile asbestos content of personal air samples, taken during automobile brake repair work, was measured both by optical and electron microscopic techniques. While a positive correlation exists between the types of measurements, the present technique of optically counting asbestos fibers may considerably underestimate the levels of total asbestos exposure.