Heat stress in the workplace can cause death or serious harm, routinely causes workers to experience a range of heat-related disorders, and is implicated as the contributing cause to injuries and accidents. Heat stress has been part of many industrial processes from the time the process was created, and it affects people at work and play. Because it is so common, it is frequently discounted as an important hazard. The exposure assessment method developed in the early 1970s uses an index of the environment called the wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT), with a threshold value that decreases with increasing metabolic rate. The threshold curve establishes a sensitive measure for chronic, steady exposures to heat stress while wearing cotton work shirt and pants. Short-term exposures and protective clothing greatly limit the current WBGT method to the point that it is often not applicable. The research project will make the assessment process relevant to contemporary occupational heat exposures. This will be accomplished by providing (1) WBGT adjustments for different categories of clothing, (2) information on the heat exchange properties of the clothing for use in short-term evaluation schemes, and (3) an empirical exposure limit based on clothing and WBGT. In the first year, the WBGT adjustments and heat exchange characteristics will be established for five clothing ensembles by looking for a range of environments in which subjects representing typical workers can just maintain body core temperature at a moderate rate of work. The second year will closely examine the contribution of light, moderate and heavy work on the same factors for a representative set of clothing. In the third year, the emphasis will be on high heat exposures that result in limited work times. This last year will be the test of the heat exchange model and the source of data for the empirical exposure limits.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01OH003983-03
Application #
6598056
Study Section
Safety and Occupational Health Study Section (SOH)
Program Officer
Robison, William
Project Start
2000-09-30
Project End
2004-09-29
Budget Start
2002-09-30
Budget End
2004-09-29
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
2002
Total Cost
$253,750
Indirect Cost
Name
University of South Florida
Department
Public Health & Prev Medicine
Type
Schools of Public Health
DUNS #
City
Tampa
State
FL
Country
United States
Zip Code
33612
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Garzón-Villalba, Ximena P; Wu, Yougui; Ashley, Candi D et al. (2017) Ability to Discriminate Between Sustainable and Unsustainable Heat Stress Exposures-Part 2: Physiological Indicators. Ann Work Expo Health 61:621-632
Bernard, Thomas E; Ashley, Candi D; Garzon, Ximena P et al. (2017) Prediction of WBGT-based clothing adjustment values from evaporative resistance. Ind Health 55:549-554
Garzón-Villalba, Ximena P; Wu, Yougui; Ashley, Candi D et al. (2017) Ability to Discriminate Between Sustainable and Unsustainable Heat Stress Exposures-Part 1: WBGT Exposure Limits. Ann Work Expo Health 61:611-620
Bernard, Thomas E; Ashley, Candi D (2009) Short-term heat stress exposure limits based on wet bulb globe temperature adjusted for clothing and metabolic rate. J Occup Environ Hyg 6:632-8
Caravello, Victor; McCullough, Elizabeth A; Ashley, Candi D et al. (2008) Apparent evaporative resistance at critical conditions for five clothing ensembles. Eur J Appl Physiol 104:361-7
Bernard, Thomas E; Caravello, Victor; Schwartz, Skai W et al. (2008) WBGT clothing adjustment factors for four clothing ensembles and the effects of metabolic demands. J Occup Environ Hyg 5:1-5;quiz d21-3