Pipe Fitters Research Articles

Incidence of cancer among welders, platers, machinists, and pipe fitters in shipyards and machine shops.

The incidence of cancer in 12,693 shipyard and machine shop male workers (1689 welders, 4308 platers, 6003 machinists, 693 pipe fitters) employed for at least one year between 1945 and 1960 was investigated in a retrospective cohort study. The welders had welded only mild steel and had not been exposed to hexavalent chromium containing fume. The follow up was 99.7% complete and the total number of person-years was 304,682. The incidence of cancer in 1953-81 was ascertained through the Finnish Cancer Registry. The observed numbers of cases of cancer were compared with the expected numbers based on regional urban rates. The smoking habits of the cohort were surveyed with a postal questionnaire sent to a sample of 961 workers. The smoking habits of the cohorts were similar and smoking was not more common than among the general population. The total number of cases of cancer was 611 (exp 629) among the shipyard workers and 376 (exp 388) among the machine shop workers. The incidence of lung cancer was increased among the shipyard workers (obs 227, exp 192). This excess was observed in all the worker groups and was most evident for the pipe fitters and platers. Among the machine shop workers, the incidence of lung cancer was lower than expected with the exception of the welders who had a slightly raised risk of lung cancer (obs 14, exp 10). The incidence of laryngeal cancer was slightly raised among the shipyard workers (obs 24, exp 20) but not in the machine shop workers. No excess risk was observed among the welders. The incidence of cancer of the prostate was increased among the machine shop workers (obs 39, exp 31) but not in the shipyard workers. The excess was statistically significant for the welders. No pronounced excess could be found for other types of cancer. Analysis by the duration or exposure showed that the excess of lung cancer in the shipyard workers was most evident during the last period of observation (1972-81). No other trends were obvious and the slight excess of lung cancer observed among the welders did not increase with increasing follow up time. No excess risk for mesothelioma was found. The small excess of lung cancer in welders could be due to chance. The fact that only a small and statistically insignificant excess of lung cancer could be found among this group of heavily exposed welders suggest that if the risk of lung cancer was associated with welding this risk must nowadays be low and probably too low to be unequivocally detected in most epidemiological studies.

Occupational risk factors of lung cancer in a French case-control study.

A case-control study of 1625 histologically confirmed cases of lung cancer and 3091 controls matched for sex, age, hospital admission, and interviewer was conducted in France between 1976 and 1980. The results presented concern the effects of different occupations on the occurrence of lung cancer among 1334 male cases and 2409 matched controls. Occupations were coded blindly according to the International Standard Classification of Occupations. An excess risk of lung cancer was observed for the following occupations after adjustment for cigarette exposure: farmers (RR = 1.24, p less than 0.06), miners and quarrymen (RR = 2.14, p less than 0.02), plumbers and pipe fitters (RR = 1.80, p less than 0.04), motor vehicle drivers (RR = 1.42, p less than 0.01).

Cancer incidence among painters and some allied trades

Few studies have been directed toward the identification of occupational hazards in such heterogeneous groups as construction workers. Workers in specific trades such as painters, plumbers and pipe fitters, and insulators have exposures that can be defined and an attempt has been made to assess any excess of cancer and other causes of death in those groups. Retrospectively, three cohorts were defined: members of the painters' union and employees with certificates for insulation work and plumbing. The cohorts were followed up by record linkage with the yearly death registers kept by the Swedish Central Bureau of Statistics and the Swedish Cancer Registry. Each cohort was compared with Swedish males by comparisons between observed and expected numbers of cases. The total number of deaths in the painter group was 2740, which did not deviate from the expected number. Nor was there a deviation in the insulation group, with 41 deaths. The number of deaths in the plumber group, 836, was significantly lower than ...

SUBSEA PIPELINE CONNECTIONS AND REPAIRS USING DRY HABITATS

Research on hyperbaric welding was carried out by Comex several years ago.The first hyperbaric weld on site in 1975 was the result of about twenty hyperbaric tests performed at the Comex hyperbaric centre in Marseilles. These tests took place at simulated depths from 75 m to 155 m and allowed the evaluation of different welding processes such as Tungsten Inert Gas (T.I.G.), Manual Metal Arc (M.M.A.), Metal Inert Gas (M.I.G.).Divers, welders and pipe fitters follow extensive training programmes before being involved in evaluation tests. Professional welders are first selected for diving courses and qualified for subsea work. They then perform qualification tests on specified welding procedures and are finally assigned to various tie -in operations.Comex has designed and built four subsea pipeline connection spreads which cope with the range of operational configurations required by the industry. A spread consists of alignment equipment, welding habitat and diving system with the appropriate surface support. The range of sizes vary from a 12-tonne repair habitat to a massive 250 -tonne alignment and welding frame. The field applications of these techniques to this day have been in the North Sea in water depths ranging from 90 to 155 m.

Job Dissatisfactions in Construction Work

The objective of this study is to understand what job conditions or personal relationships dissatisfy management, field supervision, and workmen. In turn, by removing these sources of dissatisfaction, it should be possible for all to deal more effectively with individuals outside or within their hierarchical levels. Data were collected for 65 in-depth interviews of 1 hr to 5 hr each with management and labor from companies employing carpenters, electricians, plumbers, pipe fitters, and sheet metal workers primarily from St. Louis, Mo., with supplemental interviewing from Los Angeles and San Francisco, Calif. The results indicated that being dissatisfied about a job does not necessarily mean that individuals will reduce their efforts. On the other hand, personal relationships are strained and commumication suffers. It can be concluded that the initial step toward improving personal relationships would be to have management be more sympathetic to field supervisors' problems and provide the support needed to solve them.

Construction Productivity and Job Satisfaction

This article reports a portion of the findings of a study of the relationships between job satisfaction and construction productivity. Its objective was to clarify current thinking on personal work relationships, understandings, and communication as they affect home office management, field supervisors, and workmen. Data were collected from 65 in-depth interviews of 1 hr to 5 hr each with management and labor from companies employing carpenters, electricians, plumbers, pipe fitters, and sheet metal workers primarily from St. Louis, MO, with supplemental interviewing from Los Angeles and San Francisco. The research showed that in construction satisfactions are inherent in the work itself. It follows that efforts to improve job satisfaction and productivity lie in well-planned, smooth work flow rather than in job enrichment, as is advocated by organizational behaviorists for industrial or bureaucratic work situations.

Prevalence of chronic respiratory disease. Asbestosis in ship repair workers.

Study of pipe coverers, pipe fitters, and welders at a ship repair yard indicated that pipe coverers had more changes in their lungs, as evidenced by examination of x-ray films, and slightly lower pulmonary function than the other two groups. All groups showed slightly lowered pulmonary function as compared with workers who did new-ship construction and were not exposed to asbestos. Aerometric measurement showed levels of asbestos that were, in general, lower than current threshold limit values. These findings reemphasize the need for control of asbestos in the work areas, as well as careful medical surveillance of workers exposed to asbestos.

CASE RECORDS OF THE MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL. CASE 30-1964.

Presentation of CaseA fifty-six-year-old man entered the hospital because of seizures.Fifteen years previously exertional dyspnea and a cough productive of sputum developed, and x-ray films of the chest revealed pulmonary fibrosis; his occupation was changed to that of a mechanic after twenty-seven years as a pipe fitter. Three years before admission a routine film of the chest (Fig. 1) showed persistence of the changes in the lungs. Two years later methylprednisolone therapy was begun and was continued for eleven months. Two weeks before admission the patient entered another hospital for evaluation and while there had a seizure characterized . . .

CASE RECORDS OF THE MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL. CASE 18-1964.

Presentation of Case First admission. A fifty-five-year-old man entered the hospital because of a mass in the thigh.One year previously he noticed a painless swelling in the left thigh. It gradually increased slightly in size, and one month before admission an aching pain developed in the lateral aspect of the left thigh and knee. X-ray films of the leg taken at another hospital revealed destruction of bone, and a biopsy disclosed a malignant mesenchymal tumor.He had worked as a pipe fitter for more than twenty years.Physical examination revealed an apparently healthy man. The lungs were clear, . . .

SOLITARY MYELOMA MISTAKEN FOR FRONTAL SINUSITIS

IN FULMINANT frontal sinusitis, besides characteristic frontal pain, intranasal obstruction and purulent discharge, swelling of the periorbital tissues and protrusion of the globe frequently are seen. If these objective evidences are presented in a case with a history consistent with acute sinusitis, one might be excused for mistaking this common condition for the much rarer occurrence of myeloma involving the accessory nasal sinuses. Such a case is reported here. REPORT OF A CASE F. B., a white man aged 29, was a pipe fitter and welder and had served in the Navy in World War II. He was first seen by me on Jan. 25, 1947 with the complaint of sinus trouble for nine weeks. He had a headache of the left frontal area; proptosis of the left eye, which protruded outward and downward; nasal stuffiness, and dark reddish discharge from the left naris. History .—The patient had frequented commercial swimming